Yulara and Uluru

Yulara is the resort near Uluru.  There's no camping in the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park and the Ayers Rock Resort provides a great range of accommodation alternatives, shopping, fuel and a number of paid and free activities.  We booked in for 3 nights which will fit in well with the 3 day pass we will buy for the national park ($25 per adult for 3 days).

We settled into our campsite and set off to the well stocked supermarket for some essentials (ice blocks).

In the afternoon we drove into the national park to explore the Uluru area.  We decided long ago that we would respect the wishes of the traditional owners and would not climb Uluru, although many tourists still undertake the difficult and hazardous climb.







You can't miss Uluru, it dominates the landscape due to its sheer size.  It's 348m high and 9.5km around the base.  We visited the Cultural Centre which was excellent and well worth the visit.  We continued our drive around Uluru, stopping off at some lookouts along the way.

As it was nearing sunset, we joined other tourists at one of the "Sunset Viewing" areas.  There's a reason that these are popular - they provide a great view.  We watched Uluru change from orange, through red, to purple as the sun went down.

After sunset we drove back to Yulara and our campsite.

Day 2 at Yulara we have taken advantage of some of the activities on offer.  Robert attended a painting workshop in the morning and produced a piece of art for the caravan.  In the afternoon we attended a free performance of the Mani-Mani Indigenous Theatre.  

Both activities were enjoyed, as was the walk across the sand dune to attend them.  There are many plants in bloom - there's plenty of life in the desert.

Tomorrow we're off to Kata Tjuta.