Australia: Kata Tjuta, Uluru, King's Canyon

What an amazing long weekend trip. So great for a last minute plan!

May 31: Kata Tjuta

Woke up at 630 am, packed enough clothes and small toiletries for a 3 night trip, made coffee, and hopped in an Uber to the airport with Julie at 8! We were excited to be on our way, and if we had any doubts they were quickly wiped away when we stepped out of the Uber to find two ends of a rainbow!!

A wee bit of background: Julie and I met at a birthday in February. She's Italian, I'm Canadian, and we get along really well. On May 23, she asked if I wanted to go with her to Uluru and sent me some links. Within 30 minutes I had booked my flights.

Jetstar is a Virgin Australia owned budget airline in Asia Pacific. It's like the Ryan Air of this area, for my European friends. I was hoping there would be snacks provided so I didn't buy anything in the airport; big mistake cause I was super hungry by the time we landed.  Julie and I ended up not sitting together on the plane (totally opposite ends, actually), but we both had window seats and were awake as we flew over Uluru aka Ayers Rock.

Northern Territory is 30 minutes behind the state of Victoria i.e. where Melbourne is, so upon landing I was VERY confused about the time. We had about an hour at the airport so had salad for lunch... but had to go through "Security" to get it. Within Australia, they don't care about liquids or ID, only lap tops. Easiest security I've ever dealt with. Around 2, we were picked up by our Emu Run guide, Sarah. I knew I liked her immediately. We stopped at our Uluru campsite to pick up the rest of the group who were finishing lunch, and the 22 person bus was FULL, which meant I got to sit in the front seat on our way to Kata Tjuta.

A giant inflatable .... plane? was installed as a compromise for no longer being allowed to climb Uluru. It looks dumb.

Kata Tjuta, meaning Heads Many, is 540m tall and has likely been facing the elements for much longer than Uluru because they're made out of the same stuff but look quite different. Each can be seen in the distance when taking photos from the other.

We took a lil wander between the hills of Kata Tjuta and stopped for MANY photos.

 

We got back on the bus to check out Uluru at sunset, where we enjoyed some sparkling wine and snacks. Glorious!

Getting back to camp, the table was set and a delicious dinner of coleslaw, sausage, and kangaroo was served with several bottles of wine. We had a lovely candlelit dinner, then roasted marshmallows around the campfire before heading to bed around 10. If I could've taken photos of the stars in the Outback, I would've. Cause woah. Ooh! And now I can find the Southern Cross in the stars!

We were staying on beds in permanent tents, and it was COLD. Like, literally 0 degrees Celsius. Thank goodness for the wine and my crushed velvet lined leggings; they definitely helped me sleep.



June 1: Uluru

5am FRIGID wakeup. Julie somehow had a shower, the brave woman, and I packed up my stuff. Breakfast included toast, fruit, coffee, with the option of cereal, meats and cheese on bread or croissant. Not too shabby, but definitely too early for my body to be ready for anything besides toast and peanut butter.

We were on the bus before sunrise, around 615. My body felt anxious; couldn't tell if it was lack of food, the early hour, period discomfort, or all of it. We pulled up to the drop off point and were given some quick instructions before setting off on the basewalk around half of Uluru.

My word. I am not certain that I can describe this but I will do my best. In walking around the base, there were a few signs along the path to teach us about what we were witnessing. There are a few sections where no photos are allowed, because that Anangu people have an oral tradition in which stories are passed from grandmother/father to granddaughter/son. Essentially, the rock is a scripture; morals within stories are told to children as they walk along the rock, looking up at it. When they stand at a certain spot, they learn things that have allowed their people to survive more than 20 000 years, through several ice ages. IT'S INCREDIBLE. Those first few hours of the day could not have been more perfect. The colour of the rock literally changed in front of our eyes as the sun rose. It is positively breathtaking, as the oxidized iron red becomes rich.

Just imagine: as a child, you're walking along a path and your grandparent stops. They tell you to look up at the rock, and you learn Chichi, or child version: they tell you a story about a snake and an evil dog, visible on the rock, and what the Anangu people have learned about survival because of this. As you get older, the story becomes more complex and holds greater morals and teachings about how to behave. The stories shared with boys and girls are different, because their roles within the community are different and as they age they must ensure that their community survives and thrives. Everyone has an important role to play.

We were given two hours to walk, in awe, and read some of the signs. As we neared the carpark, there were more signs with sites, explaining the significance. For example, the water hole and the old people's cave:

Our tour guide met up with us at the carpark for some fruit and tea, and then took us on a little tour to tell us even more about a different part of the rock. Out in the Outback survival was/is key, so all of the artwork seen in caves was instructional or informative.

The spiral is a symbol for water. When connected, it's a map to water!

Underneath Uluru are aquifers, which allow for waterholes and all of the plant life surrounding the rock. It is also these aquifers that are pumped for the airport and the Uluru Resort/campground. Also, we saw the only crack in the rock that does not bleed black, but red. And, of course, there is a story attached to why - although it is not for our ears to hear this story.

The cultural centre was incredibly informative and important. I learned that the government returned the land on a day known by Aboriginals as Handback Day, and now there is a joint committee of colonizers and Anangu working together to allow tourism and learning in a way that works for most Aboriginal Australians. More can be learned here: Australian Geographic.

I was curious about all of the trees I kept seeing everywhere. Those in the next two photos especially were odd. The first one is a baby Desert Oak. A mature oak will let go of its seeds, which quickly implant into the ground and stay as these little, spindly things until their roots find water. Then, they start growing branches and grow to be huge! So, these single stemmed oaks are seen ALL over the place, and you can tell once they've found water cause suddenly there are more branches.

Desert Oak, as a lil baby

Mature Desert Oak

We had a quick geology lesson, returned to camp for lunch and were back in the bus by 2pm, en route through Northern Territory toward King's Canyon. Here are some things I learned about Uluru and Kata Tjuta, though I couldn't tell you timelines. Essentially, the middle of Australia was underwater, and there were a bunch of rocks that got compressed together due to water pressure to form both Kata Tjuta and Uluru. As the water began to evaporate, Uluru was flipped on its side and stuck in the mud. So, based on current technologies, we can tell that it continues 3-5km underground! Moreover, the rock is dark, as seen in the photo below, but due to the way iron oxidizes, it turns red. This rock is immensely dense to have lasted above ground, against the elements, for millions of years.

Crude map in the sand

There were a couple of stops along the drive: a salt flat and a rest stop. It is said that this salt flat is saltier than the ocean, and rarely full of water. It's huge.

All of that white stuff in the distance is salt! 

We arrived to the campsite at King's Canyon resort just as the sun was setting. We were about 10km from the nearest camp, which meant that the only lights around were from the kitchen and toilet. The stars were stunning. We sat around the campfire until dinner was ready, and enjoyed an amazing stirfry and chicken curry. Some people, Julie included, opted to sleep under the stars in Swags ... which is essentially a mattress in a waterproof bag. Thank goodness it was a few degrees warmer than the previous night. 


June 2: King's Canyon

Another 5am wakeup. Changing clothes was certainly an adventure due to the cold. Luckily, the washroom was heated, so I changed in a stall. It was only slightly more comfortable ha. A quick breakfast that included scrambled eggs courtesy of our cook, Gabby (she was super great). 20 minute drive and we began the ascent into King's Canyon shortly after sunrise.

So, I have a very real fear of stairs, because I am skilled at falling down them, and a fear of falling from a great height. This place is absolutely stunning, so I could handle it ... but I went down the wooden stairs on my bum, and my legs were shaking, and there was a moment that involved sheer terror, many expletives, and tears when Julie missed a step.


Cool things about King's Canyon: it's made of sandstone i.e. it was once underwater and the rock is made of severely compressed sand. You can even see evidence of waves on the rock in some spots. Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, a famous Aussie movie, has a scene here so we definitely had fun being ridiculous in the same place a bunch of drag queens filmed in.

We had a great time with the echo through the canyon, and went for a wander into the Garden of Eden; kind of ironic, or fitting - depending on perspective, that it was in the Garden of Eden that I had a moment of sheer terror. Aside from that, it was nice to have a snack in the shade and enjoy the birdsong and greenery before continuing through the hot sun.

Julie and I remarked, while walking through the Canyon (which is about a 6.5km journey and took about 3 hours), that this natural world is so remarkable and life is about perspective. We could have spent our journey being less excited about everything we were seeing, but we were both grateful and in awe of the choices we've made and opportunities that have been presented to us. And sure, finding money to have certain experiences like a long weekend such as this can make a huge difference, but life is how we view it. When I am really struggling with anxiety and/or depression, it can be difficult to appreciate daily life, with who and what I have in my life right now. But really, I truly believe that we are capable of finding joy and gratitude in the smallest, simplest moments. Sometimes I like hanging out with kids cause they help me remember this. My Instagram is a gratitude journal, of sorts, and sometimes it's full of gorgeous mountains or monuments, and sometimes it's full of food or selfies or a manicure.

Julie was the perfect travel buddy for this. We are so comfortable together and know that we can be silly or serious, and we had such a great time. There is no judgment, only joy and laughter. It was really nice to hear "Are you sure you two can't stay an extra day? You're so much fun!"

After King's Canyon we had lunch at our campsite, chilled in the sun for a bit, then got on the bus for a 6 hour drive to Alice Springs. I'm glad we had a stop midway through cause there was an emu farm!! Plus, I got ice cream and chocolate. Ooh, and we saw a dingo on the drive. Plus some cows; not nearly as many as I would have thought .... though I suppose with all of the space available (100s of acres) they don't stay near the roads.


After checking in to our hostel, we had a much needed shower and went for a late dinner. Despite saying we wanted a healthy dinner, we ended up stopping at KFC for a disappointing meal. Ha. Oh, well. We were in bed by 10, and very happy to be warm.


June 3: Alice Springs

Checking out of our hostel, we went for a hearty breakfast at a nearby bakery/cafe before grabbing a cab to the airport. Turns out, we were on the flight with some Germans from our tour! They were heading to Melbourne before going to Chile. Bonkers!

We spent a wee bit of time in the airport and then hopped on the plane. This time, in the same row.

Landed at 330pm, took an Uber home, and enjoyed a relaxing evening of Netflix. Solid weekend getaway.