After four weeks of trouble with the internet I can finally return to my blog, starting with our visit to Uluru.

Today was our day to explore Uluru. It was another early start because the others wanted to climb the rock. Mark and I had decided not to climb even before I had hurt my knee.

Chris and Irene had rejoined us yesterday and were ready to make up for lost time.

 Mala Walk is one of the base walks around Uluru where you  see some of the very places where the Mala people prepare for ceremony . This is an easy ranger guided walk and well worth it.

Fascinating rock art.

Would love to see water coming down here.

The face on the side of the rock.

The waterhole on the left is the most reliable one at the base of Uluru, while the chair is one of many made for one of the royal visits.

The next set of photos are from the family cave.

 Kata-Tjuta

After exploring Uluru it was time to head back to Yulara for some lunch , after which we went and watched some aboriginal dancing at the resort.

Followed by a glorious sunset.

Before we left Kings Canyon we had one more walk to do,the Creek walk which took us part of the way through the centre of the canyon.Once again we started off early.

It was another beautiful walk.

There were some magnificent gumtrees seemingly growing out of the rocks.

Massive boulders were lying around as well. In the middle photo below John is examining the pebble lodged between the crack in the rock in the above photo on the left.

The end of the track. Beyond is sacred to the Aboriginals.

Looking up towards the track which takes you up to the rim of the canyon.

Once we finished our walk it was time to hit the road again, destination Uluru.

First stop though was Kings Creek Station just because we could.

 Back on the Lasseter Highway and getting closer to Uluru. Our next stop though was the Mt Connor Lookout just before Curtin Springs were we enjoyed the view of a very white salt lake.

Smoke bush also known as silver bush or silver tails.

Mt Connor and the long road to Curtin Springs and Uluru.

Curtin Springs was one of those outback places with a quirky sense of humor.

Finally we made it to Yulara, the nearest place to camp near Uluru. Someone was not impressed with our arrival.Yulara is the service village for the national park and has effectively turned one of the world's least hospitable regions into a comfortable place to stay. Lying just outside the national park, 20km from Uluru and 53km from Kata Tjuta, the complex is the closest base for exploring the park. Yulara supplies the only accommodation, food outlets and other services available in the region.(http://www.lonelyplanet.com)

              The name,Yulara, is derived from local Aboriginal words for howling and dingos.

At last our first proper look at this magnificent Rock.

The path to the lookout at the camping ground.