We set off from Coober Pedy around 7:30am heading north for our next leg of the trip Uluru (Ayres Rock). Stopping at Marla for a refuel of diesel and what was supposed to be a coffee stop soon turned into a 40 minute breakfast stop for Mumma and Pappa Bear. Back on the road… not for long thophotough as over the CB radio was “someone needed an urgent toilet stop”, and we will see you at the next stop. After a couple of hours driving we stumbled upon the Northern Territory / South Australia Border and waited for the convoy to catch up for a quick photo opportunity.
Half way to Uluru we were and we needed one more diesel top up at Erldunda @ $2.03 per litre plus another wake up juice (coffee) to go the final distance. Are we there yet, can you see Uluru – yes I can was screamed out! Just above the tree line we could see this monster of a rock on the horizon, with over 145km to go I could not believe the what I was seeing. This excitement soon turned into laughter as we realised this was not in fact Uluru but Mount Conner, which stands 859 metres above sea level, back to driving and seeing who can see Uluru first.
The next time we saw Uluru it was basically right in front of us as the road took a left hand bend – what an impressive sight it was. We arrived into the Ayers Rock Resort around 5:30pm and drove around to the camping grounds, joining the queue of all the other travellers to check in and set up. After about 45 minutes we finally drove in, setup camp and headed straight back out to the Resort Town Square. We had decided to dine out with the Danger Dan & Josh the Pilot, our chosen diner was the Gecko Cafe where we enjoyed burgers and pasta – a little pricey for the serving size but tasty.
ULURU SUNRISE
Wednesday 11th July, 5:30am and off in the car we went to join the line to enter the Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park. We were given the heads up to leave this early by the travelling duo Simon and James and lucky we did. We might have been around the 5th vehicle in line but there must have been at least 60 vehicles behind us – good advice, all this was to ensure we could get a park to experience the Sunrise onto Uluru. The outside temperature was cold (0 degrees) but it felt like -5 with the car sensor reporting -3 and my first warning from the trailblazer “icy roads drive with care”. Was the wait worth it, well we all think it was, it wasn’t what we expected but still a spectacle in its own right – thanks to Josh the Pilot for the time-lapse footage.
It was time to warm up and get some of that liquid gold, heading into the Uluru Cultural Centre we enjoy the warmth of liquid gold and the girls tried a Chai Latte as they were waiting for the milk delivery and were not making milkshakes! By this time it was around 10:00am and we had decided to now drive to the western side of Uluru to see if we were able to climb this master piece – unfortunately the sign was “No Climbing due to high winds” @ 6 Knots I was not sure what high winds meaning was. With this decision taken away we opted to walk around the base of Uluru (Mala Walk). Completing the return walk we were hoping to see that the sign had changed status to open but it hadn’t so we all returned back to the Camping Grounds for lunch.
Emily and I were enjoying kicking the football around the campsite when out pops Brianna from the shadows of Instagram and asked if we were going to head back to see if Uluru was open to climb. So in the car we jumped and headed back to Uluru.
CB Radio call out “Hey Schnitty” the rock is open, I repeat the rock is open, text message back to Danger Dan & Josh the Pilot – the climb is on. Belinda, Brianna, Emily and I stared at the rock from where you start the venture, we headed up – unfortunately for Emily her shoes were slipping way too much and Belinda having climbed it 26 years ago was not that fazed to sit this one out. So backpack on, plenty of water as Brianna and I started the trek up the rock. We were on a mission as later that evening we had a booking for a Camel Sunset tour that we had to make it back for, wasting no time we climbing the rock as quick and safe as we could go within a certain timeframe – we had made the top! but not the end…. On the way down we saw plenty of peeps that really maybe shouldn’t have been climbing the rock at all – one with a full ankle aircast and another couple of peeps without any shoes, but who am I to judge right!
Later on that night we met at the bus stop for our Camel Sunset tour, well most of us did – as Danger Dan and Pilot Josh were running late and lucky for them had seen the bus on the way, did a you turn and followed the bus. The bus driver gave them a serve once we arrived at the Camel Farm and this basically set the tone for the tour, a very friendly relaxed bunch of cameleers that had a great sense of humor. After a small safety introduction we were assigned our Camels (unbelievable, but for the second time in her life Belinda got Lucky) and were soon climbing on their backs to be leant forward and then backwards as these amazing animals get up from the ground. We walked around the sand dunes where we were told many facts about Camels until reaching the point to watch the sunset on Uluru – what a backdrop. Finally heading back into the ranch where we enjoyed a couple of beverages and freshly baked damper – yummo.
Finally this of course was Pilot Josh’s birthday (and Schnitty’s the day before) and we all went out for dinner at the Bough House Restaurant. I good feed for all and a massive first day experiencing Uluru to the max – hopefully a birthday Josh the Pilot will not forget for a long time.
Thursday 12th July, it was a slower start for us given the day we had before and today’s adventure was the second major draw card to Uluru, The Olga’s. The Olgas were just as amazing given their size and vast distance, making them an awesome backdrop on any horizon photo. We had decided to keep this day a little low-key and opted for the shorter walks and chose to complete the Walpa Gorge walk (2.6km) and then headed around to the Valley of the Winds walk to the Kara lookout (2.2km). Both walks gave their unique aspect of what the Olgas and its beauty. The time was now late 2:00pm (I recall) and we all wanted something to eat for lunch – back to the Uluru Cultural centre, lucky for us they stopped serving at 2:00pm but continued to keep the kitchen open due to the masses of people coming in. It was here that both Belinda and Emily wanted to share the excitement from the day before and experience the views from climbing Uluru and the beautiful surrounding landscape, I should also mention that Brianna felt cheated by not finishing the climb to the end (Sun Dial). So off we went back to Uluru to see if it was open, the time now was 4:00pm and I was expecting it to be closed honestly but it wasn’t. So the four of us started the trek up Uluru, this time we didn’t need to race around as we had no other plans and I could take in the views – deciding to even share the live experience with my Facebook friends. Unfortunately Belinda had to return to the bottom by herself after climbing 3/4 of the chained section as her ankles were not up to the task with all the previous climbing completed already. Brianna, Emily and I continued on journey to reaching the end point and we once again enjoyed a live stream for all to see. The girls did an awesome job climbing Uluru as it is not an easy task to accomplish, with many hair-raising moments that certainly test your willingness to continue. With all things you climb you must come down, this was 100% easier today as the masses of people were not there in your way due to the ranger closing the climb. We did experience a moment though, as the chain does not go all the way to the bottom of the rock and Brianna somehow slipped with momentum pushing her forward, all I heard was this scream “Dad” and I turned around to see Brianna running straight down the rock towards Emily and I – I braced my feet as hard as I could, still holding Emily and I am not sure how but managed to scoop Brianna in with my right arm slamming her into Emily and I – lets just say that moment 100% scared the poops out of her and us all.
Uluru Review – 5/5 Gold Stars
A spectacle to go and visit, a rock in the ground it maybe but it has this beauty about it especially if you take the time to see it from all angles and Sunrise through to Sunset. You also need to drive out to the Olga’s and for the same reasons above. As many would know I research Uluru and looked at other images/videos but none of these give it the real justice it deserves for seeing it yourself.
Uluru is an amazing place to visit for sure, there is some concern though once the banning of any climbing of the rock is forced whether this will reduce the number of tourists and will increase the amount of injuries by illegal climbing, especially if they remove the chains.
The Ayers Rock resort has everything you need but a couple of inside tips – the IGA only has frozen bread ($7 loaf) and with most other items are reasonably priced it does not matter if you forget or run out of something. My biggest Fun Fact is though, check out the Shell petrol station for souvenirs, camping needs and the Bacon/Egg or Sausage/Egg muffins (2 for $8) as well as the Farmers Union Iced Coffee (2 for $6).
FUN FACTS
- ULURU
- 348 metres (1141 feet) high
- rises 863 metres (2,831 ft) above sea level
- 3.6 km long (2.2 miles)
- is 1.9 km wide (1.2 miles)
- covers 3.33 km2 (1.29 miles2)
- extends about several km/miles into the ground (no-one knows exactly how far)
- CAMELS
- Lifespan, Wild 30yrs Domestic 40/50yrs
- Height, 1.85m to the Shoulder
- Weight 700 – 900kg (male) 500 – 700kg (female)
- Strength can lift their own body weight for 6/8hrs
- Speed, walking pace about 5kph, run at 60kph
Our Aussie Family 