Uluru Kata Tjuta national park

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The excitement built up on the long 5 hour drive from Alice Springs to the Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park. This was to be the fulfilment of a lifetime ambition to see Uluru (Ayers rock). A boring drive was anticipated through a flat terrain of red desert but in fact there was quite a lot of greenery with some trees and shrubs. Overall the journey was quite scenic and didn't seem to take too long. There was however the sheer sense of isolation and being in the middle of nowhere far from civilisation. In fact we hardly saw any vehicles en route. Just the occasional road train with supplies or a coach with tourists. We felt very much alone in the emptiness of the red centre of Australia.

Our first view of Uluru was from the viewing platform of the Yulara Ayers Rock resort. This was a truly awesome sight with the sheer size of the rock rising out of the flat desert. It was however, extremely hot and there were numerous flies. These were a major nuisance. We all opted to purchase some fly screen hats and these were essential in the evening when we visited Uluru at close range from the sunset viewing point. The changes in the rock colour as the light faded were amazing. The next day the alarm went off just after 5am. n It was well worth the effort to see Uluru at sunrise. It was a great experience to see the black rock with the orange sky behind slowly change colour as the morning light arrived. We enjoyed our short walk to the rock itself and went to a waterhole beneath a waterfall.

The next day we walked around the Yulara resort which was pleasant with nice gardens and swimming pools. In the late afternoon we drove out to the National Park Visitor Centre. This provided an interesting insight into the rock and the lives of the aboriginal people.

Finally we ended the day with a visit to Kata Tjuta (The Olgas). These comprised of a collection of rounded rock domes. We had a lovely walk along the Walpa Gorge to a dead end cliff face and a rock pool. The scenery and colours in the early evening and at sunset were magnificent.

The visit to the Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park was an amazing, unforgettable experience.

We set off on the Lasseter Highway on our long drive back to Alice Springs still searching for that one last look at Uluru as we gave our final farewell.

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Comments

[michelleandkev]

The Red Centre
So glad you enjoyed visiting Uluru and Kata Tutu; both magic places. I trust you enjoyed seeing "at night the glorious wonder of the everlasting stars".

[boro boy]

The red centre
You are right. Uluru was magical. The sky at night was super, so clear with so many bright stars to see.