Secluded and homely MOUNT VICTORIA , 6km from Blackheath and the last mountain settlement proper, is the only one with an authentic, unspoilt village feel. There's a great old pub, the Imperial , and the best scones on the mountain at the Bay Tree Tea Shop . Mount Victoria is also fondly regarded for its tiny cinema in the public hall, where the patron introduces the varied films and defends his choice. Worth a browse are several antique shops and a cluttered antiquarian and secondhand bookshop. Some short walks start from the Fairy Bower Picnic area, a ten-minute walk from the Great Western Highway via Mount Piddington Road: get details from any Blue Mountains tourist office, or ask at the Victoria and Albert Guesthouse .

The Hartley Historic Site (daily 10am-1pm & 2-4.30pm; tel 02/6355 2117) lies at the foot of the scenic Victoria Pass in the small valley of the River Lett, 11km from Mount Victoria. It's a well-preserved nineteenth-century village, which began to develop as settlers headed west and forged roads through the mountains. The need for a police centre led to the building of a courthouse here in 1837, and the village of Hartley developed around it until it was bypassed by the Great Western Highway in 1887. It's free to look at the site, and a map is provided in the NPWS information centre and shop (daily 10am-4.30pm) but to enter the buildings - only the courthouse is currently visitable - you have to take a guided tour (10am, 11am, noon, 2pm & 3pm; 30min; $4.40). There is no transport to the site.

Beyond Mount Victoria, drivers can circle back towards Sydney via the scenic Bells Line of Road , which heads back east through the fruit- and vegetable-growing areas of Bilpin and Kurrajong to Richmond, with growers selling their produce at roadside stalls. On the way you'll pass Mount Tomah Botanic Garden (daily 10am-4pm; $4.40; tel 02/4567 2154 for details of free guided tours), an outpost of Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens since 1987. There's a rhododendron garden, a display of conifers and a collection of southern hemisphere cool-climate species. The popular Garden Restaurant at the visitors centre (lunch daily, dinner Sat only; BYO; tel 02/4567 2060) has fantastic north-facing views over the gardens, Wollemi National Park and the orchards of Bilbin. If you spend more than $12.50 here, the garden entry fee is deducted. You can continue west along the Bells Line of Road to the Zig Zag Railway at Clarence, just over 35km away.