Uluru II - Kata Tjuta

My second day in the outback started early with a 6:15 am shuttle pickup to head out to Kata Tjuta in the western part of the park to see the other more disjointed rock formation and hike around a bit.  As most experiences go in this park, we stopped first at a sunrise viewing area where loads of other people made their way up a dune to a viewing platform to take in the views as the sun came up.  We could see Uluru clearly in the distance and everyone marked the occasion by taking a picture every 2 minutes to masterfully record every change in the light as the sun came up and hit the rocks in front of us.  It really was beautiful, and I took my share of photos but at a certain point just put the camera away to enjoy the experience and take it in with my full attention.  My strategy had been devised the evening before to find a spot off to the side of the throngs, establish my space along the railing, and try to enjoy a bit of quiet and calm.  It seems like people would pick up on this, wonder if my vantage point that was offering me this calm moment to myself might make better pictures for their experience, then quickly fill in around and lean around me to try to capture the view that I was obviously so quietly enthralled with.  By the time the sun came up I was pretty excited to get out to the trailhead and find some space away from everyone else, and our shuttle guide wanted that for us too as we all made our way back and he zipped us off to be some of the first there to enjoy the hike in peace!

Sunrise viewing platform near Kata Tjuta.

The many heads of Kata Tjuta waking up to first light.

I liked this head the best as it reminded me of a nice old turtle.

The hike we were doing was called the "Valley of the Winds" as the rocks tend to absorb and give off heat and create very localized winds nearby.  The Anangu saw this area as the source of all the winds in the continent which I found to be a pretty awesome concept, though obviously climatically incorrect.  The hike led us around the back side of the largest "head", Mt. Gee, and up in between a few of them to an awesome view of the valley formed behind them, then through the valley and back again as we came.  It was a beautiful hike on a warm sunny morning, with streams full of water from recent winter rains, many desert flowers in bloom, and just view after awesome view of the various red rock formations.  The following pictures are some of the highlights.

View of Mt. Gee from the outset of the hike; it really reminded me of scenery from the Disney movie "Cars" which was set in the Southwest of America.

View of the heads from behind from within the valley that they form.

Shadow of a bush-walker on the trail.

Pretty stream on the valley floor below.

Farther upstream at a crossing you can really see the conglomerate stone here that forms Kata Tjuta from ancient mountain erosion and subsequent compaction by the overlain inland sea.

Looking down on the valley below from a pass high within the heads.

Looking out on the valley from the pass between two red walls..

The author taking a PB&J break between those same red walls.

Kata Tjuta from behind as I ascended a ridge in the valley.

Desert blooms and red rocks abound!

I really enjoyed this hike and the views that we took in on the bus ride back to the resort.  The Uluru Express company is smaller than the main tour company in the area but I am glad I booked with them, as their buses are not packed with people and they have HUGE windows so you can kick back and really enjoy the views.  The other tour buses were large motor coaches, and they were packed to the gills with other folks.  It's not that I don't like other people, but the beauty of a place like this is really a quiet thing for me, and I like to enjoy it with reverence and reflection.  I had planned to go see an outdoor art exhibition later in the night called "Field of Light" where you walk through a field just full of lights and sculpture with Uluru in the background, but I decided to pass on it as I was not keen on another bus ride and a million other folks scrambling over each other to all take the same photograph!

I had lunch in the Town Square (a really decent kangaroo burger!) and then checked out what I thought was going to just be a film on cultural aspects of the Anangu people that was running in a Theatre at the resort.  What it was was this AWESOME multimedia presentation of an Anangu myth, presented with video, holograms, live actors, and 3D graphics.  It was really interesting, completely unique, and such an awesome surprise to me how cool this was!  The story followed Walaru, the watty eagle, on his quest to find a mate, running into trouble with Conka, the crow, and finally finding his soulmate, Colquatilla, the cockatoo, who Conka then killed.  Brutal story, but it depicted the roles that each of these animals play in the ecosystem and was really super fascinating!

I headed back to camp to shower then decided to take in the Uluru sunset from a distance at the main dune in the heart of the resort.  I arrived early but failed to establish myself at a spot on a hard boundary, and as sunset grew dramatic, I found myself with 5 cutthroat photographers madly taking pictures directly in front of me, sure that my radiating peace would give their photos just the polish they needed to generate a few extra "likes" on facebook.  I'd had enough and picked up early and moved myself to the Outback Pioneer House Hotel for some Aussie barbecue and a few beers.

My closing Uluru sunset from the dune in the heart of the Red Rock resort.  The resort has several hotels, the campground, and Town Square situated around a circular road, inside of which is all native desert scrub with trails connecting across it and a large dune in the middle with a great view.  Cool place!

Cool old car advertising the camel tours (these are real, camels became a common form of desert transit in the Australian outback many years ago and they now have feral populations much like the horses in America) outside of the Outback Pioneer House Hotel

I revisited the Pioneer House outdoor barbecue again this night because I wanted to try my hand at barbecueing my own Aussie meats!  They have these griddle-top grill stations and you order your meats of choice from a counter, and then you barbecue them yourself and fill your plate out from the sides & salad bar.  This was a really fun concept that might never fly in the States, but I was excited to have a go at it!  I really liked this place, having visited the night before, as it was a wide-open outdoor complex with various seating areas, bars, pool tables, music playing, people coming and going, and just a convivial, fun atmosphere.  I grabbed the Outback Pack (emu sausage, kangaroo loin, and croc tail) and grilled them to perfection then filled my plate with roasted potatoes, spoon bread, corn on-the-cob, cole slaw, and spinach salad.  I also finally had a "XXXX" beer (referred to as 4X), which is the most popular beer of the state of Queensland because, as they say in more civilized areas of Australia, it's the only one the bogans (rednecks) up there can spell!  A good crisp lager as is the Aussie style.  So in Australia, to barbecue is to grill meats and is not, itself, a word for pulled pork or the meat itself as it is in the South in America.  I will say though that people in Melbourne are aware of Southern barbecue for sure as I ate at a place specializing in it and saw others around.  The Southern food trend has gone world-wide!

The Outback Pack before barbecuing: emu sausage, kangaroo loin, croc tail.

Meats on the barbie.

Finished products.  Delicious!

Pioneer House entertainment complete with didgeridoos.

S the meats were delicious!  Croc tail tasted exactly like gator, mostly like chicken with a saltwater note in the background and firm but slightly flaky texture.  Kangaroo loin was delicious and great to taste in a very naked form, as I realized how similar to steak it really is.  I am surprised it has not made it's way to the States and the only reason I could come up with is that production would be frowned upon because it is very hard to contain kangaroos without allowing them to spread, in an agrarian production type model.  Emu sausage was awesome, with a very fine grind that made it similar to boudin in texture and a delicious seasoning.  The whole experience made me really feel like I was in the bush, and I am so happy I had made the trip!  I ended the evening watching the resident singer-songwriter, who played mostly his own music that told stories of different beautiful Aussie places he has traveled around, and he accompanied his tunes occasionally with didgeridoo.  He even played "Land Down Under" by Men At Work (PS - NO ONE eats vegemite sandwiches.  But old-timers do lightly spread it on buttered toast.) and I felt as if my trip came right there to completion!  He ended with a beautiful song that made me happy I was there and also excited to go home soon, having experienced wonderful times in Australia, but really starting to miss the great things I have waiting for me at home.  I walked off as this number was closing, enjoying the stars for one more evening before I headed back to Melbourne the next day.

"'Cause it's raining on a rock,
In a beautiful country,
And I'm glad to travel this land,
Like an aborigine,

Cause it's raining on a rock,
And it's coming down on me,
And I'm wishing on this postcard,
That you were here with me......"