it was another hard day at the office today. I think we are going to need a holiday soon.
We left the caravan park at 9.30 and didn't get back until after 6.00. After having a look at the map and noting that there was just four spots at which to have a look at Kata Tjuta I foolishly thought that we would be done by lunch time. Not so, there was so much to explore that we didn't leave till 3.00 to get over to Uluru to get a good spot from which to photograph the rock as the sun went down.
As we drove up to the sunrise dune viewing area at Kata Tjuta we were a bit disappointed. We had been expecting the view that you see on all the post cards. Instead it looks like this.
However, once we got to the sunset viewing carpark things looked much better. Here you are very much closer to the huge rock forms that make up Kata Tjuta. You can easily understand why Kata Tjuta means many heads.
Our first exploration was the Valley of the Winds. We contented ourselves with a walk to the first lookout, a return walk of a little over 2 kms over stoney and rising ground. The guide books rate this as a moderate walk.
As we were walking along we were struck by the stark beauty of this place. We also noted an almost overwhelming presence inspired by these gigantic and dramatic landforms. We could well understand why the traditional owners regard Kata Tjuta as sacred. Bev said that she couldn't help but feel honoured to be able to walk here.
The last place we visited was Walya Gorge. Walya is the Anangu word for welcome. Once again, this walk took us over stoney ground through a small cleft between two of the "heads" whose orangey pink cliffs towered over us. The gorge contains some permanent water holes which support plenty of desert vegetation including a couple of river red gums would you believe.
Once we felt that could explore Kata Tjuta no more, we drove over to Uluru about 50 kms away firstly to enjoy a long looked for coffee and secondly to take some photos of the rock as the sun was setting. This was an experience in itself. The park managers have built a very long car park and equally large, and thankfully separate coach park. We decided to get to the car park about 4.00 pm and get ourselves set up tripod-wise. It was just as well we did. Sunset at the rock is a very important social event, apart from anything else. By 5.00 pm the place was crowded. The keen photographers lines the boundary fence with all their gear. Other people climbed on to the roofs of their vehicle for a good view. Many people brought their chairs, wine and nibbles and settled down for a drink and a chat with their friends.
Apart from the wine and cheese and the socialising, the idea is to get here and watch the rock change colour as the sun sets. And it does. It goes through all the shades from a bright red-orange to a deep brown. I hope these photos do justice to the changing light.
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| This is more like it. Kata Tjuta as seen from the sunset viewing area car park |
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| Bev on the road to the Valley of the Winds |
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| The Valley of the Winds from the first lookout. |
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| Bev tackling the level 3 climb up to the Walya Gorge |
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| Water holes and river red gums inside the gorge |
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| The ground over which we walked on some of the easier parts of the track |
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| The sides of the gorge seem to go up for ever. |
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| The changing light of Uluru as the sun goes down |
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