Glow worm tunnel and a sunset

We went on a little overnight camping trip at the weekend.

First of all we watched the sun set.
From here -

There were hazard reduction burns taking place which made the horizon a bit hazy but may have made the sky redder.

After a lovely night's camp we set off down the old coach road.
In places the descent would have been very exciting! It's quite steep. And would have been a bit of a pull on the way up.

There are some relics from the past.

Lovely forest.

We walked in an anti-clockwise direction around the loop so that we went up the old railway route, which has a much gentler gradient.

We got glimpses into the Wolgan Valley...and then this -

There's a pocket or rainforest before the tunnel with gorgeous treeferns.

The tunnel was part of the railway line which was built in the early 1900's on  to take shale oil out of the valley.

It's damp and uneven underfoot.

And very dark in the middle.

That's where the glow worms are.

It's pretty good.

You need a torch, but if you stand still and turn your torch off - you'll see the glow worms like little stars in the night sky. 

It's amazing country around there.
There rock formations called pagodas

Part of it is the Gardens of Stone National Park and part is the Wollemi wilderness area.

Highly recommended!

Sunday snippets - my week in instagram!

Are you on instagram?
You can find me at instagram.com/planettreasures.
Leave me your link in comments and I'll follow you too.

To market again - Millthorpe market {again}

Here we are again at the wonderful Millthorpe market.
This great event happens twice a year and is organised by the Public School, I believe.

Yes, I've been before as you may have seen here.

The central west of NSW really put on a great show on Sunday.
The weather was fab.
The people came in their droves.
They were happy and chatty.
And we all had a great day.

And I found some wonderful new stall holders.
Including Brooke of Twice Served who makes gorgeous cake stands -

and these sweet little bird feeders from vintage cups and saucers.
It's a bit hard to see form my photos, but she has 2 types - hanging ones and the ones on sticks.

If you would like to find out more (and see better photos) hop on over to Twice Served on facebook.

It's always nice to catch up with some market pals that I haven't seen for a while.
Although Michelle and I lives quite close we haven't been to the same markets for a while.
Michelle's creative business Mollymoo specialises in mixed media designs on canvas, cards, jewellery and more.
To see some more of Mollymoo's work and to find out where you can buy it go to www.mollymoo.com.au.

It's always great to put a face to a product.
I've seen Sian Thomas's lovey ceramic egg holders at the Cultural Centre at Katoomba...and then up she popped at Millthorpe.
Sian is a Blue Mountains lass too!
Pop over to her website to find out where her lovely ceramic creations can be found.

I fell in love with the cute and quirky mugs from Carcoar Pottery, but unfortunately I didn't get a photo, so I tracked one down on the website.
You must have a look - www.carcoarpottery.com

photo from carcoar pottery website

Lastly - as requested - here are some photos of my stall.

Sunday snippets - a sojourn in the country

Not chocolate! Saturday Seven

I was going to post this last weekend, when it was Easter, seemed somewhat appropriate!
But I was at a market on Saturday and we had visitors on Sunday...and *poof* the weekend was gone!

How was your Easter? Did you get lots of chocolate?
Mt daughter and I decided we would have a chocolate-free easter this year but unfortunately we forgot to tell my hubby! And we have the most divine chocolariere just down the road at Zokoko...so we ended up with just a little!

But it led my to wonder what are some favorite non-chocolate treats?

1. Champagne! Or a nice dry, fragrant rose (wine not the flower!)

2. Handmade soap - especially if it has patchouli in it!
This yummy soap is by one of my favorite soap makers - Inner Earth Soaps

3. Watching a movie at Gold Class: the works - recliner, glass of wine, something to nibble. Now that's the way to see a movie.

4. A decadent danish pastry, from a patisserie that knows how to do these things - with confectioners custard and a tart fruit like cherries or plums - yum!
One of my favorite places is the French Patisserie at The Rocks, or Black Star Pastry in Newtown.

5. Some gourmet little delicacy from a boutique producer - something like the ewe's milk cheese I found last weekend at the Burrawang market. Or a jar of spiced olives direct from the grower. Or some fancy-schmantsy pickle or preserve - you know the kind of thing!

6. A book. A good book. A book that is on my to-read list. Mind you, I have a stack of books as high as my bed to get through right now....but a good book is never wasted.

7. A night at home with my love - when he is not working and I'm not working and we can just sit together. Bliss!

How about you?
What would you choose?
If you decide to blog about this please leave a link to your blog in the comments so I can go and have a look.
Or you can just leave your picks in the comments.
Thanks and have a great weekend - with lots of treats!

Coffee and pastry

Coffee and pastry, a photo by planettreasures on Flickr.

To market, to market....

On Saturday I was at the Burrawang Easter Market held in the cute little town of Burrawang in the Southern Highlands.
Small town but big market!

The great thing about these one-off markets is catching up with old market buddies.
Some of them I have known for as long as I've been doing markets - 18 years or so.

Ann and Barry make the best leather wallets, bags and belts. We have bought quite a selection over the years.
I first met Ann at little Glenbrook market which was run by my friend Chris and got me my start in marketing!

Rhonda makes fabulous jams, pickles and relishes under her brand name - Victory Lane. Her husband Brian (who declined to be photographed) is a potter, but isn't potting at the moment.
I especially love Rhonda's morello cherry jam and her lime pickle is the best this side of the sub-continent!

It was a lovely surprise to bump into Lynn again. I met Lynn through her sister Lori. Then Lynn started making wooden items and selling them at the same craft co-op as me.
Well I can tell you that she has really branched out since then! She is turning beautiful pens, and cheese knives to go with her cheese boards.
You can find Lynn at Cobbitty market and Windsor markets.

 A regular market buddy is my friend Kirrily of needlevsthread who makes the most fabulous bags.

And Danette of Samibop, who was so incredibly busy that I couldn't get her to stand still for a photo.
Danette uses vintage fabrics to make the cutest children's clothing.

 I just had to post a pic of the delicious City Biscuits.
Absolutely yummy little cakes - and I think they must have sold like hot cakes!

- 

It was a wonderful market for quality craft, and some non-handmade items plus local produce - raspberry preserves, ewe's milk cheeses, local wines.
And of course a hot potato stall! {Nearby Robertson is the home of the big potato}.

I debuted my new gazebo roof - it's yellow! Can you spot it?

I also launched my bow ties for guys and girls -