Two Maples, a classic 1942 cottage set amongst a cold climate garden, will welcome you to slow down, rest and enjoy Blackheath. This is the kind of house where you’ll walk in and want to sink into the lounge in front of the open fire with a great book, where you’ll take your time cooking in the kitchen with the wood burning oven. It’s a place of lazy afternoons in the garden, of long nights chatting by the fire and where cool mountain air sends you to sleep. Good dreams happen here. Originally our home before we moved to Sydney, our Blackheath cottage - named for the two Japanese Maples that stand on either side of the house - is the perfect base for you to enjoy the Blue Mountains. Two Maples comprises two bedrooms - the main with a Queen bed, the second with two single beds, with all featuring Morgan & Finch bed linen. The bathroom offers a shower over bath combination, with nice little touches including Koala Eco body wash and Sheridan towels. The comfortable living room has plenty of seating to stretch out, a Jetmaster open fire, TV with Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, and a range of books and DVDs. The light-filled kitchen is sure to please, with an inviting Nectre slow combustion wood burning fire and oven. You might find yourself baking a comforting Lumberjack cake or Tarte Tatin, perhaps a simple Margherita pizza or maybe a slow roasted leg of lamb that melts off the bone. The kitchen also features modern conveniences including a gas cooker, dishwasher, microwave, Nespresso machine and - should you wish to do some baking during your stay - a KitchenAid stand mixer. A lovely little dining room is situated adjacent to the kitchen which takes in views of the back garden. At the front of the house, between the two Japanese maples, is a sunroom and study, well set up for remote working (comfortable office chair, fast WiFi, printer and landline phone), and the generous armchair and ottoman is also the perfect place to take in the afternoon sun.

I currently live in Sydney but also spent some years living in the Blue Mountains so I know just how special this area is. My wife Sarah and I love good walks, food and coffee and you’ll find all of this in Blackheath!

Two Maples is situated on one of the nicest streets in Blackheath. Given it is ideally located within easy walking distance of both the village and Govetts Leap lookout, it’s the perfect place to rest your head for your Blue Mountains getaway. A quick list of ideas for your stay: Govetts Leap lookout is a must and within easy walking distance of Two Maples. Blackheath Village has plenty of shops, cafes and restaurants. The Friendly Grocer and the IGA are good for groceries. Good quality fruit and veg is available from the Veggie Patch, and the butcher has excellent meat. Go to Hounslow for good coffee (though most places are pretty good). Our pick of local restaurants are Blaq, Ates and Cinnabar. The Gardners Inn does a nice pub feed. Mount Wilson is a half-hour drive away, and features some spectacular gardens. Check out the book on the coffee table, ‘A Passion for Place’, which has historical information on each of the gardens. Make sure you check online before visiting to see when gardens are open, as some only open seasonally. Our favourites are Windyridge, Nooroo, Bebeah and Breenhold. Visit the Megalong Valley (about 20 minutes drive) for wineries and Shipley Plateau for Logan Brae apple orchard (only open seasonally). If you are out this way, be sure to check out Mount Blackheath and Hargreaves lookouts. Another spectacular lookout is Anvil Rock (down the end of Hat Hill Road) - on a clear day you can see back to Sydney. Or…do none of this, and simply grab a book off the shelf, a glass of wine and cosy up by the fire! Getting around The shops are about a 20 minute walk from the cottage. Alternatively, you can generally find parking around Blackheath village - a couple of minutes drive from Two Maples. On busy weekends you may need to find parking further down on Wentworth St or Govetts Leap Rd.