The Ghan Train: Feb 24 & 25

24 hours on a 700m train... welcome to The Ghan! Linking Adelaide to Darwin this train provides a scenic route for tourists to enjoy central Australia. We hopped on in Alice Springs and were pleasantly surprised to find spacious and comfortable seats that recline very far back. There is even a dining cart! I wish airplanes could be like this. We boarded at 6pm, slept through the night and then at 9am the train arrived in the town of Katherine for a stop to see some sights. Our group decided to do a hike up the gorge and we were rewarded with some beautiful sights.

The Ghan

 

From desert to rainforest overnight

Bats in a tree at the bottom of the gorge

 

Wallabies playing in the park

Kings Canyon: Feb 23

Kings Canyon. Wow! Another early morning and tough hike but another beautiful view from the top and along the way. In the afternoon, we arrived in Alice Springs with mixed emotions. Our farewell dinner was our last meal with half the group as their tour ended in Alice Springs and the rest of us continued up to Darwin. I can't think of a better way to spend our last night together than watching the gold medal hockey game at a bar (at least the Canadians enjoyed it).

 

The first hill we climbed at Kings Canyon (also known as heart attack hill)

 

Finally, I made it to the top

Fossilized waves from when this Australian desert used to be under water millions of years ago

Black Lake in the middle of the canyon

Kata Tjuta: Feb 22

Katya Tjuta (The Olgas) is another sacred place to the aboriginal people where the ceremony was held for boys to become men. Due to the restrictions of the culture, we are able to know very little beyond that. However, the view is another beautiful one. A difficult hike with many hills but definitely worth it.

 

Kata Tjuta at sunrise

The first very steep hill

Walk around Uluru & Helicopter Ride: Feb 21

An early 4:30am morning but completely worth it! We started off with watching the sunrise over Uluru and then headed for a walk around the base. Since this is such a sacred sight, we did not climb it but instead walked around the base. It was interesting to see the rock from all angles and read the aboriginal stories along the way. In the afternoon, I went for a helicopter ride over Uluru and Kata Tjuta. Incredible! The evening was spent at The Sounds of Silence, a fine dining experience overlooking Uluru. A great way to spend the night with friends.

 

Sunrise over Uluru 

 

All ready to begin the walk!

This tree has the ability to limit its water supply so that only a branch will die off instead of the entire tree. Very creative!

Native paintings on the rocks

 

The water hole in the middle of the rock

Helicopter ride!

Uluru

Kata Tjuta

The water basin is located below the ground where the trees are

A man welcomed us to the Sounds of Silence dinner playing the didgieroo

 

A dingo decided to join us for dinner



Uluru: Feb 20

Uluru is an absolutely stunning rock in the middle of the desert. This bright red giant has huge meanings in the aboriginal culture and is considered a sacred sight. We were fortunate enough to be able to witness the sunset behind Uluru before crashing in our swags for the evening.

 

In Central Australia, flynets are in fashion

Sunset over Uluru