Ironfest is an annual event we always enjoy attending. This year’s event, ‘Fusion’, the 9th annual Lithgow District Ironfest 2008, will be held at the Lithgow Showground over the weekend of April 25, 26 & 27, 2008.

Ironfest is a very popular event with lots of interesting and exciting activities such as the Australasian World Jousting Tournament, art exhibitions, market stalls, blacksmithing demonstrations, music, and many other fun happenings.

There’s some more information about Ironfest at their official site,  http://www.ironfest.com.au/

Lithgow is just a 20 minute drive from Cedar Lodge Cabins and now would be a good time to book if you are interested in attending Ironfest.

John has finished another portrait that was commissioned by our friends Jenny & Colin and here they are taking delivery of their painting.

It seems that magic does happen at the Talisman Gallery & Pizza Café with the major transformation of the woodfired oven. In just over a week it was out with the old and in with the new as our pictures show.  We had one of the last pizzas from the old oven (top) and we just had one of the first from the new oven (bottom) and can happily say they are just the same if not better!

When you are coming up to the mountains you need to put this on your list of must do visits. Not only can you enjoy the fabulous woodfired pizza, coffee and homemade desserts, you can actually do all your gift shopping as well.  The café is  attached to the Talisman Gallery which specialises in inspired metal creations including, candelabras, mystical mirrors, handcrafted unique furniture and sculptures.  A great place to do all your Christmas Shopping the stress free way. 

John Keily (above, right), one of the owner/managers of Cedar Lodge Cabins, is also an artist. After working on landscapes for some years, he has now branched out into portraiture. Here is our friend, Mark, with the portrait he commissioned from John.

If you are interested in commissioning a portrait, please contact us.

We have uploaded to our Flickr site some scans of postcards from our family postcard album showing some sights in Katoomba and Jenolan at the turn of the twentieth century. The cards in this album were collected by one of our great uncles and other members of the family between 1896 and 1918.

The photo on the right is of Government Accommodation House, Jenolan, and the postcard dates from around 1900. Click the photo to see a larger image.

On Saturday 21July, Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, the last book of the Harry Potter series, will be launched worldwide. The famous Zig Zag railway at Lithgow will be the scene of one of the Australian launches of the book, where many junior “witches and wizards” will converge on Platform 9 and three quarters to board the “Wizard Express”.The timetable is at http://www.wizardsexpress.com.au/

Lithgow is just 20 minutes away from Cedar Lodge Cabins!

Recently, parts of the Blue Mountains, including Cedar Lodge Cabins at Mount Victoria, were snowed in. Here are some of our photos of the scenery at the Cabins and in Mt Victoria itself. Click on each thumbnail image to see a larger one. You can see more at our Flickr site.