The Rock!!!

Initially in our plans we had ruled out heading to the outback and visiting Uluru (Ayers Rock) but as we travelled up the east coast we began to realise that our trip to Australia wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t get some sense of the outback. We were interested in learning more about the aboriginal culture and got very little insight into it on our journey up the east coast. We did go to an aboriginal culture show just outside Cairns but it felt very contrived and just put on to keep the tourists happy. So after this disappointing encounter we hoped by heading to Alice Springs we would get some real insight into their history and way of life.

We headed on a ridiculous o’clock flight from Melbourne to Alice Springs (thanks Jon for leaving us to the airport at 5.30am!!) and the minute we landed it was like landing in a different world. It was so hot, dry and dusty and as we strolled into town for breakfast we came across lots of aboriginal people on the way. A large tribe of them having lunch outside a hospital had caught my eye and we found out later that if one member of the tribe was ill the whole tribe would wait until he/she was better before heading back to their village. We also came across some who were alcoholics and living a life of destitute. It was very sad to see. Unfortunately aboriginals have been getting a very bad name in Australia for causing trouble and not willing to do anything but drink and it was hard not to notice that not even one aboriginal was working in a café, shop, restaurant or bar in town. We did see a lot of

aboriginals trying to make a living from painting. Many of the art gallery’s had workshops for these artists to come and go as they wanted to. It gave them the freedom that their culture is more used to. One lady owner of a gallery was telling us that sometimes they would go walkabout for 3 months and then arrive back to work again as if they had just been gone for the weekend. I had been looking for an aboriginal painting since I arrived in Australia and we spotted one which we both really liked in one of the galleries in town. We decided to purchase it and we luckily got to meet Nelly, the artist who painted it which was really a nice bonus. She was making a good living for herself and her extended family.

After lunch and a coffee we headed back to the hostel to get packed and ready for our 3 day tour out into the outback to see the famous Ayers Rock or Uluru as it is known by the aboriginal owners of the sacred site - the Anangu people. Uluru was actually given back to the tribe in 1985 by the Australian government who had claimed ownership of it in the early 1900s but only on the condition that they would lease it to the Australian National Parks for 99 years in order to manage it for tourism. It is now run jointly by the National Parks Association and a representation of the Anangu people. They had a really cool piece of Aboriginal art representing this relationship:

The red circle in the middle is Uluru. The 12 U shapes around it are the members of the Board of Management, 8 Anangu people who are brown and four non-Anangu white people. To the right and left of them are the Anangu and non-Anangu rangers. The Anangu rangers are barefoot, representing their close connection with the land and knowledge derived from thousands of years of looking after the land. The non-Anangu rangers wear shoes, representing their land management training and knowledge derived from European science. Around them is the sand dunes and bushland in the park that Uluru sits in.

We set off early out into the Red Centre (obvious from the photos how it gets its name). The 3 day tour is a 1500km round trip. First stop was Kings Canyon where we did a 3 hour trek of the canyon. The sheer faces of the canyon were amazing and we chilled out at a little rock pool at the bottom!! The heat, even at this stage of the day was unreal!! Next we headed to the cattle station to pick up beers for all the group and picked up logs along the road before heading onwards into the wilderness to find a suitable spot for our bush camp. We got the campfire going as soon as possible and used the embers of the fire to cook our feast of a dinner as we had a few chilled beers from the cooler box. Then it was time to acquaint ourselves with our swag!!!! Our visions had been that of a mini tent but it turned out to be a canvas bag with a flap on top so you were open to all the wild creatures of the night, definitely not Michaela’s best night of sleep!!!! ;o) In fact I was blinded by her torch several times when she would hear a noise and need to investigate which only attracted more creatures!! I think she would have opted for the McCreanor style of camping if it had been an option!!!

Just some of the creepy things that could have been crawling in my ears and nose when I was NOT sleeping in that dam swag (below!!) NEVER again!!!

Next morning we headed to the Olgas, a group of large domed rock formations and then trekked through the valley of the winds. We headed from there to a good viewing point to watch the sun set over Uluru but unfortunately due to the cloudy weather we didn’t see much sun but the beers, bbq and craic were good!! After another night in the swags, we got up for sunrise over Uluru but still the weather hadn’t cleared enough for us to see Uluru in its true glory, the postcards will have to do!!! We headed for a walk around the base of it and you really get a good impression of how large this single rock is. Its hard to imagine how such a large rock is just plonked there in the middle of Australia in what is quite a flat region of barren land.

I can understand why the aboriginals could see this as a very spiritual place for them. There were lots of signs asking you not to climb Uluru as it was a spiritual place to the Anangu tribe but still some people climbed it which we thought was very disrespectful. Also there was book of sorrows in the cultural centre and it was full of amazing letters from people who had climbed the rock or who had taken rocks from the area and were returning them either as they believed they had brought them misfortune or they felt it was the right thing to do. The centre supposedly receives several parcels a week from all around the world.

On route we saw Mount Connor - a mini version of Uluru, salt lakes, camels roaming the barren red desert and some remote cattle stations. Everywhere along the way we were plagued with flies, they were a pure nuisance, the guide was telling us that you get used to them but I am not convinced. We got back to Alice Springs and cleaned all the dirt off us before we headed to the aptly named Rock Bar for food and numerous well deserved beers!!! It was a great gang of people we had spent the last 3 days with so a good nights craic was had!!! Unfortunately one of the gang on the way home was
threatened with a brick by an aboriginal but nothing came of it but certainly not a good last impression to be left with on our visit to the outback.