DAG 92: Camping Trip

We all get waken up by Dom our tourguide at 4 o'clock in the morning to catch the sunrize at Uluru. I hop on the bus with sleepy eyes like everybody else. Like allways Dom puts on his big smile and good spirits, starts the bus and the first song that he plays on the carstereo is a very depressive song by BRIGHT EYES. Is this his kind of humor i ask myself, do i have to take the bandname literally? Everybody look like zombies after 3 or 4 sleep on a rocky ground.

I am on a three day camping trip in the outback around Uluru (maybe best know as Ayers Rock). And what am i doing here? Everbody who knows me well, knows that i hate outdoor camping. I really hate it! Why sleep on a louzy campingbed, packed in a tiny sleepingbag in a small hot tent, when you can sleep in a big aircondiotened room on a soft bed. And this trip is almost worse, there is no tent! You just sleep on the ground in your swag (a one person bodybag) praying that there will be no spiders, snakes or red ants crawls into it. Although Dom put up its two thumbs and says "no worries mate, you will be fine". You see that all 20 people of the partygroup are thinking the same as me. And the best of all, it took you the whole day in a desert trip to get here. We made 1500 kms in three days running on a straight road through the hot and red desert. No bending machines, 7 elevens or K marts on the corners here, we are in the outback desert. So what i am doing here...............

Well this trips turns out to be amazing. You not only get stunning views from Uluru (ayers rock) the even more amazing 36 peaks of Kata Tjuta and you get a peer in the depths of Kings Canyon. But Dom our guide also explanes a lot about the bizarre geologie that formed these places billions of years ago. And you learn about the history and habits of the aboriginals that tried to survive here for thousand of years. It makes you feel a tiny part of history of this world.

These places we visit are sacred places for the aboriginals. There are special storylines how these places were created by their ancient fathers. We get to hear the 'children' stories. You have to be proven worthy to hear the 'real' stories. How to get a real man? Well, at the age of 8 you get sent into the desert with only your spear for a survival trip of three years. Look again about how i am thinking about camping, i am really satisfied with the children stories.

In two days i will make a campingtrip again, this time up north. when i come back, i will be a good boyscout with survival techniques. (although i cant do anything with how to catch a kangaroo at a campingflight to Lowlands)

I ended op taking hundreds of pictures of beautiful red rock formations. here are a few.

Sunset at Uluru. It is amazing how this rock is created.

Actualy it is a broken rock that is turned 90 degrees!

it sticks out for 350m above ground, there is still 700m below.

Uluru

sunset in the outback

36 peaks or 'heads' of Kata Tjuta. 500m high.

It looks the same as Uluru, but this is made of

compressed pieces of rocks

Kata Tjuta

Sleeping in my comfortable swag. Under the sky.
It was cloudy (even some raindrops) so no sky of stars for me


Making dinner the bushman way. It was a very good chili!

the pots are heatened by the hot coals beneath and on top of the pan.

looking in the depths of kings canyon

swimming in the garden of eden (kings Canyon)

when i got out, Dom told me he spotted the biggest python he ever had seen last time.

this is my impression of slints ablum spiderland or Apocalipse now!

Dom tells us how this tropical plant came into the desert.