Pulling out all the stops: rail revival in country NSW

Lithgow has always been a trailblazing town, a technological frontier. The imminent re-opening of the engineering marvel that is the Zig Zag Railway puts the spotlight back on a town - two hours west of Sydney - keen to "edit" its tourism profile as it transitions from a coal-based employment hub to one that's emissions-free and sustainable.

While the Big Miner's Lamp adorning the Lithgow Visitor Information Centre shouts out its coal-town underpinnings, the story of Lithgow - a town of 20,000 people west of the NSW Blue Mountains - is bigger than that. The town boasts an abundance of "firsts": in aspects of mechanical shearing, iron, steel, oil shale refining, meat-freezing and an integrated wool industry.

Today, along with the picturesque reminders of an industrial past, the region has niche agriculture that delivers saffron, garlic, truffles, mushrooms, and award-winning goat's cheese; cafes and restaurants included in the Australian Good Food Guide; the recently re-opened Gang Gang Gallery; numerous valleys, national parks, gardens and celebrated pagoda rock formations; charming villages (Rydal, Tarana); and artists' collectives.

Accommodation, meanwhile, runs the gamut from motel to mansions, inns to eco-pods, BnBs to villas.

Groups such as the Lithgow Community Power Project are advising on renewable energy, transport technologies and a greater sustainability in agriculture. And the local council has announced an electric vehicle strategy that will look at how best to implement EV charging stations in the town.

Jeremy Dawkins, a co-founder of the LCP project, sees enormous potential in capitalising on Lithgow's authenticity: "What's actually here - the families, the landscape, the original buildings - and what is produced or generated locally provide a wonderful sense of place and natural stories."

Here are nine great places to visit around Lithgow.

When it opened in 1869, the Zig Zag Railway was the first rail link to the western region of NSW, its steam locomotive traversing several sandstone viaducts and some of the most spectacular mountain country. It took 600-700 men two-and-a-half years to build what is essentially a giant "Z" carved in the side of the mountain. Trains travel down each part of the "Z" at a gradient of 1 in 42. In 1910, a 10-tunnel deviation was completed, relegating the original Zig Zag to Reserve status. The railway closed in 2012, its subsequent restorations and repairs thwarted by fire, flood and frailty. But this month, it received its full accreditation to carry passengers, and is poised to announce its opening date following the restoration of locomotives, carriages and 11 kilometres of track. The railway will operate every second weekend. zigzagrailway.com.au

This 19th-century village on the western edge of the Blue Mountains consists of 17 buildings dating from the 1837 Greek Revival courthouse to the timber and iron Corneys Garage built in 1945. The village has two galleries: Talisman gallery, the workshop of local metal artist Ron Fitzpatrick and the Kew-Y-Ahn Aboriginal Gallery project, the work of Indigenous painters, weavers, designers, jewellers and photographers from the region. Restorations, new self-guided tours and new accommodation are in train. lithgow-tourism.com/hartley

It's a long way from the onsens of Kyushu, but the surrounds are just as serene and sensory. Enjoy a recharge of body and spirit with a traditional bath house purification, a massage of choice that blends Thai and Japanese techniques, tea and slippers. Further soak up the tranquillity in overnight accommodation, if desired. japanesebathhouse.com.au

The Small Arms Factory, built in 1912, was the first modern manufacturing plant in Australia; it has equipped the Australian Defence Force for more than 110 years. The factory made not only weaponry but metal components for household objects such as sewing machines, mix-masters and golf clubs. lithgowsafmuseum.org.au

The World Heritage-listed Wollemi National Park is rich with pagoda rock formations, extensive flora and a wide array of native wildlife including kangaroos, wallabies and glow worms. The Glow Worm Tunnel Walk is an 11.5-kilometre, grade 3 hike that takes around four hours. The walk into the tunnel follows a disused railway line, which once descended into the Wolgan Valley, transporting oil shale. Thousands of glow worms turn darkness into dazzling light. lithgow-tourism.com/glowworm

Built from local sandstone in 1842 for Thomas Brown who established the coal industry in Lithgow, Eskbank House stands in a hectare of beautiful lawns and gardens. The rare, intact colonial estate includes a domestic smithy and hexagonal garden folly. The museum houses a collection of Victorian furniture and pottery of national significance. eskbank.lithgow.com

The Gardens of Stone National Park is 30 kilometres north-west of Lithgow in a World Heritage area featuring more rock pagodas, sandstone cliffs, canyons and spectacular views of Baal Bone Gap. Keep an eye out for threatened birds, rare yellow pagoda daisies, blue tongue lizards, wood geckos and the odd koala if you're lucky. A $50 million state government investment announced last December will in due course bring new walks, a zipline, low-impact eco accommodation and campsites to a dedicated State Conservation Area. gardensofstone.org.au

Based on Buddhist, Taoist, Samurai, Confucianist and Shinto gardens and set around a huge lake, this is a serene landscape of Japanese maples, flowering cherries, shapely conifers, waterfalls and rock sculptures. And a moon-viewing platform. A lifetime of work for Alan and Margaret Jackson, the Little Hartley pit-stop changes with the seasons (autumn season closes May 23). Allow at least an hour to soak it all up. Entry is $20. Call before you go, 0414 933 467. maplespringsnurseryandgardens.com.au

Australia's oldest working pottery and home to the second oldest wood-fired kiln is today an artists' collective where painters, potters, blacksmiths, illustrators and sculptors create and display their work by appointment (director Jillian Ashworth, 0413 573 628). Paintings, prints and iron work are also sold online and it runs events, workshops and tours. facebook.com/Oldlithgowpotteryartschool

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