Adventuring Down Under

Ten days on an expedition cruise in the Kimberleys. Two days of travel to get from Australia’s west coast to the east coast and then back to the Red Center … a convoluted routing but the one that made the most sense with our timing.

It should, therefore, come as no surprise that we both slept in this morning. Taking it easy was the plan all along, but we were later getting up than we expected. That’s OK. If the body needs rest, best to give it what it needs.

It wasn’t until 10:00a that we left for our day of exploring the national park. I had already purchased entry passes, so we drove up to the park’s entrance, scanned our QR code at the gate, and kept going.

Uluru is not the only high ground in the flat lands that make up this part of Australia. There is also Kata Tjuṯa. Combined, they form the national park. They have both been around 30,000 years or so … though their formation goes back some 550 million years. They are both historically and spiritually important to the Anangu, the traditional custodians of these lands … who received the deed back from the government in 1985.

At one point, the formations had “white man names” … Ayers Rock for Uluru; The Olgas for Kata Tjuṯa. Uluru is a single sandstone monolith at nearly 1,150 feet tall. Kata Tjuṯa, which means “many heads” in Pitjantjatjara/Yankunytjatjara, consists of 36 massive red domes that cover over 12 square miles. At their highest point, the domes are 1,792 feet high.

Perhaps because it stands alone, and is the highest such monolith in the world, Uluru has become an iconic landmark. Kata Tjuṯa, at least outside of Australia, is seldom mentioned. I have to admit. I didn’t see “why” everyone said Uluru is a must-visit. Until I saw it in person today. “The Rock,” as it is referred to at times, is impressive in its size and breadth … some 1,150 feet tall as mentioned before … nearly 5 miles around the base … reaching down 1.5 miles below the surface. Something about it felt spiritual indeed, though I’d be hard pressed to explain why.

Today, we did a cursory exploration of both sides of the park … starting at Uluru. Our time at Kata Tjuṯa wasn’t nearly as long as we would have liked it to be … only because it had grown too hot to wander around comfortably by the time we got to there.

We stopped at multiple pull-outs, trying our best to avoid the pesky flies that descended on us and hovered whenever we left the car. They are apparently seeking liquid, so they go for the eyes and mouth. By all accounts, what we experienced today was not particularly bad as the worst of the fly-season is on its way out. Annoying nonetheless. Thank goodness for the fly nets we brought or we likely would have thrown in the towel and left.

With several hours left until sunset, we returned to the resort to have a late lunch at the bistro at the Sails in the Desert Hotel. By the time we had wrapped up our burger meal with a chocolate covered orange cake, it was 4:00p. Just enough time to run a few errands before returning to the Uluru sunset viewing lot for a colorful ending to our day.

When we arrived at the designated parking lot, we found the first half of it full. Some people had already set up their chairs along the fence line to wait for the changing of colors on the face of Uluru.

Unfortunately, sunset conditions tonight were not ideal. One minute Uluru was orange, with some differentiation in hues as the position of the sun changed. The next minute it was like someone had turned off the lights. Orange changed to dull rust. But we did get to see the full moon rise behind Uluru … and that was great.

We left the viewing area before it got completely dark, concerned about the 9-mile drive to Yulara in the dark with kangaroos possibly in the vicinity. No ‘roos tonight, but we did see a dingo … our first one in the wild.Leer más