Alice Springs

My bus ride was long, but I made it to Alice Springs and was surprisingly not tired. Managed to doze a little, despite the uncomfortable seats. Saw 2 bush fires during the night as well.

I checked into Toddy's Backpackers. The staff were amazing there and the room clean. Communal bathroom was gross, but at least you don't spend much time there. There was even a restaurant/bar there that had cheap backpacker meals.

I put my stuff in my room and walked the 15 mins into town to sight see. Just checked out a couple shops at Todd Mall, went and bought some new tank tops and underwear at Kmart (gotta love those $4 deals!), and walked up Anzac Hill to enjoy the lookout over the town. Some people may say they hate Alice Springs and that it's a dump in the middle of nowhere, but I liked it. Maybe it has something to do with living in Katherine and Mataraka (which really is in nowhere). I don't know. I liked that there was no humidity, my rash wasn't as itchy. Still hot in the sun, but refreshing in the shade. Didn't even need the air con, just the fan. A comfortable 32 C :)

After my walk, I went back home and booked my Outback tour. Nice to book it at the hostel, as they give you a night free accommodation when you return.

I booked with a company called Emu Run Tours, and chose the 3 day Uluru Camping Tour. It was the same price as their competitor's (the Rock) but I've only heard good things from other travellers. I think their the best for the price.

I had dinner at the restaurant, chose the lasagna for $5. Wouldn't recommend it, didn't know lasagna could get that greasy! Anyways, as I ate, (half my dinner, couldn't stomach more) there was the funniest show on the TV. It was called Swamp People. It's about these Cajun's catching gators in the swamps down in Louisiana. Seriously, what's wrong with some people! Guy caught a gator and pulled it into his tiny boat, where 2 of them were, then shot it a few times! Not worried about it biting them, or putting holes in their boat obviously! Wow, pretty silly. The bartender and I laughed about it, then I headed to bed to get all rested up for my tour the next morning.

There was 13 of us on the tour including our guide, Ryan. And I was so happy that almost all of us were solo travellers. Yay, people to talk to this time! Everyone was really great, we all got along and there was no discomfort between us. Just family, right from the get-go.

We had a long drive a head of us, so with a small breakfast from Ryan, we drove to Uluru (aka Ayer's Rock). We had a few small stops along the way for toilets, snacks/souvenirs, a viewing of Mt Connor and dried up salt lakes.

Once we got to Uluru, we went into the Cultural Centre for insight of the Aboriginal people and then had lunch. Sandwich, granola bar, juice and a brownie. Then, we went to Mutijulu Waterhole for a guided walk where Ryan told us an aboriginal story of the rock and learn some history about it.

The rain falls down the side of the rock in 2 main spots, forming waterholes. Here, animals come to drink and the natives are able to hunt them easily for food. Unfortunately, these waterholes have been polluted from tourists hiking up the rock and littering. The rock is sacred to the Aboriginals, and they prefer people not to climb it. It means so much to them. I was glad that it was closed to tourists for the climb when we got there due to the heat. I don't think it's necessary for tourists to climb it. You get a similar idea of the landscape on your flight, hiking the other 2 locations I'll mention and just by a small hill anywhere out there. It's flat, with a few rocks here and there with small bush and scattered trees. Don't think it's worth upsetting the locals for that walk. Instead, we walked around the base of it, which was a 10.6 km loop (see, still get exercise in). There was a bit of cloud in the sky so the temperature was very comfortable. No need to worry too much about heat exhaustion.

After our walk, we went to a viewing point to watch the sunset on Uluru. We had sparkling wine with crackers, dip and cheese for appetizers, then stirfry for dinner. We didn't get much of a sunset due to the clouds, but we had a fabulous time :)

We got to our campsite and slept in our swags out under the clouds, umm, I mean stars, lol. It was pretty warm, and luckily, no bugs bothered us. Maybe a few ants here and there. A few people were worried about creepy crawlies (like scorpions and snakes) getting into the swags, but Ryan told us we had nothing to worry about. Just check your shoes before putting them on and tuck them under your swag during the night so a dingo doesn't steal your shoe. Lol.

I ended up seeing 2 dingos. I got up at 3:30 am to walk to the toilet and when I got back into my bed, 2 ran right by me and disappeared. Quite shy, those guys!

We had our wake up at 4 am for a continental breakfast and watched the "sunrise" at the Kata Tjuta (aka the Olgas) viewpoint. We could see Uluru from here too, but again we were robbed. Too cloudy.

We parked at Kata Tjuta and had a guided walk up to Karingana lookout. We learned the Anangu people legend on how the Olgas were made as well as the scientific way. All made of sandstone. Then, we had the option to keep hiking and go through the Valley of the Winds. Most of us did it. I went on ahead of most people to get some quiet time. I absolutely loved it! There were lots of gumtrees, bush, flowers and dried up stream beds all in the middle of the surrounding rocks. Like an oasis in the middle of nowhere. This was my favorite place! Lots of lizards, birds and even Euro Kangaroos. The walk was 7.4 km total from the car park. The sign board says it's a difficult track, but it's actually really easy. I would say easy-moderate.

After our hike we went back to the campsite to make tacos for lunch. Then we drove to Kings Creek Station where we were staying for the night. We had free time to roam. There was a pool, camel farm and even a couple horses there. 3 dogs too. The puppy was really cute!

We made a campfire and had BBQ for dinner consisting of kangaroo steak, chicken kebabs, sausages, potatoes, salad and garlic bread (made with flour, garlic and beer in a cast iron pot covered by the fire coals). Cookies for dessert. We all had an early night with our early starts. Rain visited us that night, so we slept under the kitchen areas to keep dry.

Another wake up at 4 am for our breaky then a drive out to Kings canyon. Ryan guided us through the 6km Canyon Rim walk and educated us about the plants and geology. There was a natural amphitheatre, North and South Walls and the Garden of Eden (which was a waterhole in the center of the canyon). Lots of Ghost Gumtrees here. They are called that because they have a white power on the outside on the tree that reflects the moonlight looking like ghosts. It's a neat tree. The Anangu people can wipe the powder on their skin to act as sunscreen. The powder will fill in your fingerprints as well, so if you're on a night of crime, you won't need gloves! If you tie a plastic bag around the leaves, it'll sweat out 2 L of water in 8 hrs. They also call it the female tree... I'll let you figure that out on your own, lol.

It was pretty cool to see some tropical plants like ferns their too. They'd been there for decades, and with the water in the canyon, they still thrive there. Don't see that anywhere else in the outback!

After that, we went back to Kings Creek Station for lunch. We bbq'd camel and beef burgers and had potato salad with regular salad. Cookies and fruit afterwards. The camel wasn't bad, not too strong.

We drove to Mt Ebenezer to see the Aboriginal Art Gallery and camel farm. I went on a camel ride! It was fun! Can see how that would be a little uncomfortable after a while though. Can't really get a synced rhythm like you can with horses when they run. But it was fine went they walk. Even had a saddle! There are wild camel in Australia, however they are introduced to the country (we saw 6 out by Kings Canyon).

We all got dropped off at our accommodation back in Alice Springs with the plan to all meet up for dinner and drinks at Toddy's Restaurant and Bar for the evening. We had a great time reminiscing about the trip and what we really liked as well as future adventures. I was so happy, everyone was so wonderful on that trip.

Today, I'm relaxing around the hostel and the town. I have my flight leaving tomorrow to Cairns so I can get more diving in.