The Blue Mountains felt a world away from Sydney.  We took the rain (too) early into Katoomba to a place shrouded in morning fog, which gradually burned away to reveal lush vistas and waterfalls.  Most people went no further than to gaze at the famed Three Sisters, so it was a pleasure doing most of the hikes in relative solitude.  Perhaps it was because no one else was crazy enough to hike in mud and rain.