Empress Canyon is one of the most popular canyons in the Blue Mountains due to its accessibility and as a beginner level canyon. Compared to other canyons in the area, Empress is a wet canyon.
Most of the canyon is pretty straight forward walking ankle deep in water most of the time with several small jumps, a few swims, a slide or two and one abseil as the finale. It is also probably one of the most commercial canyons in the Blue Mountain range with at least 3 canyoning companies all racked and stacked behind each other at the final abseil.
It’s a relative short canyon and quick canyon that can be done from car to car within 2 ~ 3 hours with some people who can do it under and hour. The canyon can be split into two different sections, of both the upper and lower section available. The Upper section only adds only a little bit of time the whole trip and comprises of mostly creek walking with a small slide, down climb and a 3 meter jump.
The lower section is where most of the commercial tours starts and is the more interesting part of the canyon. The gorge sections are strikingly beautiful and the small jumps and swims are pleasant. The final 30m abseil is the high point of the trip. Abseiling down the centre of the waterfall with tourists looking on is a great feeling and such a nice view all around. Empress didn’t fail to impress. A nice quick beautiful canyon and perfect for the first time around before heading off to the bigger and longer canyons in the Blue Mountains.
Many thanks for Phil Wade who took us along and showed us Empress.
