So It Looks Like We're Not Climbing The Rock Then

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After a night in the resort, it was another early start to view the sunrise from the sunrise viewing area. The Yulara Resort has now all been bought up by a single company and is hence now a complete monopoly. As a result it is now very expensive. We were amazed that that was allowed to happen.

It was then finally off to Uluru itself. At this point we had a number of options that we could do, including the guided rim tour, a walk along the trail around the rock, the Aboriginal Cultural Centre and the climb.

We had already opted not to do the climb for three very good reasons:


• The message had been pushed very heavily that Uluru is sacred to the Aboriginal people, they own it and they do not want you to climb all over it - the main reason for us opting out in advance;
• It was obvious at first glance that it would have been irresponsible of us to take our young son and daughter on this climb as it is clearly quite dangerous - I had forgotten just how steep it is;
• On the day it was closed anyway, apparently due to high winds at the top (but, to be honest, I don't think they need much of an excuse, given the first point).


Apparently there's an iconic Japanese film where the two main protagonists climb Uluru and as a result it is quite the thing for the Japanese to do. A large number had gathered at the bottom of the climb and were obviously very disappointed. We felt sorry for them as they had clearly put their hearts into doing the climb. Sorry all, but I've done it twice (see So You Have Only Climbed Uluru Once Then)!

We decided to go on the guided rim tour, which was very similar to the tour I did last time I was here. We were driven round the based by bus with the excellent AAT Kings driver giving loads of information. There are various points on the rock that were only for Aboriginal men and others only for women and all of which are off limits for tourists. We got a description of what went on at each location, some of which was really quite shocking, particularly the initiation that the boys need to go through to achieve manhood. This consisted of hunting, outback survival, climbing the rock and, if they survived that far, a ceremony that seemed akin to mutilation and torture.

It was quite similar to what we had learned in Arnhem Land (see Lessons in Discipline).

The tour stopped off too see the Aboriginal rock art at the Mutitjulu Waterhole, which I had seen previously (see Climbing The Rock). We then checked out the Aboriginal Cultural Centre and then walked the Luru Trail, which is a short walk back to the rock.

The trail was not very well marked and we lost it at one point. We came across an area where there had clearly earlier been an Aboriginal gathering of some sort. The spears were still all pointing up out of the ground.

We understood that there are plans to extend the runway at the resort airport so that it can take Jumbo Jets, enabling more direct flights straight there. It's no surprise that the Aboriginal owners are giving the matter a lot of debate. The Governing Council will still meet in the traditional meeting place at the base of Uluru to formalise any decision.

It was then back on to Jenny’s bus and the ride to Watarrka National Park where Kings Canyon is located. Unlike when I came here last time (see A Taste of Outback Culture), the roads have now been surfaced so it was no longer the slow going crawl in a four-wheel drive.

Fortunately, there was only one hotel so there was no need for the usual round of drop-offs. This hotel was spread out with lots of small buildings, which was very in keeping with the location. It wasn’t as in keeping as the last time I was here however, when we slept on swags outside under the stars. We also found out that the Wallera Ranch that I stayed at last time had been knocked down in some dispute over ownership.

This hotel was also owned by the same company that owned Yulara, so another monopoly. We had the same as-much-as-you-can-eat and free for the kids meals, so it was still pretty good.

In the evening there was another lookout that we could go to for the sunset, looking towards a rock called Carmichael’s Crag. This was arguably not as spectacular as Uluru (see The Slow Pace of The Mature Peoples' Tour), however it was just so much more peaceful. There were no crowds, just about ten of us quietly watching the sun as it set and the changing colours of Carmichael’s Crag.

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Photos

Sunrise View
The view of Uluru at sunrise

Sunrise View
Uluru at sunrise with Kata Tjuta in the background

Bushfire Trees
Some of the tress near the rock long after a bushfire

Uluru Rock Art
The Aboriginal rock art gallery at Uluru

Carmichael's Crag
Sunset on Carmichael's Crag in Watarrka National Park