Etzy

Sunday, June 7, 2009

A Walk In Walpa Gorge

















I woke up to the cool, grey skies of another day, determined to get out to Kata Tjuta and take a close look at the intriguing rock formations I had been admiring for days whenever I saw them in the distance. I had already pre-booked the shuttle and at 8:45 AM it pulled up and we drove off towards Kata Tjuta - it is about 50 km from the Lodge, and it was just me and the female driver.
It was a nice drive, and as we got closer, we pulled off at the viewing area, so I could take a look and get some photos from there, before going on to Walpa Gorge, where I planned to walk the gorge which takes about 1 1/2 hour, so a nice little morning stroll.
As we left the viewing area and headed towards the gorge, we suddenly spotted 3 dingos crossing the road, and my driver pulled off and I got a chance to take a few photos. As the dingos disappeared into the bush we noticed that one of them had a short tail - very unusual - my driver speculated that it might be a mix between a dingo and one of the feral dogs that roam the area. When we got to the gorge I was dropped off, and my driver was going to wait for my return - super service!
It was quite windy, but it stayed dry during my walk, and I enjoyed the scenery and the trickling of water everywhere, explaining the greenery and lush vegetation, as I moved into the narrowing gorge.
When I was almost at the bottom of the gorge I suddenly spotted a wallaby with a young one hopping along, disappearing in the bushes before I had a chance to take a photo. It was so exciting to see them, because I had been told it's very rare to see them in this region, so I felt very lucky!
When I reached the end of the trail I met a nice australian couple who insisted on taking a photo of me with my camera, so I could prove I had actually been there - so here you can see how I have had to bundle up with everything I had in my bag-pack to keep warm! This was pretty much my "look" during my time at Uluru - but trust me, I was not the only one who was dressed a bit weird - most of us had not expected this type of weather!

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