Sunday Dec 28th 2008 - Sydney to Ayers Rock

We set out for the airport about 8 AM and checked in for our Qantas Flight to Ayers Rock, or Uluru. We were picked up from the airport and taken to the Resort where we checked into the Outback Pioneer Hotel. After confirming our tours we took time to relax for a few minutes in the pool, then showered and got ready to go.
The weather is interesting – this is a semi arid area – and they have had almost their entire year’s supply of water in the past month, including today. It is about 29 degrees, but raining fairly heavily.
Our tour bus picked us up at the hotel at 3:45 and we immediately went out to the South Viewpoint of Uluru-Kata Tjuta national Park. On the way we learned about the modern history of this national part, which was ancient native land which had been occupied and managed by the government since the 30’s. In 1985 the land was returned primarily to the control of the Anangu who were the traditional owners of the land due to the Cultural significance to their history. These pictures of the park show the results of the recent rains. Normally at this time of year the land is very barren and red, not the green seen here.
Our first sop was the Southern viewpoint of Kata Tjuta the view was quite remarkable, and we got a good though distant view of Uluru from here as well. Then we were off to the Western viewpoint of Kata Tjuta, where we left the bus for over an hour and walked into the Walpa Gorge. As can be seen in these pictures this is a magnificent area with amazing colors – red in the rock(caused by the high iron content), and so many shades of green in the plant growth. The trail was quite rocky and uneven, but the view along the way were worth every bit of effort in watching the footing. This shows the end of the Gorge and the view with the plant life that at this time is so beautiful, but which is usually not present. One could see the many dead plants from past years.
After another quick, necessary stop at the Western viewpoint we made our way to the Sunset viewing point of Uluru. Here we were treated to wine, snacks, the attention of a Crested Australian Pigeon (I think that is right), and a clear view of Uluru. Unfortunately the sun did not cooperate, but even without a clear sunset it is easy to see the different hues in the rock in these pictures taken just 15 minutes apart, the last one at 7:35 PM.
Then back to our room to prepare for an early morning (4:45) departure to hopefully view the sunrise over Uluru and an insight into the many cultural aspects of this part of Australia.