My notes for this day have a single comment, and nothing else:
"Climbed Rock!"
This is the story.
Yet again, another early wakeup call (not being a morning person at all,
this was killing me!) The crowd on the bus was a bit thinner this morning, due to an
unexplainable increase in the number of hangovers (hmmmm... how could that have happened?)
So of about 20 or so that were going to try for the Rock again, only 13 of us actually managed to get up. Crossing our
fingers, we once again drove out to the Rock.
Luck was with us: It was open! With water bottles and cameras at the
ready, we made our way up the first slope.
I'll say this, if these were O.K. conditions, I'd hate to feel what *real*
wind felt like. As you climb the first leg, the wind blows at you and you have to grip the chain that is bolted into the rock face.
Uphill travelers are supposed to be on the left, downhill on the right, but a few
people were unclear on the concept. :-) On either side of you the rock slopes away,
so a few good steps and you'd be on your way down! On the way up this first leg, my
hat blew off and was lost forever (or so I thought...). I remembered the advice Jo
gave us (DON'T RUN AFTER YOUR HAT...) and kept climbing.
I will say I was one of the slow people: I really need to get back to the
gym and work out more! The first place that you can actually rest and be sheltered
from the wind is a small ledge called Chicken Rock, so called because that is the place
where a lot of people chicken out on the climb. Fortunately we did not, and after a
rest break began the climb to the top.
After Chicken Rock, the climb is more a series of hills and valleys than
anything else: the top of Ayers Rock undulates like a stormy sea frozen in time.
(Ooh, that was a cool phrase). The more I thought about it, the more I was grateful
that I *couldn't* see this part of the climb from the bottom: I think I might have given
up earlier. My sore throat was back and I was definitely not feeling 100%.
However, I also knew that the Rock and the land around it had been given back to the
Aborigines, who were considering closing the rock because of its significance to
them. If I did not make it now, I might never get the chance again. So I continued on, undaunted.
At last, the end in sight! I spot the rest of the crowd waiting at
the small monument in the center of the Rock: I've
made it! Everybody gathers around for a group
picture: Greg (who had accompanied us on the climb) pulled out his cellphone and
attempted to call home. He got a wrong number (hah!) Eventually he made it
through and called back down from his first climb of Ayers Rock!
After a bit of a rest, we headed
back down again. We were going to have plenty of bragging rights when we got back,
especially since we saw one guy walking up the rock with his 3 year old and 5 year old
trailing along with him! If those two kids could do it, what's a lousy
hangover stopping you for??
Another group picture at Chicken Rock,
and we headed back down to the bottom, where they were preventing anyone else from
climbing because the wind was getting too high! The final slope down I crabwalked
most of the way (feet first, lying back, arms down behind you) because of the wind.
When I got back down, I looked around for my hat, but there was no sign. Then, as
Jo was handing out oranges to us hungry climbers, one of the girls spotted my hat: it was
hanging on the park sign in front of the climb! I guess the rangers found it and
left it there. My day was complete!
This was definitely the highlight of the trip: I felt really great to have
persevered and conquered the Rock!
The rest of the day was almost anticlimactic after that: we headed back
into Alice Springs for our final lodgings at the Frontier Oasis Hotel and to relax.
On the way, we played another game of TV trivia (TV themes again): this time, there was a
superior TV freak in the audience!
When we got to Alice Springs, there was a camel ride that I had signed up
for, but I wasn't really feeling up to riding a sack full of coat hangers, so I elected to
rest up a bit and nurse my sore throat. Time for a nap...
For the evening meal, we walked on over to the Overlanders Steakhouse,
where we were going to dine on a variety of Australian specialties: Crocodile, kangaroo,
camel, barramundi, emu and of course, beef. The restaurant was decorated as an old
western "saloon" type of deal, with saddles hanging from the rafters (the
significance of which would be made apparent shortly) and a small stage for our live
entertainment.
I had fun trying out the various meats: kangaroo was gamey (kind of like
deer not prepared properly), the crocodile was as I remembered it from Koorana, and the emu tasted like beef! One thing for
sure: the laid-back Australian lifestyle showed up here: it took forever to get things
served! After dinner there was a group participation song: something about
"gum trees, what a fun tree", etc., and swiveling our hips in a suggestive
manner. Must be some Australian thing...
Later in the evening, they brought out a branding iron and branded the
"STH" logo into a couple of peoples jeans (with them still in them!) Also,
they started putting people in the rafters on top of the saddles! Everyone was
getting drunk, the girls were shrieking: great night!
Finally, those who were still standing went to a local dance club: we got
in and had a few drinks. It was much larger than the clubs we went to in Surfers
Paradise, and had live music on stage. I danced a bit and talked with Jo (who looked
*really* nice, I must say: she'd been wearing safari clothes and a baseball cap for much
of the trip, but had let her hair down and cleaned up a bit for dinner. Way to go,
Jo!). Later Mike, Jo and I took a cab back to the hotel, while Jo grilled the cabbie
on what it was like to be a cab driver (I wasn't sure if she was just joking with him or
teasing or what!)
I got back and was packing up, when I realized that this was it! My
last day in the Outback. Tomorrow I would head back to Sydney for home...
Uluru to Alice
Springs
Mystery Meat