The "Big Red Rock" in the outback Northern Territory is world famous for the world’s largest monolith, Uluru (also called Ayers Rock) - Australia’s most legendary mountain. It is in the middle of remote Australia, far from everywhere in real Australian outback. Here is some information on the park, and in the end of the page is accommodation and a map.
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Uluru. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Kata Tjuta - The Olgas Not far from it, in the same national park is Kata Tjuta (also called The Olgas), which in local Aboriginal language means “many heads”. It is somewhat less famous than Uluru but not less impressive, and Kata Tjuta also changes colours in different times of day. Both Uluru and Kata Tjuta are located in the Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park south-west of Alice Springs in Northern Territory.
Kata Tjuta. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Geology of Uluru and Kata Tjuta Uluru and Kata Tjuta have different geological backgrounds. Both are sedimentary rocks but Uluru is composed of a kind of sandstone called arkose, while Kata Tjuta’s rock is conglomerate – a sedimentary rock with large pebbles. The area was at times covered by inland sea which is when the sediments were deposited between 900 and 300 million years ago. About 550 million years ago these sediments were uplifted and then gradually eroded. About 300 million years ago the layers of Uluru were turned almost vertical, while the layers of Kata Tjuta were only turned about 15-20 degrees. As the erosion continued, a valley was formed between Uluru and Kata Tjuta about 65 million years ago. The erosion continues of course but at a much slower rate since the climate became much drier only 500,000 years ago (erosion is much quicker in wet climate), and it is believed that the look of Uluru and Kata Tjuta han’t changed since the first Aboriginal People came here.
Uluru close-up. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Australian Animals and Desert Plants Today the climate is very dry around Uluru and Kata Tjuta, and the area is mostly covered by sand dunes, Spinifex grasslands and open woodlands with typical Australian desert plants such as mulga, umbrella brush and desert oak. As often in dry areas, reptiles are abundant in Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park. One of the most special ones is Thorny Devil – if you don’t see it in the Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park, don’t miss the Alice Springs Reptile Centre while in Alice Springs, where you can hold it on your hand, it’s a really funny creature. Other animals include red kangaroos, euros, dingos, dunnarts and Spinifex hopping mice. There are about 180 species of birds in the Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park including cockatoos and parrots, honeyeaters, kingfishers, finches and falcons.
Thorny devil. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
How to Get to Ayers Rock Australia Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park is in the end of Lasseter Highway which turns right from Stuart Highway south of Alice Springs. This is such remote Australia that no regular buses or trains go to Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park, so unless you fly (there is an airport near Yulara), you need your own wheels, or you can join one of the following tours from Alice Springs: Adventure Tours Australia, Mulga’s Adventures or Sahara Outback Tours. AAT Kings, McCafferty’s and Greyhound (the latter two are nowadays the same company) also offer three-day tours.
Driving, Uluru. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Lasseter Highway and Mount Connor As you drive along the Lasseter Highway, before Uluru Kata Tjuta on your left hand side is Mount Connor – which some eager travellers immediately mistake for Uluru, but keep driving until you come to a short turnoff to Yulara, which is where the national park’s only accommodation is (see more about it lower down on this page). South of Yulara on your left-hand side is the turnoff to Kata Tjuta, and if you keep driving past it on Lasseter Hwy, it finally takes you to Uluru.
Mount Connor. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Drive around Ayers Rock Australia There is a road around the 3.6km long and 348m high Uluru so you can drive around it, and there is a car park next to the Uluru where travellers gather at the sunset with a cold beer to sit down and watch the rock changing colours as the sun sets.
Uluru sunset. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Ayers Rock Walking Tours - Uluru Walk But a much better way to discover Uluru is to bushwalk around it and take your time to see it close-by. There are several bushwalks at Uluru: two popular shorter walks are the 2km, cultural Mala Walk, and the 1km Mutitjulu Walk that takes you to a waterhole. But the best one is the 10km Base Walk which takes you all the way around the rock where there are no crowds, and you just feel like in the real Australian outback.
Uluru bushwalk. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Kata Tjuta Olgas Tour You can also walk around Kata Tjuta. The 2km Tatintjawiya Walk takes you to the beautiful Olga Gorge, and the longer, 7km Valley of the Winds takes you though different gorges of Kata Tjuta. And as Kata Tjuta also changes colours in the sunset, there is a viewing area with toilets and picnic facilities off the access road west of Kata Tjuta.
Kata Tjuta. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Ayers Rock Guided Tours If you don’t want to bushwalk on your own, there are many bushwalking tours available in Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park that take you around is this real Australian outback: Discovery Ecotours will take you around the base of both Uluru and Kata Tjuta, and Anangu Tours have Aboriginal guides who will take you around and tell you about Anangu culture. You can also go on camel rides with Frontier Camel Tours, motorcycle tours offered by Uluru Motorcycles, or see the rocks from the air with Ayers Rock Scenic Flights or Ayers Rock Helicopter Group.
Camel Tour. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Uluru Cultural Centre Maps and information about the bushwalking tracks, tours and guides can be found at the Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park Cultural Centre where there are also extensive displays about the area’s Aboriginal history and the history and management of the national park.
Uluru helicopter flight. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Yulara - Ayers Rock Accommodation There used to be accommodation in the Uluru Kata Tjuta national park, but nowadays all the accommodation is in Yulara and you are not allowed to camp in the National Park. It is a good thing for the environment as the park gets crowded during the winter months, but the downside is that with no competitors the Ayers Rock Yulara Resort at Yulara has become a very expensive place to stay. The cheapest way to stay at Yulara is to camp on the Ayers Rock campground which is affordable even though it is more expensive than camping elsewhere in Australia. But as with everything, you get what you pay for and Yulara is a very well equipped place.
Yulara resort. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Accommodation in Ayers Rock Yulara is really like a small tourist town with different hotels, restaurants, a shop, a post office, an ATM, internet access and a swimming pool. You can watch the “Predators of the Red Centre” in the Amphitheatre and during the night there is the Night Sky Show about Anangu legends and outback skies where you can study the clear outback sky through a telescope. At Yulara Visitors Centre there are good displays of the area’s history, nature and geography, and desks of tour operators and car rental companies.
Yulara resort. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
Yulara resort. Courtesy of Tourism Northern Territory
There is a well-stocked supermarket, and the eateries include Pioneer Kitchen, Quick Bite Take Away, Gecko’s Cafe, White Gums and Pioneer Barbeque. There is a cinema in town where you can watch movies during the weekend, and bars include Bubya Bar in Desert Gardens Hotel, Tali Bar in Sails in the Desert, and Outback Pioneer’s BBQ Bar.
Here's a map of Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park, where I have tagged the places that I mentioned on this web page. You can click on the tags to see what places they are, and double-click anywhere on the map to zoom it in and see the places closer. Drag the map to move around, and if you want to see the satellite image with Google Earth, click on "Sat" in the top right hand corner.
NOTE: This website is written in British English, which is the English we use in Australia. You will find words like "traveller", "harbour" and "realise", and they are all correct in the language used in Australia.
