Capertee Valley

The Capertee Valley is often described as the widest canyon in the world after the Grand Canyon, cut into the same sandstone as the Blue Mountains and ringed by orange cliffs and pagoda formations with Pantoneys Crown, an isolated mesa, standing near its centre. The Pearsons Lookout on the Castlereagh Highway gives the classic view across it. For birdwatchers it is a destination in its own right: around two hundred and forty species have been recorded, and the valley is one of the few reliable places to see the critically endangered regent honeyeater, which breeds here, with organised planting and monitoring programmes running for decades. Small farms and a few guesthouses occupy the floor.

History

The Wiradjuri people are the original inhabitants of the land around the valley, and rock art some 2,000 years old shows stencilled hands, boomerangs and throwing sticks. The explorer James Blackman first crossed the valley in 1821, sheep farming produced fine wool from the 1840s, the gold rush from 1851 grew Capertee village out of a few inns, and coal, shale oil and limestone were mined; the railway came in 1882, Henry Lawson mentioned the valley in a poem of 1891, and in the 1930s its deposits gained new importance with the Glen Davis shale oil works (Wikipedia, Capertee Valley).

Highlights

• The valley view - the immense sandstone amphitheatre from Pearsons Lookout.
• Pantoneys Crown - the isolated mesa standing in the valley.
• The birdlife - some 240 species including the rare regent honeyeater.
• The pagoda cliffs - weathered sandstone formations along the rim.

When to go

March to November for comfortable conditions; spring is best for birds, with regent honeyeaters most likely from August to November in good years. Summer is hot in the valley. Roads on the floor are partly unsealed and rough after rain.

Things to know

The regent honeyeater is critically endangered and sightings are far from guaranteed. Services in the valley are minimal, with no fuel or shops beyond Capertee village. Much of the land is private and access requires permission.

Nearby

Glen Davis at the valley's end has the ruins of a shale oil works; Lithgow lies south.

Key facts