Kata Tjuta

Sunset on Kata Tjuta from the previous Uluru tour

I forgot to mention that we arrived at Uluru 2 days after "the Royals" Will and Kate were there. As a result, we saw many spruced up paths and repainted posts. We even met a local artist who told us about her opportunity to meet and curtsy for them.

We specifically chose to visit Uluru during the Tjungu festival, an Anangu cultural event which included food, music, a footy game featuring indigenous sports star Mickey O, and, our personal favorite, local artists selling their beautiful wares.

We got up early on Sunday to see the first rays of sun light on Kata Tjuta, with the bonus of seeing the sun rise behind Uluru.

The moon and Venus over Uluru - just wow

At first light

It's early...

Although Uluru is the most famous of rocks in the area, we had heard that Kata Tjuta, or The Olgas, was also pretty spectacular. The Uluru tour had included many stories about Tjukurpa, the Anangu creation stories and explanations for physical sites around the rock. The stories of Kata Tjuta remain unknown to most “white fellas” and so our guide on this tour, Monica, provided mostly geography lessons on how both Uluru and Kata Tjuta formed. Uluru is sandstone and Kata Tjuta is conglomerate and both were formed approximately 500 million (!) years ago. The highest point, Mount Olga, is approximately 546 m (1,791 ft) above the surrounding plain. That point is  198 m (650 ft) higher than Uluru - about 2/3 higher than Uluru, which when standing below it just didn't seem possible. It may be because that is just one peak, and most all of Uluru is 350 m high making it feel more massive.

Eight-foot boulders just scattered about like pre-baked chocolate cookies

Melbournians Vincent and Leon (ages 4 and 6) enjoyed Monica's stories

Big rains had come just two weeks ago and a little still remained.

Our flight out on Sunday also featured some pretty cool views of both Uluru and Kata Tjuta where you can see land mass area rather than just a one-sided view.

Kata Tjuta

Uluru with airport in the foreground

More of an aerial view of Uluru