The Rock - Uluru

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After a bit of a delay in Cairns due to mechanical problems, my flight to Ayers Rock got underway around 9:15 am, and after about 2 hours of flight, and a 30 minute time change (yeah, in Australia they have 30 min. time zone differences) we landed safely in the resort town of Ayers Rock, about 15 km outisde of the National Park. Ayers Rock resort is the only "town" in the center of Australia, and has only one purpose: allow visitors to be close to the Rock and the Olgas and enjoy the magic outback of the red center first hand. The only other access point to the Rock is Alice Springs, about 400 km to the northeast of here. The resort is actually quite amazing... all the land here is owned by the Aboriginals, and since Uluru and the Olgas are sacred places the access is controlled by the National Park and the cousel of Aboriginal leaders of the area tribe, the Anangu. So the resort pays a fee to the counsel to use the land for the tourists, and in return, no outside camping, other hotels or motels are allowed in the area. The resort itself though has

Waterfalls on Uluru
What an awesome experience!
everything to offer one could need out here. From a 5 star hotel to a backpacker lodge to a campground, grocery store, gift shops, bank, post office, school and kidergarten for the kids of all the employees, police, fire station, and an office for the Flying Doctors who attend to the medical needs of those living in the outback.
Anyhow, so after a quick shuttle transport from the airport to the resort, www.ayersrockresort.com.au, i had just enough time to grab some lunch before i was picked up by yet another tour... this time i was touring with Adventure tours Australia, and after meeting our small group 10, and our driver guide Aaron, we headed off into the national park to use the afternoon to hike around the Olgas, or Kata Tjuta (the places of many heads) .
The hike led us directly into the heart of the 34 rock formations that make up Kata Tjuta. We hiked through the Valley of the Winds and up to two very nice lookouts, catching the Olgas in the clouds and light drizzling rain. Yeah, rain at Uluru, quite a random experience actually, since it rains a total of about 30 cm a year

Uluru in the clouds
What a rare sight!
around here, and no rain had fallen at all since late January... so although i expected blue skies and the heat and sun, the rain was actually quite nice, and gave us the chance to experience the Olgas and Uluru in a very rare condition, which made the experience that much more special.
After completing the 9 km hike around the Olgas, we drove the 35 km over to Uluru, where the drizzle now had change to real rain coming down. Aaron, our driver was so excited, in all his 100 or more trips to Uluru, he had never seen waterfalls rush down the rock faces, and here we were, driving around the rock, chasing waterfalls.... amazing. . By the time we circled the rock and joined the 100's of other spectators to watch the "sunset", the rain was a bit lighter, and we set up our champaign and cheese and cracker picnic under a shelter, and enjoyed the atmosphere and the beautiful sight of Uluru. The great thing about the whole experience is, that although there are loads of people here with all kinds of tour buses, it still never feels crowded. The vastness of the land in front, behind, to the east and west is ever present and engulfes you completely. There is still a peacefulness and stillness that reminds you of the powers and the sacredness of Uluru.

After complete darkness engulfed us, and most the tourbuses left, we also took our leave and headed to our permanent campsite to enjoy a great aussie BBQ with steak and wine and then settled into our tents for an early sleep, since we have to get up 5 am to hopefully see a sunrise on the Rock in the morning.

good night folks

SL

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Photos

Waterfalls on Uluru
What an awesome experience!

Uluru in the clouds
What a rare sight!