After 18 days on the road, the Cooee marchers were due to climb Berghofers Pass on Wednesday, reaching Mt Victoria in the afternoon for a 3pm service at the war memorial.
It is the first in a series of services that will be held in various towns as the 34 men and women make their way across the Mountains.
The march is a re-enactment of the 1915 journey from Gilgandra to Sydney, which began on October 10 that year when 26 men left town on a recruitment drive. The original 515-kilometre march eventually arrived in Sydney on November 12 with 263 marchers signed up to fight in World War I.
The re-enactment will cover even more ground, said media spokeswoman, Lucie Peart.
"It's taking us a lot longer because we can't march along the highway," she said
Instead the marchers are taking secondary roads and forest trails to avoid traffic.
"There's a lot of blisters and a lot of sore feet. But the camaraderie has been building from about day two - if someone falls behind, everyone's willing them to catch up," she said
The march is following the original route and staying, as often as possible, where the original Cooee men stayed, be it in community halls or under the stars on ovals or showgrounds.
The marchers range in age from the 20s to the seventies and include several descendants of the originals. The oldest, at 78, is the march organiser Bryan Bywater.
There is also a team of support staff carrying bags, swags, food and water.
They have endured some very hot weather and some very rainy days. When asked which were the preferred conditions, Ms Peart said "somewhere in between".
The terrain has also been challenging.
"Since we got into the hill country, it's just up and down, up and down," she said.
But they have been warmly welcomed in the towns they have walked through, with flags and signs and cheers and waves boosting morale when weary bodies have most needed it.
And many communities have put on fine spreads.
"The hospitality has been incredible. It's no small thing to cook dinner for 53 people," Ms Peart said.
The marchers will roll out their swags on Browntown Oval tonight and head for Blackheath tomorrow morning for an 8.40am ceremony. They then move on to Katoomba for a street parade along Katoomba Street from 12.30pm, culminating in a ceremony at the RSL Club at 1pm.
On Friday, they will be at Lone Pine Ave, Leura at 8.30am, Wentworth Falls at 11.30am, at Lawson at 2pm and at Springwood War Memorial at 7.40pm. Everyone is welcome at all services. For full details of the route, see www.cooeemarch2015reenactment.com.
