Ep 42 - Planning Your Trip to Uluru
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- Опубликовано: 28 май 2024
- For links to everything mentioned in this episode, check out our show notes:
www.snowys.com.au/blog/podcast...
With one finger following the Stuart Highway, and the other tracing the trail walks entangling Alice Springs - outdoor experts Ben and Lauren mark the map with the most fascinating and culture-rich elements of Uluru and its surrounding areas. From the bitumen to the backroads, lose yourself in the outback tracks, trails, and tourist attractions of one of Australia’s most remarkable and momentous landmarks.
Debuting as the first destination-based episode of the Snowys Camping Show, join Ben and Lauren as they detail the perfect points to pull in, how to handle the heat, the roads that are direct, and those that take the long way.
00:00 - Intro
02:38 - Road-tripping
07:57 - Campsites
09:23 - Yulara
12:23 - National Park Bookings and Permits
14:04 - Ideal Travel Periods
17:18 - Stats
18:55 - Activities
23:39 - Budget
25:05 - A Few Tips
28:48 - Photos
29:04 - Uluru-Kata Tjuta
34:12 - Mobility
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OMG WOW THOSE LIGHTS ARE DEADLY
They are amazing! ~ Ben
The first time I saw the Rock was in 1987 and we camped right next to the Rock and it poured with rain for 3days. At the time we were sad because we didn’t see it change colour. Now looking back at the photos of waterfalls flowing off the Rock and it in fog was actually very special
That does sound pretty special @Travel Solo, I think having the chance to see waterfalls in the middle of the desert is a once in a lifetime kind of thing.
~ Lauren
Thanks for the great insights for visiting Uluru. This is perfect timing as I'm now planning my trip there which is tentatively scheduled for Jul/Aug 2023. Starting from the Central Coast of NSW to Uluru via SA (West-ward). On the way back, stopping at the geographical centre of Australia (Lambert Centre), then East-ward to Birdsville via Simpson Desert. Then back home. It should be a grand and unforgettable adventure.
That sounds like a great trip, Hammer Rocks. ~ Ben
Woohoo. Looking forward to my trip to Uluru, visiting the Qld Corner Country and an East-West Crossing of the Simpson Desert.
Another place I'm looking forward to visiting in the Mereenie area is Grosse Bluff, which is a meteor crater. Very excited to be visiting that.
I'm planning a similar trip next year. East-bound via Simpson Desert also (to NSW through Birdsville). 👍
I travelled through there recently but didn't stop at Gosse Bluff. I don't think there is a whole lot to see there, but if meteor craters is your thing then I guess there is more to it than meets my eye. The Mereenie Loop is a nice drive, albeit a little rough at times. ~ Ben
Tip: If you're planning to bring your MTBs just to ride them around Uluru (and nowhere else), then don't. It'll be far less hassle and more covenient hiring them there. I'm talking from experience. They also have the Segway tours, which allows you to fully experience the base of Uluru on a Segway and with a local guide. It's exxy but as a once in a lifetime experience, worth it IMO.
Thanks for the tips Fatman Overlanding. I tend not to carry bikes for extended trips, they just get dusty and often used far less than what you may have intended. The Segway tours look like a lot of fun though, and you know what they say, when in Rome... I mean Uluru. ~ Ben
Love the destination episode idea an dthis was a great one. Look forward to the next.
Thanks for your comment, Ros and Sara, we'll be sure to do a few more destination episodes this season. ~ Ben
Every summer gets the spectacular lightning storms in Uluru Ayers Rock and the Kata Tjuṯa The Olgas and it is fun to watch in the summer sk when it rains during summer monsoon season. I loved to watch the lightning storms in every summer and Yulara is one areas to watch the lightning storms in Uluru and into Watarrka Kings Canyon. Please be careful and be safe to watch lightning storms in Yulara near Uluru in the Australia’s Northern Territory.
It is an amazing part of our country, Alissa. ~ Ben
Had a bus driver like that once. Started every sentence with ‘Actually’.
Not sure what you are referencing here sorry, Peter, think I may have missed something. He must have been an annoying bus driver though. ~ Ben
We took our little pop to caravan to Perth last year, but this year were planning to travel to Alice Springs & see Eyres Rock as well. We planned to stagger the trip with overnight stays along the way.
If your trailer is for off-road use then check out the Mereenie Loop between Kings Canyon and Alice Springs. It can be pretty rough and you need a permit to travel on the road, but it beats going all the way back on the black top.
When I travelled it recently I purchased our pass from Kings Creek Station for under $10, but I think you can get them from a few different locations at each end of the road. ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors Thankyou Been for your reply.
I think these travel episodes are a good idea. Very enjoyable & educational. I appreciate that you factor wheelchair access into your travel plans add well. Thank you again & kind regards.
If going to Alice don't miss Desert Park, it is brilliant. Has reconstructions of the many different desert eco systems and the wildlife and plants endemic to them. Great walks at Ormiston Gorge, but start at sunrise to be off the tracks by lunchtime, even in the cooler months.
Desert Park is amazing! I visited recently with my kids, you can easily spend a full day there. ~ Ben
From Ballarat I have always done it via the Flinders Ranges, via Mildura and Clare. Done it in a normal car on Oodnadatta track. William Creek and Cooberpedy rock. Uluru and Kattajuta are fab but so touristy, even Kings Canyon these days. I am no fan of Yulara, but even so would recommend staying there. It is a major rip off centre, but it's all location, location, location. The cultural centre was in its infancy when I was last there, but still excellent and a respite from the blazing sun. Dinner under the stars sounds divine. I've done the base walk. Never climbed it, even though it was a choice when I visited. Knew it was against the protocols of the local indigenous people. Again the Ranger guides were not doing the walks when last there, so that development is really positive. I love spotting the nocturnal desert animals and the stars at night. Sunrise and sunset are good at Kattajuta too. Yes, Valley of the Winds walk is fab and the other one at Kattajuta and definitely no rim walk. Kings Canyon walks are amazing, but miss the days before the new campground and duck boarding and you could walk in the Garden of Eden, but you had to hire a guide to access any of it, at all!
I concur with everything you say, Fiona.
Yulara, while expensive, is a convenient location to see Uluru from, there is a bit to see in the town now and the cultural centre at Uluru is worth a visit (I was there recently). Luckily I was able to do the Ranger Guided Walk too which was great, especially for the kids, and the Field of Lights display was there which is something different.
I've heard of people doing the Oodnadatta track in a sedan, my parents-in-law did it many years ago in a Honda Accord, and I have driven along there previously when it felt smoother than the blacktop. But conditions change, and you certainly wouldn't make it now after all the rains. Just a matter of checking conditions before you commit, and taking it slow.
~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors Totally will check on the relevant sites and ring the roadhouses and William Creek Hotel. Have my heart set on a flight over Lake Eyre as has plenty of water at present, and that is out of the William Creek hotel, so fingers crossed!
Don't forget 50 bazillion flies live there
It wouldn't be Central Australia without the flies. ~ Ben
Hi guys,
Planning a trip from Adelaide to Cairns via Uluru, Alice Springs. Can we drive 2 wheel drive or has to be AWD only
Thanks 🙏 in advance for information and suggestion
You can do the whole trip on bitumen, no worries!
There may be some detours you want to do for sight seeing, etc but as its a very common trip for tourists, almost everything will be accessible via 2WD.
Have a great time!
~ Lauren
@@SnowysOutdoors Many thanks Lauren.
Hi guys, do you know where we can aquire Park permits from?
Pretty sure you can buy them at the park entrance, or online here - book.parksaustralia.gov.au/passes/uluru/. ~ Ben
Hi we are going to Alice springs next month I’m worried about mice and rats eating car wires and hoses have you experienced this do you have any solutions? Thanks enjoyed your post
I have had experience with this a couple of times, Gerard, it's real pain in the backside as they get in even if your doors are shut. I wouldn't let it impact your trip though, there's probably more chance that you won't experience any problems.
If you do however, there's a trash contraption mouse trap that got me out of trouble, we talk about it at about 36 minutes in this episode - www.snowys.com.au/blog/podcast-half-lap/.
~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors thanks for replying I’ll check it out is help available if this does happen , we have got the best RACV cover we can get thanks again
@@SnowysOutdoors also heard that spraying mint on the hoses deters them
@@gerardmcbryde3156 I guess it's worth a try. ~ Ben
Hi Lauren,did you pop into a Thai restaurant on Goodwood road (opposite Barnicle Bills)Sunday evening around 8pm.We were eating there and a girl walked in that looked like you,just wondering.Cheers
That was Lauren, Norm, says she hasn't eaten there before and the Laksa was delicious! ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors I thought so thanks
Thanks 🙏
No worries! Thanks for listening.
~ Lauren
As a First Nations person do I need a permit?
Hmm, I'd recommend checking with the relevant authority on this, Park Australia is a good place to start - parksaustralia.gov.au/uluru/plan/passes/. ~ Ben
Desmond here from Auckland new Zealand I am flying to Adelaide doing a 16 day tour from from Adelaide to Darwin going to Clare valley port Augusta flinders ranges woomera coober pedy following the Stuart highway uluru kata tjuta national park karlu karlu Tennant creek Alice springs see the rock Litchfield national park mataranka Katherine Katherine gorge cruise kakadu national park jabiru finally Darwin any tips can you pass on leaving auckland new Zealand on august the 5th 2024. Meeting up with the group on Tuesday departing. At 2.30pm in the afternoon also there is lots of optional tours on my tour going on AAt kings tour adventure group first time ever I have be to the northern territory last time I left new Zealand was in 2018 went to China on a tour bus it has be seven years any tips can you pass on please this trip is costing me a pretty penny I am so excited even at the age of 66 you talk about respect I understand that need to take plenty of water suntan lotion can you still buy a Aussie cork hat for the flys can you still buy a Aussie cowboy hat our group is staying in hotels motels etc
Given you are going on a tour, I'd say that your best bet is to drink lots of water, protect yourself from the sun & stand in the shade as much as you can, and most importantly, slow down and enjoy yourself... you'll be on Territory time. You've paid the tour company, let them do the hard work for you.
I hope you enjoy yourself, the red centre is a special place. ~ Ben
Why couldn't they make the resort closer to the rock that's Why people are going there for the rock
Yulara is built on the edge of the National Park Boundary, so its as close as a resort town can get.
I personally love where its positioned, the few look out spots around the resort town give the most spectacular view of Uluru
~ Lauren
Thank christ you killed the opening abominable noise.
Nothing has changed there, Neddy, we still have our opening tune at the start of every episode, sorry you don't like it. ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors It was my very first time seeing one of your vids. Does it continue all the way through? I didn't stay around to find out. That's the trouble with distinctive music. some like it, most will endure it, and some, yeah, like me, hate it. There is no winning everyone with distinctive music.
@@neddyladdy it's just there for the intro and again at the outro, it doesn't continue all the way through. ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors That is a relief to know. As an aside, do the intro and outro serve any purpose other tan to annoy viewers. the same thing time after bloody time.
It looks like I shall have to reinstate you to one of the "possibles".
@@neddyladdy you're the first viewer to have an issue with the music, Neddy, and we've had millions of views. ~ Ben
It's called Ayres Rock. Always was. Always will be.
That's only really true for our lifetime, harpersneil, but It was actually called Uluru for many thousands of years before the Ayers Rock name came along. ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors If you honestly believe that, I don't know what to say to you. The flag. The languages. The place names. It's all nonsense. Made up by white men to Westernise aboriginal people.
Most of us, those that are not political correct or follow the orders given to us from the silicone valley gestapo as to what to say, think or express, call it ayers rock. Thanks you.
Sweeping generalisation there. Maybe provide some statistical evidence to back up your statement, if you are so sure about it!
It's more about respect and recognition of the traditional land owners. A non-aboriginal explorer decided to call it Ayers Rock about 150 years ago. The indigenous land owners however had been calling the rock and surrounding land Uluru for something like 30000 years prior to this.
No one is ordering me to use a particular name but armed with this knowledge and the freedom to use whatever name I prefer, I'm endeavoring to change my mindset to call it Uluru. ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors where would it stop? What next? sydney is called after an English minister, as Melbourne, as the name Australia itself (Latin), as everything else in this country. Where do you draw the line??? When are you going to be happy? when we all smear ourselves with some dirt and dance naked next to a very smoky fire? It’s madness. Madness what’s happening to the western world. Every country on earth, every place, every culture in the planet and every civilization has been invaded, concurred and replaced by other people and cultures throughout history many many times over..London itself was once Celt , then Roman, then Viking, then Norman, then English etc etc . It’s the way the world works. It’s human history. That is why we are what we are.. The strong, the more powerful, the more technologically advanced, takes over others more primitives. Please get over it. The aborigines need to Thank god that the English claim the joint and not others (Spanish?)…
@@iVisual.sambonkowski I'm happy... each to their own... it's a big topic. In many aspects, I think what we label as primitive is actually far smarter than what we call strong, powerful, or advanced, and I wonder if we will still be here in 30000 years to tell the story of how Uluru got its name. ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors no. we wont be here in 30,000 years. we would have been invaded, again and again and again and replaced many times by more advance civilisations and more powerful cultures that, for them, we are weak and primitive. I believe there would have been other stone age people here before the aborigines came from Asia and taken the place but to be honest, how long do you really expected, for a very very primitive society (I mean, they are Stone Age people), like the aborigines to survive by themselves without a powerful civilisation to come and take over. its inevitable. but we cannot keep doing this to ourselves all the time. what was London called before "London". lets go back to what London used to be called 10,000 years ago. or Paris, or Rome or China, enough. lets be proud of our heritage of this country that built the socially, institutions, legal systems, civilisation that we live and that gives us the quality of life we enjoy. that wasn't done by the aborigines...Australia, as we know it today, is European. like it or not.