Last days in the Territory!!!

Hi everyone! Hope you are all well and enjoying our blog!

Well my first glance at Uluru blew me away! It was amazing, I saw it as we drove into Yulara, the nearby resort town. None of the hundreds of pictures you see of it prepare you for that first glance. Its awe inspiring!

We checked into the Ayers Rock Resort, which is disappointingly the only accommodation available, as camping isn’t permitted in the national park. The resort is rather expensive ($30/night for an unpowered camping site!) Coupled to that, all we could hear all night was the resorts power generators, rather than the peace and quiet of the desert. However I did see a Desert Hopping Mouse! I admittedly freaked out as per my fear of mice, despite Stuart trying to convince me ‘it’s not a mouse, it’s a really tiny kangaroo!’ I was still pretty excited to see one, even if I was constantly scanning the ground with a big arse torch while doing the dishes for fear of it running up my leg.....I know, I’m pathetic.

Anyway! First night there we headed out to the designated sunset viewing area to watch the colours of Uluru. It was beautiful, even despite the crowds of people and chaotic parking. The next day we walked the 10km base walk around the Rock (we decided not to climb). The caves and gullys around the base are beautiful, and its enormity is just mind blowing! We were a little disappointed with the walk as a large section of it was quite far from the Rock, which doesn’t give you as great a perspective of it’s stature and size as the sections where you are up close and under it’s towering sides. Unfortunately, some sections of the trail are actually aligned on the road verge which makes for a pretty average walk! Our other disappointment was the lack of non-Aboriginal information and interpretation about the Rock. We eventually found one page in a booklet about the parks geology, but that was it. We found this a little surprising, as it’s geological significance was one of the first reasons it was nominated as a World Heritage Site. We couldn’t find any information on that either!

The next morning we headed out to see Kata Tjutu (The Olga’s). We only did the first section of the Valley of the Winds walk, as all the walking and climbing of the last coule of weeks were starting to take it’s toll on me and I was beginning to feel under the weather! The Olga’s were completely stunning, and we also did do the Wangu Gorge walk while we were there. In between the rocks, there are some beautiful diverse patches of vegetation with some of the plants not found anywhere else in the world. Very special.

On our journey home we spent a night at the Henbury Meteorite Craters. This turned out to be a very peaceful spot with a waterhole at the bottom of one of the craters which supported a huge population of birds! The bushes were teeming with gorgeous little finches and budgies! We lit a campfire for warmth and watched a perfect desert sunset!

We are now back in Alice Springs getting prepared to cross the border over to Queensland. We are taking the unsealed Plenty Highway, which is supposed to be pretty rough so Stuart has had air bags fitted to the rear suspension of the car to improve the towing on all of the rough, corrugated roads. He has also been busy modifying the camper again, buying a few tools and building a wooden box for the pots and pans, which are now stored under the BBQ, making them accessible when the camper is packed up! Me? I’m relaxing......reading, sewing and dreaming of warm beaches in Queensland!

We have also caught up with Stuart's Aunt and Uncle, Sue and Geoff, which has been really great. They are actually staying in the same caravan park just a couple of sites away, before heading off on their way to the Birdsville Races!

All the physical activity we have been doing combined with the healthy diet has made a huge difference and my spunky fiance has lost 10kg! Looking good!

We would like to say a HUGE THANKS to our friends Em and Sandor here in Alice Springs. They have been great hosts and we have really enjoyed hanging out with them! We look forward to repaying the favour guys, when you are next in Perth (when we are back as well!).

Michelle (& Stuart)