Uluru National Park (Ayers Rock) Travel Page by Restless-in-kl

Even from a distance, Ayers Rock or Uluru (its Aboriginal name) is very impressive. Named after the Premier of South Australia, Sir Henry Ayers, it extends down over 3 and a half miles beneath the surface. It's also more than 318 m (986 ft) high and 8 km (5 miles) around.

Approximately 500 million years ago it was part of the ocean floor at the center of Australia. Depending on the time of day and the atmospheric conditions, the rock can dramatically change color, anything from blue to violet to glowing red, making it a delight for photographers all over the world.

This park where Ayers Rock is located, is owned and run by the local Aboriginals. As you walk slowly around it, there is a sense of mystery, history and sacredness. It is no wonder that the Aboriginals are strongly protective of this magnificent wonder.

The Aborigines believe that there it is hollow below ground, and that there is an energy source that they call 'Tjukurpa' the dream time.

Ayers Rock (Mount Uluru) is inhabited by dozens of ancestral 'beings' whose activities are recorded at many other sites. At each site, the events that took place can be recounted, whether those events were of significance or whether the ancestral being just rested at a certain place before going on.

Usually, there is a physical feature of some form at each ancestral site which represents both the activities of the ancestral being at the time of its formation and the living presence of Tjukurpa within that physical feature today. For the Australian Aboriginal people, that physical feature, whatever its form or appearance, animate or inanimate, is the Tjukurpa. It may be a rock, a sand hill, a grove of trees, a cave. For all of these, the creative essence remains forever within the physical form or appearance.

Often overshadowed by Ayers Rock, Kings Canyon located in Watarrka National Park has an interesting landscape that's desert-like with steep canyons, rock formations and interesting flora and fauna.