Sun, Sea, and Sand-wiches: Ayers Rock and The Olgas

As it was the 2nd visit to OZ for both of us and neither of us had done Ayers Rock it was the 2nd stop on our two week itinerary. We were surprised at how expensive it was to DIY - the Rock is a long drive from Alice Springs and all the rental cars have limited mileage - so when we landed in Alice Springs we checked out prices for the tours and it was cheaper for us to see the Rock with a day tour. The champagne sunset BBQ also appealed! So the next day at 6am we got on the bus which was to be our home for the next 18 hours.

Ayres Rock or Uluru is one of Australia's most recognisable natural icons. The world-renowned sandstone formation is 348 m high with most of its bulk below the ground. Uluru has great cultural significance for the Anangu Traditional landowners and we were told many stories as we were driven round by our tour guide. It really made a difference having someone explain the significance, otherwise it would just be a big red rock!

The Olgas or Kata Tjuta is the second major feature and attraction of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park (the main feature being of course Uluru.) It was just as impressive and definitely worth a stop.

This is a picture of a rock formation that many people think is Ayers Rock but is not. Shame it's not as it's much closer to Alice Springs than the real thing!

The Olgas again with their strange markings

There are so many flies about that you really do need to wear this lovely fly net in order not to go crazy when outside. I wish someone had told us about the flies before we landed so we could brace ourselves as they are EVERYWHERE!

We stopped at the Olgas for a short walk, it was so hot outside I swear we could have cooked an egg on the rock. We ended up nearly running back to the coach just to get back into the cool.

The Olgas from the other side

This is the start of the climb up the rock. Luckily it was closed as it was too hot (over 34 degrees by 8am) so there was no question about whether it was going to be climbed or not. Many people have heart attacks climbing it, over 30 people have died over the years trying.
The local Aṉangu do not climb Uluru because of its great spiritual significance. They request that visitors not climb the rock, partly due to the path crossing a sacred traditional Dreamtime track, and also due to a sense of responsibility for the safety of visitors to their land.

A wave cave which is made by the rain disolving the rock

In one part of the rock there were loads of really vivid white paintings which we all eagerly went over to inspect until we were told by the guide that a 14 year old boy had actually graffitied the wall. Apparently he only got a fine for it!
The above is a real aboriginal painting.