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Published: January 13th 2011
From airplane
East of PerthJanuary 11, or better still, 11-1-11 Alice Springs
Our drive back to Perth was uneventful. We did stop at Bunbury for an hour but it really is just a bedroom city of Perth. We stayed the youth hostel in Perth which was a lot cheaper than the hotel and, though basic, clean and met all our needs.
Yesterday we flew out of Western Australia and I have to say that I am sorry to leave. Of all the places we have been on this is one that I could easily immigrate to. I loved the beaches, the land, and the sunshine…what more does anyone need from her environment.
Flying out of Perth and into the interior of this country was very interesting. As soon as we left the city limit’s the farms started to dominate the scene. There were miles and miles of fields enclosed with straight fences that create a quilted look of yellow. And then that abruptly ends leaving the Outback. The Outback is huge; reaching into the horizon no matter which way we looked. It is dry, red, hilly land with the lots of small (and large) dry lakes and rivers. Amazing as it sounds,
Outback
From the plane some of those lakes appeared to have water in them. All signs of habitation also seemed to disappear except for the occasional buildings (stations?) scattered into middle of no where. My nose was glued to the window for most of the flight or at least until we met up with the cloud bank. Yup, even in the middle of the desert we can find some clouds.
Any ways, Alice Springs is a pretty little place. It reminds me a bit of Merritt, in the interior of BC, just bigger spaces. And surprisingly, the country side is green. The area has had more rain in the past year than it typically gets in 4 years. It is green here, with water flowing in the Todd River which is usually dry. As I write this we are watching the flooding that is happening in Toowonga, Brisbane, and area. Alice Springs is not getting the flooding, but they are getting the rain. Today was a hot, muggy day (unheard of in the desert) and rain is predicted for tomorrow.
We did a hop on hop off tour today and visited many of the tourist spots in the area. Our first stop
The original Alice's Spring
The water hole the town takes it name from. was at the original Alice’s Spring and settlement. The springs isn’t a spring at all but rather the natural water level of the Todd River. The water was flowing when we saw it and quite picturesque. We even saw our first wallaby with a joey in her pouch. Some of the other places we visited were the Air school which is famous for its long distance education; and the Royal Flying Doctors building. Interesting, but short ‘tourist’ visits. We then spent the afternoon at a train and truck museum (just for Darrel.) The best part of all these visits is that there are very few tourists around; this is the low time of year but it is quiet even for that. Tomorrow we are heading to the Rock. It will be an 18 hour trip and guess what! They are predicating rain.
January 13
Uluru was way more interesting and awesome than I ever expected. I have to admit to thinking along the lines of ‘It’s just a rock, what is the big deal?” Well, it may be a rock but its shear size, location, and history made a trip of over a 1000 km (return) well worth
Alice's Spring
Actually the Todd river. the effort.
We were up at 5am to be ready for our 6am pickup by our tour company, Emu Tours. This outfit was our second choice but after our trip I would highly recommend it as a first choice to anyone doing a day trip to Uluru. By the time we had finished picking up all the other passengers, 38 of us, and being handed a breakfast of cheese, cracker, cookies, and juice, we headed out of town. Our two guide/driver, Lucky and Richard kept us well entertained with stories and history of the areas we passed through. One of the areas was the 3 million acre Curtain Spring Station which is owned by the Severon family. Other that bushes, trees, shrubs and lots of sand, not much else to see. Definitely a different life style.
Then as time went on we stopped to look at Mount Conner which is often referred to as the false Uluru. It looks similar but that is about all. So we kept going. After a washroom break we were served our lunch to be eaten as we traveled. The food just keeps coming. Then around about noon we saw Uluru from a distance…as we
Alice Springs
Telegraph post - original settlement passed by it to visit the community of Ulura. This town with up to 4000 people residents during its peak seasons is totally hidden from view because the buildings cannot be any higher than the sand dunes around it. Even when in the community it is hard to see the extent of it making the town wonderfully matched to the landscape. While there we visited a cultural centre where no pictures were allowed to be taken.
From there we were headed to the Kata Tjuta National Park. This park is a sacred area belonging to the local aboriginal peoples so other than a brief visit we did not spend a lot of time here. It is an impressive set of hills created from massive conglomerate rocks which made our footing a bit rough. None the less, we walked most of the way through this Valley of the Winds. This is a well deserved name as the wind blew steadily through the gap. And between the wind, the heat, and those wonderful Australian flies, we shortened our walk a bit. Did I mention that the Australian flies are a third the size of ours, three times as fast, and there are
Alice Springs
From look out 3 million times more of them. They love the shade created by our hats and love the sweat from our foreheads. Got to love Australia’s wild life.
Then it was back to Uluru. This is one massive rock made completely from sandstone. This is interesting because Kata Tjuta, which is made of conglomerate, is only 35 kms away. The other interesting comparison is that the sediment lines on Kata Tjuta, as most other mountains, are horizontal. Meanwhile, Uluru’s lines are all vertical which is one of the things that makes it so unique.
We drove around the rock and also walked along the base of one side. This area has numerous sacred sites that we were not permitted to enter, or take pictures of, but the areas we did see were impressive. Being sandstone, there are lots of naturals caves that have been used by people for thousands of years. Some of the areas have ochre paintings and all the parts have fascinating stories to go with it. I think the numerous stories helped to create the sense of awe we all felt. The final place we explored at the Rock was the natural springs at the back side of
Transportation Musuem
Darrel's idea of a musuem it. This areas was a natural hunting area because the water never dries up. It is also a very pretty spot.
On other site on the Rock is where so many tourist have climbed the 1.6 metres to the top. This climb is closed this time of the year, and may stay that way. Something like 35 tourist have died due to the climb.
By this time it was getting late so we drove to the sunset viewing area where our guides barbequed some tube steaks and set out salads. This was all topped off with sparkling wine in real glasses. Pretty nice when all the other tour groups got nothing but peanuts and drinks in plastic. Yes, I’m gloating.
The only disappointment is that because of the clouds, we did not get the bright red sunset that colours Uluru. But then, it didn’t snow, or rain, and the clouds gave some breaks from the sunshine. Instead of 45 C. it was only 35C.
We made it back to our motel by 1am.
Today, the 13th, we slept in and then visited the Alice Springs Desert Park. Another must do if you ever make it here. The park highlights
the plant and animal life in this desert area. We visited the nocturnal animal section and my snake from Augusta was identified as a Western Mulga snake…yes it is poisonous where as my Tiger snake was very poisonous. The guide there seemed a bit taken back that we had seen both these snakes within a day of each other. Anyways, we also watched a bird of prey show with very well trained birds. Amazing what can be done with food.
Tomorrow we are heading to Adelaide where we are going to have to make some decisions. Those floods of the east coast are not looking too promising. Everywhere we had planned on visiting are currently more than just a bit wet.
Love hearing from everyone. Please keep the responses and comments coming.
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gloria chaulk
Always nice to hear from you guys. Thinking of you, all the best Gloria.