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 Ayers
Rock Australia, also known as Uluru Australia,
is one of the most recognized and famous
landmarks in Australia and this massive
hill of red sandstone stands in solitary
splendor amid a parched, sandy wasteland in its
outback. Your visit to Australia can never be
complete without visiting the Uluru Ayers Rock.
Uluru National Park (320 meters), located almost
at the very centre of Australia and southwest of
Alice Springs, is one of the most beautiful
Australia natural wonders in this part of the
world and interesting tourist attraction in
Northern Territory. Use this Ayers Rock travel
guide to allow you to get the best deal for your
hotel Ayers Rock package because there are many
Uluru hotels, Ayers Rock hotels and Ayers Rock
resort in the vicinity of Uluru Rock. You can
find plenty of cheap hotel Ayers Rock accommodation.
The Australian Aborigines, the Anangu
people, who live here call Ayers Rock as Uluru
National Park. Uluru Tjuta National Park
is a place of reverence round which their lives
have followed for thousands of years and is part
of their code of living, the Tjukurpa and among
the attractions seen here at the vast Uluru-Kata
Tjuta National Park are varied springs,
waterholes, rock holes and ancient paintings
making Uluru Rock or Uluru Ayers Rock one of the
most spectacular in Australia.
Wind-blown sands
have sculpted the domed, elephantine bulk of
Ayers Rock, which rises abruptly from the flat
and dry plains of the Northern Territory.
Besides being a national symbol, Ayers Rock is
regarded as a sacred and mystical place by the
Aborigines. What makes this place interesting is
that Ayer Rocks glows with ever-changing colors
as the sun moves across the sky. It becomes an
orange glow of sunrise as dawn breaks while it
changes to dark and rusty hue during the early
morning shadows. It is suffused with amber
during the afternoon while sunset makes the rock
into a crimson mass like a glowing giant coal.
The best time to view Ayers Rock is during
sunset. This holy place is often referred to as
a monolith but it is actually part of a much
larger underground rock formation which consists
of the Olgas and Mount Connor.
Ayers Rock is a
sandstone hill that was pushed up by earth
movements about five hundred million years ago
whereby most of it is submerged in the
surrounding sea of sand dunes. The only area
that is visible is its flattened 348 meters high
tip which is a formation known as inselberg, or
island mountain. The rock surface is covered by
fine parallel grooves while caves and cavities
weathered into strange shapes can be seen at its
base. At northeast of the rock, a 150 meters
high slab has split away and it is known as the
Kangaroo's Tail.
 This place is quite
dry throughout the year but after the rare heavy
downpour, water cascades down the rock's
towering flanks. Most of the rain runs off onto
the plain below which is badly needed by the plants
found here such as the blue-grey sandalwood,
bloodwood, mulga trees, desert oaks and hummock
grass. Located on the southern end, a large pool
called Mutitjulu (also known as Maggie Springs)
can be seen here. According to the Aborigines,
the water snakes seen in the pools are believed
to be its guardian. For animal lovers, red kangaroos,
wallaroos, emus, wedge-tailed eagles and honeyeaters
are among the many species of animals spotted in this
region.
Photo: The giant 'compass' seen at Uluru
Ernest Giles and
William C. Gosse are the first Europeans to set
eyes on Ayers Rock in which they named the rock
after Sir Henry Ayers who was South Australia's
premier back then. Ayers Rock has been part of
the Uluru National Park since 1985. To the Anangu
people, the Uluru area is a focus of converging
ancestral tracks, or iwara. To them, every part
of the rock has sacred significance while some
caves at Mutitjulu and Kantju Gorge contained
Aboriginal paintings. A tourist centre is
located eighteen kilometers north of Ayers Rock
at Yulara Resort which is located near the Uluru
hotels. To explore the rock, you will
need to walk about four hours to round the rock
or you can choose to travel on a motorcycle
pillion ride. Climbing up to the summit takes
about two hours. For those who do not wish to
walk for so long, you can choose a shorter
walking tour along the Liru Trail with an
Aboriginal guide explaining their culture to
you. As long as you are fit enough, climbing
Ayers Rock is a must and you can spent a night
at one of the many nearby Uluru accommodation or
hotel Ayers Rock or you can join one of the many
Uluru tours. Although a chain handhold
has been fitted to enable the climb to be
easier, it is still a long and steep hike all
the way to the top to Ayers Rock Australia.
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