Day 9 – Australia/New Zealand Adventure – Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Fun Facts

(Saturday, March 15, 2025) by Ann Silverthorn with Jim DeDad

Our long bus ride departed at 7:30 a.m. for the Stuart Highway, then the Lasseter Highway going west toward Uluru, the Aboriginal word for the huge monolith most of us know as Ayers Rock and what I was most excited to see on this trip.

I dreaded the 5.5-hour bus ride from Alice Springs to Uluru, mainly because even though there’s a bathroom aboard, it’s apparently only for emergencies, and they have to stop if anyone uses it. I didn’t want to be that person! Well, the trek was broken up by three stops along the way, so it wasn’t bad at all (and no one had to use that bus bathroom). 

The landscape was continually changing and Cam, our guide, narrated periodically, with lots of interesting facts and figures from the top of his head.

Australian Fun Facts:

• The soil in the outback is deep red because it contains a high amount of iron.
• The soil is so salty that when it rains, it pulls the salt out of the soil and creates white patches, called salt pans, on the landscape. 
• There is actually lots of water under the desert. Some trees’ trunks are underground. Cattle stations drill for this water, but sometimes it has to be desalinated because of Central Australia’s inland sea. 
• We rode along the Finke River, or Larapinta in the indigenous Arrente language, which is said to be the oldest riverbed in the world. It flows for only a few days per year.
• A lot of the flora in the Australian deserts have a lifespan of only seven years, including the desert poplar, which produces seeds on top and eventually falls over, releasing seeds for new trees. Seven is a significant number for the Aboriginal people.
• Australia has the highest number of reptile species in the world–1,145, which accounts for nearly 10% of global reptile diversity.
• Australia has the longest fence in the world, known as the “Dingo Fence.” It runs from South Australia to Brisbane. The 2,000-mile fence was built in the late 19th century to keep dingoes away from the sheep in southern Australia. 
• Ranches in Australia are called “stations.” 
• There are no kangaroo stations in Australia. These animals are protected, and you must have a permit to hunt them. 
• They don’t have many railroads in Australia (especially in the outback), so they use road trains, which are multi-trailer trucks, pulling as many as seven trailers, and are longer than a football field! 
• There’s a US/Australian spy facility just south of Alice Springs called–Pine Gap. There’s also a Netflix mini-series about it . . .
• There are lots of pay phones in Australia. This is important for vulnerable populations, especially in remote areas. Since 2021, calls from Telstra payphone have been free, resulting in a steep rise in usage. Many people rely on them for emergency services and support.
• Lots of caravaners or nomads come to this area when it gets cold in the south. They often spend five months away from their homes. 
• The aboriginal people often live in “communities,” rather than reservations like we have in the US. We passed one of the communities. Oftentimes the communities do not associate with each other because of cultural customs. Many speak different languages. 
• People don’t drive much at night in the outback, because of the cattle, kangaroos, and camels wandering around. Some vehicles are outfitted with “roo” bars, which sit on the front of the vehicle and lessen the damage–to the vehicle.

On our Uluru excursion, we stopped after the first hour at Stuarts Well Roadhouse, a remote gas station, restaurant, campground. They had emus, white geese, and there was a camel farm next door.

As we proceeded onward, the landscape became a bit more green and we crossed the Finke River, which is dried up for most of the year. 

Our second stop was Erldunda Roadhouse where we bought some snacks for the road. Our third stop was at Curtin Springs Station, one million acres! For so many acres, there was just a little shop, campground, and rustic toilets. 

When Jim and go on road trips, we usually try to drive as many hours straight as possible, because we just want to get where we’re going. Stopping three times probably added another 90 minutes on to our Uluru trip, but it was really worthwhile. I think in the future, we will make some planned sightseeing stops along the way when we travel far. Some people we spoke with said they do this all the time.

Approaching Uluru, we beheld spectacular views of rock formations leading to the monolith. 

Then we reached Uluru, we first visited the visitor/cultural center where there were many Aboriginal paintings  for sale. Interestingly, the dot-type paintings that most people are familiar with is a technique that started in the 1970s.

After we had a chance to look around the visitors’ center, we hopped back on the bus to head toward an area for a couple of “walks.” We hiked to a watering hole, which actually had some water in it, to Cam’s surprise. He also told us that animals avoid any such hole that humans have used because they would sense their threat.

Cam drew an illustration in the sand of how Uluru was formed.  The monolith was formed 550 million years ago, starting as layers of sandstone lying on the ocean floor. These layers were uplifted and flipped by earthquakes over the eons. The softer rock eventually eroded away, revealing hard sandstone. 

There are actually several formations of interest in that area. One is Mount Atila (Mount Connor), which kind of looks like a toothbrush head with its bristles on the ground, and another is a conglomerate rock named, Kata Tjuṯa (The Olgas).

On one of the walks, we passed a bench where Charles and Diana allegedly posed, when they visited Australia. Years later, William and Kate are said to have sat for the same photo. I couldn’t find any such photos online. Jim and I considered doing the same, but we were so hot, and the flies were so bad, that all we wanted to do was get back on the bus.

After the watering hole walk, Cam took us on a “cave” walk. Thankfully, we didn’t actually enter into any creepy caves. They are more like overhangs. The Aborigines used to paint on the rock, but that was banned in the 1990s or so. The elders now “paint” in the red sand under the rock and then it washes away eventually. I’m not sure if the Aborigines were okay with the ban on rock painting, and maybe they were the initiators, but I suppose it helps make sure that not just any Tom, Dick, or Harry is doing the painting.

On that note, recently, a group of three monks decided to do their own artwork on Uluru, and now that trail is closed. Uluru is sacred to the Aborigines, and if anyone is doing any painting, they feel it should only be done by them.

There is a roadway around the entire rock and our bus took us on it. There were sections where we were not permitted to take photographs, because they are sacred areas, usually related to subjects like women. The area above Uluru is protected air space.

And here we go with a few up-close Uluru photos!

Honestly, between Alice Springs and Uluru, I don’t think I have ever been so hot, or sweated so much in my life. My clothes were completely soaked every day, 

One reason I, in particular, was so hot was because of the hat I brought along. A fellow traveler was admiring it that day and asked if it was adjustable on the inside. I proudly told her it was and showed her the interior, warning her not to get too close because it stunk so bad. 

Another woman who was also interested in my groovy hat was surprised to see that it was fleece inside! She informed me that that my fancy Seattle Rain Hat, by OR, which I bought at REI, was not meant for this climate. The fact that the hat had no vents was pointed out to me. Also, in addition to the interior being fleece, it’s black. Oh well, I knew the hat would come in handy when we got to southern Australia and New Zealand, which are further from the equator. Also, it will be good for home, because where we live, there is plenty of rain.

After our hikes, we checked in at the Desert Gardens Hotel, which is part of the Ayers Rock Resort, a conglomeration of hotels, camping sites, and a permanent community. Our room was nice, but not fancy. Apparently, though, these accommodations are the most-expensive on the trip because of the remote location.

Investigating the room, I was freaked out because there was a full can of bug spray in the closet. After seeing a huge cockroach walking the theatre wall at the Flying Doctors presentation in Alice Springs, I was very leery. A bit later, when I was in the bathroom, I heard the spray and came rushing out. Jim said he had “thought” he saw a bug near the sliding glass door. Upon writing this post a month later,  I asked him whether he really saw a bug, and he answered in the affirmative. Probably better that he kept things ambiguous that day, right?

We showered and relaxed until it was time to board the bus for our sunset excursion to Ayers Rock. When we arrived, we saw at least a dozen coaches like ours and a viewing area  with designated sections, some with seats, and there were tables with drinks and snacks along the way. It’s definitely a business venture, and our table was outfitted with champagne, beer, and sodas. There were also kangaroo skewers, pesto canapés, chips, veggies, fruit, and nuts. Jim, and others, said the kangaroo skewers were good. By this time, it was only about 97 degrees. . . of course, a dry heat.

One of the couples in our group brought an Australian flag with them so they could pose with it in front of Uluru, Australia being the seventh continent they’ve visited! They do a lot of cruising and recently completed a 65-day voyage. Their next one will be more than 100 days! They highly recommend Viking Cruises and hearing  so many people on our trip rave about this line, we feel like we might have to cruise at least once.

Also, even though we booked our trip through AAA, it was actually a Collette  tour, and most people we talked to have been on multiple Collette tours. They really love them.

During this time, the Uluru was putting on a stunning display. It turned colors from golden brown to dark chocolate and then to a warm orange. Such an amazing sight.

 

On the bus ride back to the hotel, everyone was feeling their warm fuzzies from the refreshments and the awesome sight we had just experienced, and the coolest thing happened. Cam started playing music over the speakers and when Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” came on, we all started singing along, “so good, so good, so good.”

When we returned to the hotel, thankfully, we hadn’t sweated quite enough for another shower, so we went straight to the hotel restaurant, which everyone else was doing, too, so it was about a half-hour wait, when all we wanted to do was go back to our room, prop up our feet, and watch our favorite TV show, Apple TV’s Severance. This show is a sci-fi workplace drama full of dark humor and intrigue.

Jim had a pumpkin salad, and I had a poke bowl, that I later remembered was supposed to have had edamame on it and it didn’t. But I also don’t remember the description saying there was rainbow quinoa on it, and there was. So, all was good. There was also fried rice paper, which I had never had and it was very tasty. We were glad to have a light, delicious dinner after a hot, hot day.

On the topic of food, we have been eating too well! Every morning but one, we have gone to the free breakfast buffet and we have not held back! Hey, we don’t go on vacation every day!

Back in the room, we indeed watched the previous episode of Severance, and also the current one. So many questions that we hoped would be answered by finale time. I’ll bet we could watch every episode three times and not catch everything. Our whole family is hooked.

 7,441 steps today. Tomorrow, a flight to Melbourne!