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AUSTRALIAN
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SOUTH
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TASMANIA
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QUEENSLAND
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SOUTH
AUSTRALIA
I NORTHERN
AUSTRALIA
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WESTERN
AUSTRALIA |
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Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park is UNESCO World Heritage-listed in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located 1431 kilometres south of Darwin by road and 440 kilometres south-west of Alice Springs along the Stuart and Lasseter Highways. The park covers 1326 square kilometres and includes the features it is named after - Uluru / Ayers Rock and, 40 kilometres to its west, Kata Tjuta / Mount Olga and is serviced by flights from most Australian capital cities. |
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Uluru is one of Australia's most recognisable natural icons. The world-renowned sandstone formation stands 348 m (1,142 ft) high (863 m/2,831 ft above sea level) with most of its bulk below the ground, and measures 9.4 km (5.8 mi) in circumference. Both Uluru and Kata Tjuta have great cultural significance for the Aangu Traditional landowners, who lead walking tours to inform visitors about the local flora and fauna, bush foods and the Aboriginal dreamtime stories of the area. |
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Uluru is notable for appearing to change colour as the different light strikes it at different times of the day and year, with sunset a particularly remarkable sight when it briefly glows red. Although rainfall is uncommon in this semiarid area, during wet periods the rock acquires a silvery-grey colour, with streaks of black algae forming on the areas that serve as channels for water flow. |
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Kata Tjuta, also called Mount Olga or The Olgas, is another rock formation about 25 km (16 mi) from Uluru. Special viewing areas with road access and parking have been constructed to give tourists the best views of both sites at dawn and dusk. |
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Climbing |
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The local Aangu do not climb Uluru because of its great spiritual significance. They request that visitors not climb the rock, partly due to the path crossing a sacred traditional Dreamtime track, and also due to a sense of responsibility for the safety of visitors to their land. The Aangu believe they have a spiritual connection to Uluru, and feel great sadness when a person dies or is injured whilst climbing. |
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On 11 December 1983, the Prime Minister Bob Hawke promised to hand back the land title to the Aangu traditional owners and agreed to the community's 10-point plan which included forbidding the climbing of Uluru. However, the government set access to climb Uluru and a 99-year lease, instead of the previously agreed upon 50-year lease, as conditions before the title was officially given back to the Aangu. |
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Climbing Uluru is a popular attraction for visitors. A chain handhold added in 1964 and extended in 1976 makes the hour-long climb easier, but it is still a long (800 m/0.5 mi) and steep hike to the top, where it can be quite windy. An above-average level of fitness and a high tolerance to desert conditions is required. Climbing Uluru is generally closed to the public when high winds are recorded at the top. Over the years there have been at least 35 deaths relating to climbing incidents. |
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Photography |
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The Aangu also request that visitors do not photograph certain sections of Uluru, for reasons related to traditional Tjukurpa beliefs. These areas are the sites of gender-linked rituals, and are forbidden ground for Aangu of the opposite sex of those participating in the rituals in question. The photographic ban is intended to prevent Aṉangu from inadvertently violating this taboo by encountering photographs of the forbidden sites in the outside world. |
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