Australia – The Big Rock

From Queensland I hopped a plane to Alice Springs. This was an interesting flight as we stopped at Ayer’s Rock Airport where I got off the plane for about 20 minutes and turned around and got back on the same plane before going on to the Alice Springs Airport. Both airports made me feel like I was in a James Bond movie. They were so small and sparse and remote feeling. It was surreal.

Alice Springs started the day I arrived with a tour called A Town Like Alice. This is where I got to learn so much more of the history and interesting bits of Australia. We saw the old Telegraph Station, and stopped in at the School of the Air, visited the Royal Flying Doctors, and the Reptile Center, and a brief stop at the Anzac Memorial.

The School of the Air is that famed or fabled school for the children on the cattle stations that was originally conducted via radio. Now days it’s conducted via internet. That was interesting. As was the story of the Royal Flying Doctors. Yep. They are a medical service that fly the country and particularly service the more remote areas. Amazing stuff. The Anzac Memorial was nice. Though it was cold and I was ill prepared for that so just a few photos was all I managed. The Reptile Center turned out to be particularly useful and comforting for my trip to the rocks the next day.

At the Reptile Center we learned how not to get eat by a Crocodile. We also learned how not to get bit by a snake. Australia has the most deadliest snakes in the world. Some have venom that will kill you in 15 minutes if left untreated. And even with that, they have the highest survival rate of snake bite victims. So we were taught what to do to avoid getting bit in the first place as well as what to do should you get bit. Those are very important because the rules are not the same as they are in the rest of the world. We were also reassured that we should be safe going out to the rocks as the ground was still too cold for the snakes to be out and about. Though a week later and things would likely be different. So timing is everything.

On the way to the rocks we stopped to have a view of the Salt Lake. Yes they have a massive salt lake in the middle of the country. We had to climb a particularly tall and uncooperative sand dune to see it. It was quite a sight to see the white salt against the red dirt.

I call them the rocks. That’s what they are. Both are sacred sites to the Aboriginal People. There is the set once known as the Olgas but is more properly called Kata Tjuta. This site is still used for ceremonies so sometimes it is closed to visitors. We were lucky. There were no ceremonies and so we got to see it. Then there is the one that is most famous. Formerly known as Ayer’s Rock, it is more properly known as Uluru. When I was there you could still climb it. I did not. It was straight up and without a rope for part of it. I took pictures from inside the bus. It’s supposed to be closed to climbers now to better preserve it. Uluru was the main event of this trip. We toured some areas around it’s base and saw some rock art as well as a watering hole. The final even for the visit was a sunset barbeque to watch the sunset and magically change the color of Uluru. It was an amazing site to see.

After all the red of the inner area of Australia the next day was off to the greens and blues of Victoria. Melbourne and my friends were the next stop.