Kings Canyon

It has been a busy three days since my last entry in this blog.  Internet service here in this part of Australia is spotty at best.  In Kings Canyon it was available but expensive and very slow.  In fact there was no cell phone service in that area.

We traveled by motor coach from Ayers Rock Resort to Kings Canyon.  It is all in the outback which is essentially the entire central section of Australia.  This area is classified as semi-arid instead of arid only because they get 30 to 50 mm (millimeters) of rain annually over the amount to be classified as arid.  It is however NOT barren.  It is full of interesting trees, bushes and grasses.  In addition we have seen some interesting wild flowers and beautiful birds.

While waiting for the coach we noted this old Austin that is being used as an ad.

We stayed at one of the 4 hotels at Ayers Rock Resort called the Outback Pioneer.  It had nice rooms and good food.  Ayers Rock resort is actually a complex that has a small town with shopping (including and IGA, Post office, Bank, etc.) and three other hotels plus a camping area. There is a shuttle bus that will take you to any area in the complex.

The distance  between Ayers Rock Resort and Kings Canyon is probably only 75 to 100 kilometers, but because of the lack of roads it was a 320 kilometer trip.  We rode in very comfortable motor coaches with stops along the way. 

We stopped to view Mt Conner, which reminds me of the mesa’s of Arizona and New Mexico.  In that area was a salt flat.  Very foreboding looking.

We also stopped at a couple of ranches for breaks and food.

At Kings Canyon we checked into the resort (the only one around) and had a nice meal at the local bistro.

Then the next day we had a choice of a rim walk around the top of the canyon or a walk up the river bed at the bottom of the canyon.  I elected the river bed walk since it was much leveler.  The rim walk required climbing 500 steps plus lots of sloped other climbs.

The walk back the canyon was beautiful.  Some select pictures.

Here is a picture of my sister and myself.  The netting is a necessity.  The flies are really thick.  To keep them off you face and other parts you need the netting and really good bug repellent.

That afternoon drove back to Ayers Rock Resort.

Today, we fly to Sydney and back to civilization.  We have to go from our “outback” attitude (laid back) to more of a formal (but relaxed) atmosphere.