We had reserved a car in advance, which was just as well, there seems to be a very small pool of cars and so Hertz seems to be permanently fully booked.
So, when we arrived we had seen Uluru/Ayers Rock and Kata Tjuta/the Olgas from the resort viewing point, but as we approached these mountains by car, they became more and more impressive. The colours: the red of the rock, the blue of the sky and the green of the trees and grasses contrast and really are as strong as the photos show.
We drove all the way round the rock, stopping to walk close to it from time to time. The base walk is 10.6km and there are several shorter walks, but obviously, one has to turn round to get back to the car.
In some places, the marks and cracks in the rock tell directly an aboriginal story.
It is possible to climb the rock, but one is requested not to do so by the indigenous population for sacred reasons. The walk had been closed when we got there because of strong winds but we didn't intend to climb. You can see the path here and how potentially dangerous it is.
The rock is a sacred place for the local people with caves that are special to the women and others to the men. These cave paintings are from the 'mens cave'.
And this is a tranquil spot overlooking the waterhole at Uluru, note the superb wooden seat.
After this, we moved on to the Olgas/Kata Tjuta another sacred, rocky mountain about 50 Km from Uluru.
Pat and John on tour