Our Trip

Day Twenty

Part One 

Day Twenty and our epic trip

had almost come to a close. Sigh. 

But, waking up (a little later than usual)

to a picturesque view of burnt country dotted

with spinifex and sheoaks, with their strangely 

drooping branches against a backdrop of painted mountains,

was just  another reminder of God's goodness to us. 

We headed on our way, inching ever closer

to one of my favourite places in Australia. 

Uluru. 

I couldn't get enough of the amazing 

mountains that surrounded us as we drove.

The colours were intense and so varied. 

After driving for about half an hour,

we noticed our light bar seem a little lopsided.

So, we stopped to check it out, and Dave

pulled out his trusty wire and fixed it up

quick smart, and we were on our way again. 

(Those unrelenting corrugates were doing their work) 

We also had a hole in the exhaust which helped

to make our cruiser sound even tougher than she was. 

Once again, we came across some camels

that were walking down the road,

they kindly got out of the way for us

and went merrily on their way.

We endured some more corrugates

before our dirt road days were over. 

It was often less bumpy if you drove

as far as you could on the side of the road

instead of down the middle. 

We didn't need any more corrugate related 

damage done to our old girl.

(Emilee's ute handled the bumps a lot better)

 

I was very excited to see the mirage

like view of the Olgas in the far distance,

meaning we were getting ever closer to Uluru,

a place I seem to have a strange connection to

(I know, it sounds weird, but it's true)

Kata Tjuta, meaning 'many heads' 

in the aboriginal language of the Pitjantjatjara peoples,

is the real name of the Olgas. 

It is an amazing place and we hadn't been 

here since 2009, so it was great to revisit

and explore once more. 

Arriving at the Olgas, we stopped to have

some lunch before heading off to explore. 

Luckily, we arrived just before a few tourist

buses spilled their weary passengers out of their

doors, and sent them scurrying for the toilets. 

(the line was incredible, so we were glad 

we just beat them!)

As I said before, there's a strange thing that

happens to me when I get into this part of the country.

I become a little like a child with ADHD,

drinking Red Bull and eating lollies. 

Yeah. Hyper. I'm antsy. I can't sit still.

I'm restless. I'm excited. Hmmm. 

Yeah. I dunno either, but the family will vouch 

for me, they just shake their heads 

and look the other way. 

(strangely enough, the closer I get to the rock,

Uluru, the calmer I become. Almost peaceful)

Yes, totally off my rocker, I know. 

Okay, so after that baring of my soul,

onto the business of the trip. 

We decided just to do the short walk,

the Walpa Gorge Walk,

so we'd have time to get to Uluru and hopefully

climb it again after a nine year absence. 

(actually Dave and I visited a couple of years

ago, but it was closed to climbers)

These epic rock domes are absolutely 

amazing as they tower over you, 

with the tallest one stretching 546 m into the air.

(that's 200 m taller than Uluru)

Yep, you feel pretty small way down below. 

I don't have a wide angle lens big 

enough to get the whole dome in from top 

to bottom. Awesome rock. 

Even more awesome God!

An hour an a half later,

we were finally on our way to

Uluru. Ayers Rock. THE ROCK. 

Whatever you like to call it. 

I get quite a buzz when I see the rock

peeking over the horizon in all its splendour. 

The first glimpse is always special. 

Leaving the Olgas behind and fading into 

the distance, we pressed on to the 

magnificence of Uluru.  

We all hoped that the climb would

be open and that after nine years, 

we'd be able to climb it once more. 

This time, the girls being older and 

not having to hold their hands

and our breath with every step they took. 

But you'll have to wait and see

and watch this space for the next instalment...……….

To be continued...……...