Uluru to Alice in Australia’s NT

We are into the next leg of our 3-month road trip through Australia’s south, centre, and west with our last stop putting us at the border between South Australia and the Northern Territory (NT). After crossing the border, we headed for Uluru in the NT’s red centre.

Us on a very cold morning at Uluru, NT

Uluru, once known as Ayers Rock, is a huge and famous sandstone monolith in the NT. But we still had a long way to go before we got there and because our large motorhome Ixi gets thirsty, we stopped just inside the NT border at Kulgera Homestead to buy fuel.

Shoes on the clothesline at Kulgera Homestead, NT

Kulgera is the Aboriginal name for a nearby group of granite rocks. Once a sheep station, it is now a homestead, fuel stop and pub. It’s known as the first (or the last) pub in the NT, and locally famous for the huge can of the Aussie 4X beer out the front, a rotary clothesline filled with old shoes, and hundreds of bras hanging from the ceiling of its bar!

Sign in the female ablutions about snakes in Kulgera, NT

With around 350 km still to go before reaching Uluru, we made another fuel stop at Erlunda Roadhouse, and also stayed there overnight. However, we were dismayed to see a sign in the female ablution block that showed pictures of poisonous snakes in the area. Thank goodness Ixi is self-contained and we didn’t have to use the snaky ablutions.

Wildflowers seen on the Lasseter Highway, NT

The next morning leaving Erldunda, we were straight onto the Lasseter Highway to Uluru. This highway was full of interesting things to see. Leigh’s brother in Australia said the wildflowers would be out, and we saw them alongside the road in mostly whites, yellows, mauves and reds. They were very pretty.

Lake Amadeus, NT

We also visited the large and salty Lake Amadeus, the largest lake in the NT at 180 km long and 10 km wide. It was a hot and windy walk over a sand dune to see it, but it was quite a colourful sight with its white salty edges and red sandy patches stretched out against the blue sky.

Mt Connor seen from the Lasseter Highway, NT

As we drove further, we saw a huge rock in the distance and became very excited thinking that it might be Uluru. But no; after checking our notes we realised this was Mt Conner, a sacred rock with a flat top that is apparently often mistaken for Uluru. 

Uluru seen from the road

But many kilometres later we did see Uluru. This rock started forming 550 million years ago. It is very high at 348 m, but about 2.5 km of it is beneath the surface. Apart from its red colour and interest as a large solid rock, this UNESCO World Heritage Site is also sacred to the indigenous people of Australia.

The sun rising at Uluru, NT

The place where everyone stays when visiting Uluru is the resort town of Yulara, so we stayed in the campground there. To get around and sightsee, we booked a few bus tours, and the first was a sunrise tour to Uluru. The next morning, we were up at 4.30 am, picked up by 5.30 am, and taken to a viewing platform where we watched the sunrise.

 

The new day’s sun hitting Uluru, (UNESCO), NT

But the big event, was how the sun affected Uluru. As the sun rose behind us, it gradually exposed the beautiful red colour of this massive rock. It was amazing to watch. We were rugged up like crazy against the cold desert wind, but the wait and anticipation were well worth it.

Ancient rock paintings at sacred Uluru (UNESCO), NT

After seeing the sunrise, we caught a bus to the base of Uluru to walk part of the way around its 10 km girth. It was cold and windy as the sun had not hit that side of the rock. But the walk was great, showing us aboriginal art, and some particularly sacred sections of the rock. After that, we walked to the nearby Cultural Centre for a coffee, then got the bus back to camp.

Enjoying Aussie tucker as the sun sets over Uluru (UNESCO), NT

That night we had another tour, this one to see Uluru at sunset, which was an equally spectacular sight. But some of the best bits of this tour, were that we had champagne, wine, and canapes consisting of unique Australian edible plants, and enjoyed a buffet dinner with others on the trip. 

The field of lights, Uluru, NT

Tables were set up for 8 people and we met some great folks and enjoyed some wonderful Aussie bush tucker such as kangaroo steak. Then we walked through a “field of light”; 50,000 variously coloured glass spheres that gradually light up as darkness falls. It was beautiful and overall, we had a fabulous evening.

Kata Tjuta (UNESCO), NT

We went on a tour again the next day to see Kata Tjuta (aka The Olgas), a collection of 36 large dome-shaped rocks spread over 20 sq km. For the local indigenous Anangu people, Kata Tjuta is an important and sacred site, and it is also part of the Uluru UNESCO site. 

Marg on the Walpa Gorge trail, Kata Tjuta (UNESCO), NT

While the sacred sites are out of bounds, there are two marked trails open to visitors and so we walked the short Walpa Gorge trail. It took us through a very windy canyon, but was interesting as these rocks provide a lot of moisture in the middle of the desert, enabling some unique plant growth.

The setting sun hitting Kata Tjuta (UNESCO), NT

Leaving the Walpa Gorge, we were taken to a viewing site to watch the sunset over Kata Tjuta. It was as spectacular Uluru and we were enchanted by the change of colour. Unlike Uluru which is one solid rock, the Kata Tjuta domes are made of layers of rocks, estimated to be over 500 million years old.

Camels crossing the road to King’s Canyon, NT

After a few days around Uluru, we left to visit the Watarrka National Park. On the way, we passed horses and camels on the side of the road. Then as we approached one herd of camels, a big one walked slowly onto the road intently watching us. We stopped for him, and he turned to his herd and hurried them across the road. Smart camel – there was no way we were going to mess with that big fella.

 

Marg admiring the rocks in King’s Canyon, NT

We arrived at the National Park and made our way to King’s Canyon, which has 300 m high sandstone walls, gum tree-filled creek beds, and views that stretch across the desert. It is considered the most spectacular canyon in Australia. We did the lovely King’s Creek Walk through the bottom of the canyon. Leaving there, we drove on looking for an overnight stop. 

 

Leigh’s poor unusable phone

But on the way, Leigh lost her phone out the window while taking a photo, and it hit the bitumen at speed. With no other traffic around, Marg was able to stop and reverse. We found it but it’s not functional. Later on, she managed to connect it to Marg’s phone and transfer her photos. Everything else is backed up elsewhere, but it was a new phone! Luckily, she’d packed her old phone and is now using that.

Scenery during a slow, low fuel experience in the NT

About 1.5 hours later, we stopped at the isolated Salt Creek Rest Area for the night. The next morning when we started Ixi’s engine, her fuel gauge was in the red – eeek – and it was 160 km to the next fuel station. So we drove very slowly to save fuel, and it was a nail-biting experience not knowing whether we would run out. We didn’t, but we filled Ixi with 99 litres of her 100 litre capacity so we were very close.

Emus at Erldunda Roadhouse, NT

The fuel stop we finally reached was at Erldunda Roadhouse, so we took a short break and admired the emus in their farm before driving on to Alice Springs, our next stop. Once in Alice, a supermarket was our priority. We’d been existing on the frozen meals that we’d made to use up our fresh veges and meat before crossing the Sth Aust/NT border. Now we needed fresh food.

One of several murals in Alice Springs, NT

Alice Springs (pop 28,000) has a huge pioneering history and as we walked around it, we were dismayed to find that very few of her historic buildings still stand. It is now a modern looking town. But it seems to have its own quirks and interesting things to see. We particularly liked the many murals that depict both the western and Aboriginal influences of the area.

The pedestrian shopping mall with art galleries in Alice Springs, NT

We popped into several art galleries there and saw some stunning Aboriginal art (but out of our price range). We also visited the National Pioneer Women’s Hall of Fame but unfortunately it was closed due to a “lack of volunteers” which is such a shame as we would have loved to learned about some of the female explorers and the old ruby and gold days of Alice Springs.

The old hospital in Alice Springs, NT

We had a similar experience with the Royal Flying Doctor Service – it was also closed. But we enjoyed the Old Gaol and the Old Hospital with their huge sandstone bricks and shady verandahs. We had a lovely rest in Alice before moving on. Next we get back on the Stuart Highway and its 130 km per hour speed limit, to our next destination deep in the outback.

This post is the second in a series about our travels through Australia’s south, centre and west. The first was in Adelaide and can be found here.