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Detailed travelogue on Australia and New Zealand

Detailed Travelogue on Australia and New Zealand

Larry
2006-05-27 03:23:16

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do not climb it, and ask that others don't for two
reasons: (1) they feel it's sacred, and (2) when someone is killed or
injured on the climb, they feel bad that it happened on their land.
However, they allow people who wish to climb the rock to do so -- and just
about everyone visiting Ayers Rock arrives with the intention of climbing
it. Mixing with these thoughts in my head was my foot -- feeling much
better, but still not 100% up to snuff for hiking. I wasn't sure if I
should climb or not, so I decided I'd wake up early enough the next day to
see if I felt like doing it.
Ayers Rock is open for climbing (in mid-December) at 5:30am. I arrived
at the base by 5:30, and decided to give it a try. The climb is quite steep
in places, and for most of it, there's a metal chain that's hammered into
the rock to hold onto as you climb. With my foot the way it was, I took a
slightly slower pace, and was almost to the top when sunrise was about to
break. I stopped for minute, and there was a flat area there to sit on, so
instead of huffing my way to the very top, I stopped just short of it, got
out my camera, and took some pictures of the sunrise. It was actually quite
windy near the top, and my hat blew off on the way down. It was an
interesting climb, and when I was finished, I spent the next few hours
walking along the base, looking at ancient rock drawings, waterholes, caves
where Aboriginal people once stayed, and odd-shaped rocks that are important
parts of Aboriginal folklore (explained in the brochures and signs along the
way).
I should mention that the four things you need when exploring this area
of Australia are: water, sunscreen lotion, a hat, and a fly net. All over
the outback are the most annoying flies you'll ever meet. They're not
mosquitos, so they won't bite, but they buzz all around ...

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