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The Duke and Duchess met survivors of bush-fires in the Blue Mountains
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have met Australian families whose homes were destroyed by wildfires last year.
The royal couple spent the day touring the Blue Mountains as part of the second leg of their trip Down Under.
They visited the town of Winmalee, which was ravaged by the fires in October, where they also talked to firefighters who battled the blazes.
One man who lost his house said the royal visit made those affected feel like they had not been forgotten.
William, Kate and Prince George arrived in Australia on Wednesday, having completed a tour of New Zealand.
'Not forgotten'On Thursday, they took in the sights of the Blue Mountains region, near Sydney, which suffered devastating bush fires and where hundreds of homes were burnt to the ground.
Adrian Harrison, whose house was destroyed, told reporters: "Here we are five months down the track after we lost our house and for them to come out now, it makes us feel like we haven't been forgotten."
The duke and duchess also vowed to return to the Blue Mountains - one of the country's most visited beauty spots.
The pair will spend 10 days travelling across Australia, visiting its famous sites, honouring its war dead and meeting locals.
William and Kate visited Echo Point in Katoomba to see the famous Three Sisters rock formation, where they were also greeted by Aboriginal elders representing the indigenous landowners.
The elders presented the duke and duchess with a possum skin coat for Prince George and a kangaroo coat for themselves.
"That's fantastic thank you very much, he'll love that - very warm," William said of the gift for his baby son.
According to elder Aunty Sharon Brown, chairwoman of the Gundungurra Tribal Council, a baby would traditionally be given a possum cloak with another pelt added to the garment for significant milestones during its life.
'Very impressed'They were also greeted by around 3,000 well-wishers, who lined crash barriers at Echo Point.
Anthea Hammon, joint managing director of Scenic World, which runs the visitor centre at the beauty spot, guided the duchess, while the duke spoke with Randall Walker, chief executive of Blue Mountains Lithgow and Oberon Tourism.
After speaking to Kate, who wore a Diane von Furstenburg wrap dress and wedges, Ms Hammon said: "She loved it, it's a pretty stunning day. She was amazed about how far you could see.
"I was talking to her a little bit about bush walking, she likes walking and there's lots of places to walk here in the Blue Mountains. She said she was keen to come back."
Mr Walker said William had been "very impressed" with the views and was interested in the Aboriginal legend about it.
"He was surprised to learn it's the most visited regional site in Australia," he said.
The royal couple also did a walkabout, meeting the crowds who had waited to greet them.
Sarah Barman, 22, said: "William came over and said 'what a great spot for a picnic'. He was so charming, he was lovely, I've been waiting three hours but it was worth it."
Meanwhile, the pair narrowly avoided a minor incident, which happened before they arrived in the town of Winmalee to meet the bushfire survivors.
Two men had allegedly harassed some locals, who had gathered to greet the royal couple, before being moved on by police.
A New South Wales Police spokesman confirmed: "At 12:10 (local time) today police stopped and spoke to two men aged 37 and 21 who were allegedly harassing members of the crowd who were gathered at the corner of Single Ridge Road and Vista Road, Winmalee.
"The pair were moved on from the area prior to the motorcade coming past."
Prince George did not take part in the tour of the mountain region. The duke and duchess are expected to bring the eight-month-old to Taronga zoo in Sydney on Sunday where an enclosure housing bilbys - a rabbit-like marsupial - will be named after him.
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