Wednesday, Oct 6th 2010--- Green, Cold, Wet & No Flies… are you sure this is the Outback?

Today was a bright an early start… waking up at 5am to be all packed up and ready to hop on our tour bus into the red center with Emu Run tours at 6am!Because we were returning to Desert Palms Resort after our 2-day tour to Ayer's Rock, we were able to store our luggage in their complimentary hold and carry only what we needed for the next couple of days.What a blessing this was, considering I've been lugging a massive suitcase, laptop bag and backpack with me everywhere I go!

I always thought that Ayer's Rock and Alice Springs were relatively close to one another before my family began researching and planning our trip.I have now come to realize how different our perceptions of things really can be, and how this can totally alter vacations… for the best of course!For starters, the round trip from Alice Springs to Ayer's Rock and back covers 1,100km!I was expecting a long drive, but not that long! I had also conjured up images of vast red sandy soil stretching as far as the eye could see, very little vegetation, maybe a few parched trees and an abundance of kangaroos taking no notice of the few cars that pass by.This image… well it was also a bit skewed!

In reality, the outback experiences an average rainfall of 282mm, however this year it has already received 570mm, making that vast, red, empty desert seem more like a lush forest!A wonderful green and red mixture of Spinifex grass, Desert Oaks, Acacia trees and wildflowers coated the iron-rich red soils.Because of the abundance of rain, wildflowers such as the Sturt Desert Pea and Honey Grevillea were common sights which was fascinating considering some of these flowers only bloom once every 8 years!Trees and vegetation have adapted to the harsh conditions of the outback.The presence of Desert Oaks, which can extend their tap roots 3x their tree height in search of water, provides a good indication of the groundwater table supply.

As for my idea of kangaroos hopping all over the place… I was pretty wrong there as well!The wildlife that we came across most often in the outback was camels.Yes camels!Camels were introduced to the outback of Australia in the 1920s to help build the Ghan railway.They were a hard-working animal that was essentially disease-free.The population adapted well and is now considered the largest camel population in the world… who knew?!Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of kangaroos out here, but I didn't come across any during my visit.

Uluru (aboriginal for "Place of Meeting") is still essentially an Aboriginal area with very little development.We are living in the 21st century, where development is pretty much impossible to stop, so yes there has been some additions compared to those who may have visited a few decades ago, however it is well contained.Ayer's Rock Resort known by some as "Monopoly Town" is a self-sufficient resort and the only civilized town at Uluru.The resort employs 1000 staff and runs off generators.All amenities (hotel rooms--- you're looking at $500+ a night with a minimum 2 night stay, bar, camping facilities, store, etc.)are owned by the same corporation with the exception of the post office and medical center!We stopped here for a toilet break and to look around before continuing another 50km to the rock.The landform is SO large, that you could easily see it from the resort, which I guess is part of the resort's attraction!

When we arrived at the rock it was absolutely pouring!Talk about yet another perception that I got wrong!I was told the outback was stinking hot and full of flies, but here I am soaking wet, but no flies in sight!Of course I left my raincoat back at the hotel in Alice Springs (as did ¾ of the bus) but there was no way I was going to stay on the bus and admire Uluru's beauty!I ventured out with an umbrella that I found in my purse (yes, I was a Girl Guide- "Be Prepared" has been driven into my head a fair bit!) and was off to explore the rock at its finest.Rain on the rock is a rarity, so rare that our tour guide of 15 years had never experienced it and was taking photos for himself!Locals were even fleeing to the rock to capture some shots!Only about 1% of tourists are fortunate enough to experience the cascading waterfalls and dark colour of the rock.Who cares if I had just gotten over being sick, sitting on a bus soaked to the bone was more than worth the sites I witnessed at the rock.Pictures and tales will never describe the actual moment at the rock with my beloved family.(Even though Simon was a little lame and went back to the bus early!It's ok… I still love you!)

After our walk at the rock, we ventured over to "the" spot to watch the sunset.Here we had a lovely BBQ dinner equipped with wine and champagne (talk about being spoiled!) as we witnessed the sun drape over the rock.What a privilege it was the see the rock in both rain and shine!I couldn't have asked for a better turnout!

We left the rock once the sun had set and made our way to the roadhouse in Erlunda, arriving around 9:30pm still wet from the day's adventure.If only you could have seen how wrinkly my feet where when I took off my sopping wet shoes that are now stained a tinge of red!Chalk one up to experience there I reckon!

A little Aboriginal in case you're interested in learning a new language:

Annanu: we the people

Chookaba: dreamtime stories