Uluru to Kata Tjuṯa with the Tasmanian Walking Co.
August 13 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 10 °C
Our walk started today. After being collected from our hotel we were taken over to Uluru for a talk from one of the local indigenous owners of the park, TJ. He talked about indigenous culture and how they are connected to land and each other. All very interesting and it really impressed on us the need to minimise our impact on the land as we walk through.
The first part of our walk involves a walk through the Valley of the Winds at Kata Tjuṯa. This place is stunning. Arguably more so than Uluru. One issue though is that it is a sacred site and so we are asked not to take photos of the rock formations. We can take photos of plants or birds just not the domes themselves.
Our walk was tough in parts as Kata Tjuṯa is made up of big lumps of volcanic rock embedded in a sedimentary rock. This means there are rocks of all sizes which can be difficult to walk on. The whole group has been tilted so the layers run through at about 22 degrees from horizontal. Some fascinating geology. It reminded me of the layers in the Bungle Bungles.
After our walk we hopped back on the bus to our first night’s accommodation. The imaginatively named Camp 1 is a bush glamping area with 8 tents, a central amenities block and a separate kitchen and dining area called a wilcha after the indigenous name for a shelter. All of the facilities and buildings were brought in by helicopter to minimise impact on the environment. We have been escorted by two guides today - MC (who is French), and Alyssa (an Aussie), and at the camp we met Blake (also an Aussie).
We had a few drinks watching the sun set before a really good dinner. Tonight we had the option of either sleeping in the tents or in a swag under the stars - I went for the swag, Tracey took the nice warm bed in the tent. I am writing this lying out under the stars and they are sensational. Only issue is that it will be very cold tomorrow morning, it is meant to get to zero.
Our tour is all Aussies with 11 women and three men. Many have done previous walks with the Tasmanian Walking Company with excellent feedback all round.
Step count for today - 17,521. Tomorrow our walk starts in earnest.
PS. It was nice and warm in the swag under the stars, a strong breeze came up about 3.30am so I had to go into full cocoon mode but it didn’t last long. I also worked out how to take photos of stars using my phone, they actually worked quite well.Read more