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Published: April 30th 2009
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Day 1 (Tuesday) - We got off a pretty uneventful 3 hour flight in Alice Springs. Everything was set up from there for the next four days, which felt pretty dang good. We were picked up by our hostel inside the airport. The outback is incredibly hot but doesn’t feel that hot because of how dry it is. When we got to the hostel, we immediately went into town to grab some food and supplies for the trip, including 2 x 1.5 liter bottles and some snacks for the trip. Upon arriving back at the hostel, we went to lay out by the pool but it was so hot that it was unenjoyable. I wrote a little on my blogs that afternoon, then we went into town to grab a pizza. We ordered one pizza but found that it was 2 for 1 night, so we got two. Good thing we did because the pizzas were tiny. We just kind of hung around the hostel that night and packed it in early as we were waking up at 5:30 the next morning.
Day 2 (Wednesday) - One of the main selling points on the hostel we chose was the free
breakfast they were supposed to provide. Unfortunately, it didn’t show up. So we started hungry. The tour was led by our guide Wayno, who was quite the trip. He had to drive the bus, lead the tour, drive the bus to our camp, set up the camp, set dinner, and then do it all over again 2 more days. We were off on our way to Kata Tjuta. It was about a 4 hour drive out there with a couple stops, including one for camel riding. Camels are a big business in Australia and considered to be the most purebred in the world because there are so many out there that the bloodlines stay separated. Some rode the camels but I chose to get breakfast instead. We got to our campsite by early afternoon, where we had lunch and set up the site for later. We then all packed back in the bus and headed to our destination. Kata Tjuta is a series of rock formations that were weathered by time. It is considered one of the most spiritual of all native aboriginal population. We had a nice walk that lasted a couple hours and was quite hot. That evening,
we went to a side of the road stop to view Uluru (tomorrow’s destination) for sunset. It was quite pretty. Afterwards, we got back to have dinner and we were all disappointed to find how little food was there for all of us. I was also surprised how poor the manors were of my fellow group members. As is my belief, I let all the females go before me, which meant I was usually dead last. I didn’t mind that but what I did think was rude was that many other guys and girls took this opportunity to eat quickly and then take the last of the leftovers as seconds before others could get seconds. There was no, would anyone mind if I took this and often they would take it before Wayno even had a chance to get any. The exceptions were the Japanese and Nigel. The worst of the offenders was a horrible group of four Brits, who brought down the potential for the trip just by being there. The British are an interesting people. I find them to be in one of two categories: 1) Thoughtful, kind, well-mannered or 2) Loud, abrasive, no understanding of manners. It
Uluru
As sun sets is funny how polar they are with Jimmy and Steve from South America being among my favorite travel mates and these Brits being among the worst. After dinner, it wasn’t long before we all went to bed. I was being vied for by the ladies to sleep next to them for protection. They were afraid of dingoes and wanted me to put my bed roll outside of theirs for protection. I asked them where they wanted me and I put mine down there. The funniest thing happened though; everyone surrounded me, making me the interior. Not very good planning and I couldn’t help but laugh.
Day 3 (Thursday) - We woke up early again so we could catch Uluru at sunrise. It was pretty but I have to admit that I didn’t see much difference from the night before as we went to the opposite side. Uluru is a solid piece of rock that came to the surface because of the pressures of the earth below it about 400 million years ago. It is what people most often talk about when they talk about the outback. We went to the rock, which no one was allowed to walk up
Native
Paintings and legends of the wave cave as it was too windy and therefore dangerous. However, I wouldn’t have hiked it anyways as the aboriginals prefer you not to. We therefore walked on a cultural path that was somewhat enlightening then walked around the rock. The circumference is 9.4 Km and with the heat I was starting to feel really stupid for walking around it before the halfway mark. I was very glad to be done. When everyone was ready, we piled back on the bus and went to the cultural center, which had some interesting reads. Afterwards, we went on our way to the night’s camp near Kings Canyon, the following day’s hike. I slept most of the way. When we got there it was overcast but about half of us went swimming. I went from being really hot to quite cold very quickly. It was very refreshing. That evening we hoped to have a bigger meal but only had a little bit more. We went to bed early this time and I actually was on the outside.
Day 4 (Friday) - We were at Kings Canyon before sunrise and hiked up a bit to catch Apollo on his rise from sleep coming over the
Not Hickory
Its poisonous rocky terrain. The hike in total was about 2 and a half hours and by far my favorite of the three. It was gorgeous, including a site where the weathering had created natural domes looking like huts that was termed the forgotten city. After the tour, we went back to our campsite from the night before so we could go for a swim and eat lunch. The swim was quite nice and the lunch was alright aside from the small portions again. Fortunately, we had bread and peanut butter, which as those who know me well can tell you made me quite happy. I tried it with vegemite and was surprised at how well they complemented each other. After lunch we piled back in the bus for our last ride together. I slept all the way to the restroom stop at which point I was told that Wayno had fallen asleep at the wheel and only woke up when a girl yelled at him (not a huge confidence boost for the second leg). The second leg of the journey, I requested upbeat tunes that any child of the 70s would know and Wayno, those others that knew, and I sang
Sun Rises
King's Canyon the rest of the ride. We got back to the hostel, then showered and changed. We had a group sendoff planned for 8pm at one of the bars. Many didn’t show up but many did. We had some laughs and when Wayno showed up he looked like the walking dead with bloodshot eyes. I can’t imagine how the tour company expects one guy to do so much and get enough sleep but it seems quite foolish. We stayed till about ten then went back with the large portion of the group. I used the internet for about 15 minutes then was off to bed.
Day 5 (Saturday) - I woke up at around 7:30 as my taxi to the airport was set to pick me up by 8. Breakfast was not there again and I was starting to believe that it was all a lie. This time fortunately, there was plenty of bread, so I made myself 4 pieces of toast. Soon I was done and Nigel woke up to see me off. It was interesting saying goodbye to Nigel after we had been such comrades for the last 20 days but I was off to Perth and he
was going back to Melbourne. I got in the cab, went to the airport and in no time was boarding the plane. I slept pretty much the whole way to Perth, tired from my adventures.
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