Day 33. Heading Home

Today i have decided to limit my photography in a chance i will actually make it home by Friday...That said i just can't help myself……. I did stop just once to view a salt lake that I missed on the way to Uluru. (thanks Will)

This is 100km out from Uluru and is hidden across the road and over a track from the lookout of this flat top mountain. No not Uluru...its Mt Connor

Day 29 + 30 - Uluru and Kata Tjuta

A day of driving then check into the Outback hotel in Uluru. 

After seeing so much of what the country has to offer, I wasn't sure the Rock would amaze me. Was I so wrong. Its HUGE 348 mtres and 9.4 km in circumference  quite magnificent. Equally is Kata Tjuta being 546 mtres high .

I have filmed some footage driving..>Check back when i work out how to load it here…..

Im staying at a YHA affiliated resort…a single non ensuite room is $176. Most hotels here are $400 plus. Its good value for anyone wanting to come here. Just book via YHA first...

The evening watching the sunset over the rock was great. 

The next morning it was time to walk Uluru.  

Not the full loop but we would have done about 4km.

By chance i met Will and Clare who were also visiting that i had chatted to the night before.  Will kindly invited me to walk with them.  

We then made our way to the Olgas…or now correctly known as Kata Tjuta which means many heads. This spectacular formation is 50km from Uluru

A great day followed by drinks and dinner with Will and Clare…Outback pizza with Crocodile, Emu and Kangaroo.

Thanks guys for a fun day and night.

Day 28 - Kings Canyon

Arriving in the early afternoon it was time to take some sunset shots….On the way i found a sneaky dingo standing on the garbage bins and opening the lid in search of dinner. Sprung…

I met Mandy and Rene from Germany, and chatted a bit. It was then early to bed (if 1030 is early ) then for some strange reason, I woke at 5am, so it was up to take photos of the sunrise.

Later in the morning i went off to Kings Canyon to do the big walk of 6km you have to climb about 500 rock steps straight up. 

After doing so i began to think what the hell was I doing. I am not as young as I used to be. 





After 15mins of rest and settling myself after being worried I had got myself into trouble…( i did have my sat phone and Epirb ) a group of six passed me.  I quickly decided to walk behind them.  Fortunately within 100 metres the track became easy for the remaining 5km. A lesson to be learnt here.

Definititely worth the climb but do it with others……Thats the issue about travelling alone.

The photos don't really show exactly how dramatic the landscape is:

The colours of the Northern Territory

A magpie lark which feasted on the dead bugs on my car.

Later that evening i took some sunset shots again at the viewing deck and met Rheece and Rachael both students from Uni of Woolongong. I had previously met them at the hostel in Coober Pedy

Day 27 - Wednesday - The Mereenie Loop - The Red Centre way to Kings Canyon

Today I left Alice and went through the west MacDonnell ranges Namatjira drive  stoping off at Stanley Chasm,  Ellery creek big hole, the Ochre Pits , down to  Glen Helen Gorge. It was raining all morning and it was here I found the road was closed so had to drive back 200km to Larapinta drive to get to the Mereenie Loop.    I went to have a quick look at Redbank Gorge but the car sank into the red mud unexpectedly and I put my foot down and got the hell out of there. Sorry no photos of that.

It hasn't rained here since May so people i spoke to where happy for the days rain.

The Mereenie track is off road from Hermannsburg for 153km being Aboriginal Territory. I had to get a permit from the Alice springs info centre to enter this territory.

How wonderful this was as you can see from below.