Australia - Ayers Rock
Ayers Rock, Australia
To See or Not to See - To Climb or Not to Climb
To see or not to see? That was the question as we walked the streets of Alice Springs in the centre of Australia looking for a way to go to Ayers Rock. We hadn't made reservations because at this time of year (November) there "isn't a problem." Well, this year there was a problem and Yulara, where everyone stays when they visit the rock, was full, or so it seemed. It takes over 6 hours to drive to Ayers Rock from Alice Springs, so renting a car wouldn't solve it unless we also slept in the car. Then we found out that the roads were not reliable this time of year (November) because if it rained the dirt roads would become impossible to navigate. Flying there and back was out of the question for all but the rich.
I couldn't decide if seeing a 348 metre high rock in the middle of a desert was really worth the trip. We ended up at a travel agent who suggested that there might be room on an overnight camping trip. How bad could that be, I pondered, me who had never been camping before. Okay, let's do it.
The 21-passenger minibus picked us up in the wee hours of the morning. As we walked down the aisle, our 50-year-old bodies gazed at all the young and healthy people already aboard. Had we made a mistake?
We set off for Ayers Rock via Kings Canyon and its spectacular scenery. Then on the way to the modern campground in Yulara we stopped to gather firewood for our camp stove. After a delicious bar-b-que and the vista of watching the sun go down on Ayers Rock, we were off to sleep in our "swags" - very heavy canvas sleeping bags - on the red desert floor. I tried to make myself think that the guides were just kidding when they said to keep our shoes inside the swag so a dingo wouldn't run away
with them.
At 4 am we were awakened and off we went to Ayers Rock, or Uluru (oo-loo-roo) as it is named by the aboriginals. The big decision: To Climb or Not to Climb? All the young bodies were eager, but we, the only ones, decided to skip it. That was fine our driver said, he will take us to a viewpoint to watch the sun rise on the Rock. That was indeed a worthwhile experience. The suns rays changed the colour of the Rock several times and it was magical.
Then we took our driver up on the suggestion that he let us off at the base of the Rock for about a 5km, 45 minute walk from where the rest of our crew would be coming back down the Rock.
Talk about a spiritual experience! We didn't see another soul as we walked around the well-marked path. It was eerily silent, the wind blowing just slightly rustling the undergrowth and desert trees. One particulary awesome sight was The Olgas (Kata Tjuta), an outcropping of rock formations up to 546 metres high (also very inspiring and worth visiting and sacred to the aboriginals). About 32 km away, it was glowing, absolutely glowing in the distance - seen across the flat red desert.
The Rock up close is stunning with its crevises and shapes - I could see how the people who lived here could call it a sacred place. Several places were marked with information about the aborignal rock art , caves and water holes. Some places were fenced off as being holy places. Now I understood. A booklet that you can purchase is "The Mala Walk and the Mutitjula Walk: An Insight into Uluru."
Yes, it is worthwhile to visit Ayers Rock (Uluru) -- don't miss it!
Sidebar: The tour had all meals included: 1st day tour Kings Canyon, sleep outdoors in swags at Yulara; next day climb Rock or take base tour, then walk among the Olgas and back to Alice Springs.