An amazing 6 day trek through the outback (part 2)

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Continuing with update...

Weds 23rd April - We had to get up at 4.30am - yuck!!! We left Parachilna and drove to a big salt lake which looked like a white beach - of course, we had to lick the salt just to check! We ended up in Coober Pedy early afternoon and had a tour around the town. Our guide was called Natalie and was so enthusiastic! Coober Pedy is an underground town - everyone lives in dugouts which is weird! I was freaked out, but it was ok because most of the houses were normal ground level, but with hills over the top. We did a tour down an old opal mine, which was a bit scary! We also watched a movie about opal mining, in the underground cinema! And, we got a tour of a mock underground home which was actually very cosy. Heather, Mike and I wandered around and had a very quick go at "noodling" for opals, but alas no joy! That evening, we all went out for pizza, courtsesy of ATA (the company we were with). Then it ws off to the underground bar which hosts the only underground poker machines in the world! Very cool.

Thurs 24th April - Left Coober Pedy at 6am, stopping at Erldunda for lunch (salad sandwiches). Then we were on our way to Uluru!!! Erica put "I'm so excited" on the mp3 player and everyone was excited. It was so weird seeing Uluru in real life! Can't believe it's just a rock - it is soooooo huge! Just sat staring at it for a while. I remember, growing up, I always used to tell Nanny "One day I'll go there". I wished I could tell her I made it. Anyway....so we walked the "Mala walk" and Erica told us a few aboriginal dreamtime stories about how the rock was formed, etc. Then we drove up to a lookout and had champagne whilst watching the sun set over Uluru. That night, it was off to camp. We toasted marshmallows in the campfire and sat round chatting. Some people slept in swags but I defo didn't want to do that! So it was into a tent for me! It had locks on the outside, so I spent the whole night panacking I'd get locked in! Didn't get the best night's sleep!

Fri 25th April - Got up early to take a morning walk around Uluru, watching the sunrise. Unfortunately we were on the wrong side of the rock to see the sun actually rise over it, but it was great to see the rock change colour as the sun came up. Apparently it's the high iron content that makes it turn red. Clare, Aoife, Sophie and Jack climbed Uluru, but Clare and Aoife quit halfway, lol. Back to the bus for fruitcake and then we drove to the Olgas for yet another hike!!! After that, we went on our way to our overnight accommodation at King's Canyon, but our bus got stuck in sand on the way! Haha, we had only stopped to collect firewood! We had to detatch the trailer, and try pushing. Another tour bus stopped to help which was nice. In the end we had branches and sleeping bags under the wheels for traction, so the sleeping bags got really ripped up! Was funny though. We eventually made it to Kidngs Canyon which was another camp place (again, no swag for me!). We had Thai Green Curry and damper bread for dinner, and then played games around the bonfire. There was this one game which sounds SOOOO stupid - trying to say your animal name without showing your teeth. It ended up with everyone in hysterics. Then we played chinese whispers and did some brain teasers. I slept a bit better in the tent that night.

Saturday 26th April - last day on tour - booooooo!!! We had the best hike that morning - Kings Canyon. It took 3 hours but it was amazing! It was beautiful, with rocks that had beautiful markings - looked like pyramids! We went to a watering hole also, where we were supposed to have a minute of quiet, but of course that didn't happen! We drove back to Erldunda for lunch, where we'd been 2 days previously, so that made me a bit sad as the tour was now ending. Again though, the bus got stuck in the sand, cos Erica had wanted to take a detour to show us a car stuck in a tree! We got to Alice Springs about 6.15pm and got to our hostel, Haven. The whole tour group met up for dinner at Bojangles at 8pm, and then we went to "The Rock" bar (think that's what it was called) for some live music . Everyone got quite drunk and a good night was had by all!

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