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Published: March 24th 2008
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Breakfast was a dark affair to start with as we arrived very early for the sunrise. After tucking into weetabix and an excellent cup of coffee the washing up had just begun as the sun started to rise. I watched the first part whilst drying plates and then having done our bit of the tidying we sat for a while just watching and waiting. It happens so gradually that before you actually know it is daylight. It is true that the rock changes colour through the sunrise and it was so peaceful as no other tours come for the sunrise. There was only us and another Mulgas tour there. It was a lovely start to the day if a little cold (thank goodness for Tims fleece). Having packed up we set off for the Olgas and our morning walk.
The Olgas are 36 rock domes named Kata Tjuta (meaning many heads) by the aboriginies, The olgas is it's western name. All of the names have been reverted back to the aboriginal ones since the land was returned to them some years back. It is a system of valleys and gorges 25 miles west of Uluru. It has significant values to
the aboriginal people as this is where the boys were taken for their manhood teachings. Women were not allowed here and even now aboriginal woman do not visit the area. The tallest rock formation here is 200 metres higher than Uluru. There is also a temperature limit for the walk which is why it tends to be done in the early hours. Beej wanted us to be the first to get into the park as the walk gets very busy we got there just as the park opened.
Again we had two options, the walk has a look out point which you can either turn back from or you can continue on for the whole walk. We decided that we would do the full walk again. The walk was quite steep in places but within the first 10 minutes as the sun started to rise we were fortunate enough to see our first Kangaroo. As we were at the front of the walking party we got a pretty good look at thim - not long enough to get the cameras out as the later walkers startled him and he disappeared. We were quite pleased though and Beej did say
we had been very lucky as they normally stay away from the walking path. By the time we got to the look out point which was at the top of a steep hill it was getting quite hot. The views across the valley are amazing though and we were both determined to continue the walk. Beej collected us together at this point and told us some history of the aboriginal culture and about the boys introduction to adulthood.
After a good question and answer session most of which Ive already put on the blog we set off to finish our walk. You can understand why the walk can get shut in extreme heat as the second part has some quite steep parts and we were walking it around 10am already feeling the heat. We both agreed that you have to remember to keep looking around you as the rocks are loose in some places you tend to find you are studying the floor rather than the surroundings!!! By the time we got back to the bus we both understood the term bush whacked and were really pleased when Beej said he was taking us to the local Ayers rock
resort where we would have lunch and get the chance for a shower and a swim. Hoorah we were shattered and really needed a chill out!!!!
The resort did not look that inviting and although I cant remember the exact amount Beej told us the rooms there are damn expensive. We used the facilities in the camping area. After preparing and enjoying a wonderful fresh lunch of salad, tuna, bread and cheese we helped pack away and headed for the pool. By this point we had got to know a few others on the tour and we had spent quite alot of time chatting on our walks with a girl called Chloe. There was also two Canadians Andy and Amber who were really nice too. After 20 minutes of playing ball with the others in the pool Chloe and Tim were chatting while I took a shower and it turned out that she works for one of my biggest customers. It just goes to show you what a very small world it actually is!!
Refreshed and clean we headed back for the bus and the 2 hour trip to the Kings Canyon area where we would pitch camp
for the night. Officially we should have been staying at some cattle station that night but so many of us had asked Beej if we could pitch camp again that he agreed. He said he had heard of a pretty decent spot near to where we needed to be but had never camped there so we headed off for another night under the stars.
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