We are talking big bucket list material – you can tick off three amazing landforms right in the heart of Australia, in the Northern Territory.
Uluru
First you’ll spot Mt Connor and think it is “The Rock” but then you’ll see the big one! When you arrive at Ayers Rock Resort, time it for sunset drinks with views to Australia’s famous landmark.
Your next day there, go back to the sunset carpark at fivies, and watch the rock change colour!
The kids feel fortunate they were able to climb Uluru – it closed on October 26, 2019.
My youngest and I explored some of the base, snapped photos of them, and read the memorial plaques with sorrow. I was just grateful when the rest of our tribe arrived back to the ground safely.
A sacred site for the Anangu, you can experience the cultural significance – take the base walk, the Mutitjulu Waterhole, see rock art, caves and Kantju Gorge waterhole on the Mala Walk or see the Rock from a Harley Davidson or a camel! Also check out the Cultural Centre.
I would love to go back to Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park and walk into the Field of Light – a solar powered trail of light, opt for a helicopter and see Uluru with waterfalls all over it!
Kata Tjuta, Northern Territory (known as The Olgas)
About 50 km from Uluru there are 36 rock domes known as Kata Tjuta or “many heads”.
We could have decided on the shorter, one kilometre Walpa Gorge walk. Instead, we tackled the Valley of the Winds, a 7.4 km trek. It was so impressive, a beautiful place!
The kids agreed: “The Olgas were pretty awesome – they looked as if rocks had been cemented together but they hadn’t. After the walk everyone was sore, tired and sick of the flies!”
And my son wrote: “there were about 5000000 flies and I absolutely hated them!”
Luckily, we had the motorhome parked, we all retreated inside to prepare and eat our baguettes, so we didn’t swallow a gob full of flies!
Kings Canyon, Watarrka National Park
On our must do list, we drove about 300 km from Uluru, after stopping for petrol at Curtin Springs and lunch at Salt Creek Rest Area.
It was about 2 pm when we started off on the Rim Walk. I’d read about it, but nothing prepared my body for the challenging and scary steps!
I’m not good on sheer cliffs – remember we had four kids at the time, warning them all the way, “Stay away from the edge!”
Our daughter’s account: “It was pretty hard at the start. We walked up really steep steps that felt like they were going to go on forever. The walk safety board said it would take us 3-4 hours to do that walk but it only took us one hour, 45 minutes. We drank plenty of water once we had finished…”
One of the boys said the rock steps were: “about a 75 degree angle, some parts were vertical! The walk was really fun, you got to jump over things and we had to follow blue arrows.”
No wonder my diary says we had a “few barnies”
The beauty astounded us on the way to the Lost City. The boardwalks and bridges were excellent. Overall we walked over 5 km, minus two lookouts.
We all learnt about the rock domes and Kuninga Men. Those sheer 300 metre sandstone cliffs, palms and desert surrounding us!
There are a range of walking trails, 4×4 tracks, camel tours and camping and accommodation nearby. We stayed at Kings Canyon Resort, nodding off to the chorus of dingo howls and walking up to a canyon sunrise! What an adventure.
Next we were onto Alice Springs!
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