DON'T STOP US NOW WERE HAVING SUCH A GOOD TIME - WE'RE HAVING A BALL!!!!!!!!!!!!

---

Getting up at 5am is not the best when our room was next to the bar and it was very loud until quite late. Dragging our sorry backsides up we headed off for our free breakfast in the hostel. The kitchen was very busy as there were alot of people disembarking on tours that morning. There was one toaster with only two slots working and 3 mugs which were taken so it was not really the best start to the day. Still once we had woken up we were both quite excited about heading off to Uluru. I have always wanted to see the sun rise over Ayers Rock.

There were 18 people in our tour normally there are up to 24 so there was plenty of room on the bus which was good because we were going to spend alot of time on there. It is 288 miles from Alice Springs to Uluru we headed off in the dark and within an hour had stopped at a camel farm where the heat of the sun was already shining through. A couple of people had a camel ride I opted for a bacon and egg toastie instead which was quite delicious. After a 20 minute break we got back onto the bus and set off again. It took 4 hours in total to get to the rock and believe me there is absolutely nothing to look at along the way apart from red soil and dry vegetation. It is surprising how things manage to grow in such conditions. We stopped along the way to pick up alcohol for our evening which was crammed into a hesky at the back of the bus and also to pick up our swags which we would be sleeping in. This was the first port of call for team work as they had to be loaded off the back of the previous tour truck and onto ours. Me and Tim got stuck in climbing over everything and loading them up with the help of some of the others. It was a good laugh and the first chance we had really had to interact with the other guys. Our next stop was to look at table mountain which is a large flat rock that can be seen from the highway. Sandwiches eaten along the way and finally we arrived at Uluru. Tim and I were keen to climb the rock but I was a little unsure as many of the books say that it offends the local aboriginal people as the walk follows a dream path and is considered sacred. They ask that you honour and respect their beliefs and do not climb. We spoke to Beej our guide and was surprised by his answer. Apparently one of the main reasons the aboriginals do not want you to climb is because they are concerned that you will get hurt or die. They believe that when you die your spirit stays on the land and because Uluru is not the land that you originate from they feel extremely sorry for you and perform rituals in the event of a death which can be pretty full on occasions which include self mutilation to help release the sorrow. Historically these sort of rituals would only have been performed every 10 years or so when an elder from the tribe would pass away. However, with the increasing number of people climbing and a small proportion of them dying this ritual is being preformed more regularly. We thought it amazing that the people would do this even though we are not aboriginal. Beej assured us that if we wanted to climb it was okay and not to worry. The day was getting very hot and by the time we arrived at the entrance to the national park the temperature had hit over 36 degrees, this meant that the rock climb had been closed as it is considered too dangerous in such temperatures. The climb is not re-opened even if the temperature decreases so in the end the decision was taken out of our hands. We were both disappointed but what can you do?

Uluru is an awesome sight and quite literally a massive impact on what is a pretty flat landscape. Before we went to the base of the rock we stopped at the cultural centre nearby which has been set up by the aboriginal poeple to give more information about their beliefs and rituals. It was interesting if very far away from what we believe in. Some of the stories are amazingly strange and hard to attribute to the world we live in today. It was interesting to see the bush tucker that the communities would have lived on including sweet nectar ants and witchety grubs. They would dig for the ants and then hold them by the head to suck the juice out of the body! yum!!!! The aboriginals are fiercely proud of their heritage and all the way through the centre they remind you constantly to have respect fot their beliefs. It would be easier to have that respect if they actually still lived their traditional lives but sadly there are very few aboriginals that live that way anymore.

Uluru is a single piece of sandstone 2.25 miles long, 1.5 miles wide it stands 348 metres above the plane and stretched 3 miles beneath. We were given two options by Beej, long walk or short walk around the base. We and a few others opted for the long walk which takes you around the whole perimeter of the rock in total it is a 6 mile walk. Although it was very hot we decided that we would manage and donned our boots and water bottles. From afar the rock looks like the exterior is smooth but when you get close its sides are awash with large crevises and massive holes. Inside these holes you can see the different layers of sand and the different colours. The external surface is actually red which is caused by iron in the sand but inside the holes you can see white and cream coloured sand. Along the way there are some very important aboriginal dream sites and there are many signs asking you not to take pictures in particular areas of such importance. Half way through the walk there are is a cave with age old aboriginal drawings and also a watering hole which is quite amazing in such a dry landscape. You are not allowed to go near the water as again it is considered a spiritual area for the aboriginies and played a vital part in the communities life when they lived on the land. The local aboriginal children were told that a large serpent lived in there to keep them out of it!!!!

We finished the walk after around 2.5 hours and it was really enjoyable. Our finish point was at the base of the rock climb and I must admit there was a large part of me that was quite glad it was closed as seriously it is very very steep and the ledge that you walk is not that wide. There is a chain to hang onto but that didnt look too secure and people have been blown off by the high winds or died from a heart attack!!! Not quite sure I would have had the nerve to do it anyway!!!!!

We left the rock around 5pm and set off to make dinner from a view point overlooking the rock for sunset. Beej gave us a rundown on how to set up our swags (large sleeping bags made of canvas) and how to fold them up properly which is quite important. It was made very clear that badly rolled swags would not be acceptable as they do not stack safely on the back of the wagon!!! Dinner was served, camel bolognaise and pasta which was really lovely. Apparently camel is very good for you as all the fat is held in the humps and therefore the meat is very lean. It was really good fun pitching in with everyone cooking and preparing and then even the washing up. Mind you when your washing pots overlooking one of the most amazing natural wonders it is quite different to a rainy day out your kitchen window!!!

There were quite a few other tours that arrived for sunset. The posher ones had a seating area set out like the cinema but I was really glad we were 'roughing' it as it was so much more fun. After watching the sunset which was really lovely Beej took us off out of the national park to set up camp for the night. Along the way we stopped to view the Olgas at dusk, their silhoutte looks like Homor Simpson lying on his back -quite hilarious. As the night got darker a few of the girls (me included) had started getting a little jumpy about snakes, spiders, lizards etc....Beej made it very clear that we had no reason to be concerned and that nothing was going to get us in the night. We were literally sleeping in our swags in the open under the stars. We pitched camp on the outskirts of the park and Beej got a fire going. After toasting marsh mellows and having a few beers we were pretty tired so we took our swags about 10 metres away from the fire and set up our own little camp so that the fire would not affect our view of the stars. I wish we could have pictured them because never in our lives have we seen such beauty on such a vast scale. Lying on the floor in our swags the land completely flat around us all we were encapsulated by a dome of stars. The milky way stretched right through the middle of the sky and looked like crushed diamonds. We both saw shooting stars (a first for me) and it was really hard to fight the tiredness when we wanted to stay awake looking at them. In the end tiredness won but we both woke up on a couple of occasions to sit in bewilderment at the pure beauty that surrounded us. I have never slept out in the open like that and although toilet stops in the bush were a little disturbing (guys have it so easy) I really enjoyed myself.

We had been warned by Beej that the following morning was a very early start, we were heading back to the rock for sunrise and then onto the Olgas. It meant we had to get straight up roll our swags and we would have breakfast at the rock. I was so conscious about having a good swag that as soon as Beej shouted to get up I was off sorting it out and making sure it was rolled properly. My eyes had not been open for more than a minute and we were doing it in the pitch black. I thought I made a good job and Beej did congratulate everyone on their efforts!!!

So off we headed for sunrise at the rock.................................

---

Photos

The cattle station camel farm
just a little place in the outback ya know!!

I never expected the sides to have holes!!!!
WOW!!

Comments

[mariah]

yum! camel! awesome photos!