Outback Australia: The Colour of Red

Welcome to Uluru. This afternoon you’ll meet your Journey Director and fellow travellers and then take a drive to UluruKata Tjuta National Park. Having lived in the region for tens of thousands of years, Traditional Owners, the Anangu, have a strong connection with this land. You’ll learn about Tjukurpa, the history, knowledge, religion, morality and law of the local Aboriginal people and their ancestors. Travelling to the spectacular domes of Kata Tjuta, you’ll take a guided walk through Walpa Gorge, following the natural creek bed between two of the largest domes. Kata Tjuta has great cultural significance for the Anangu people, specifically for Anangu men. Later enjoy canapés and wine at the Uluru sunset viewing area. As the sun sets over the western horizon, the evening sky brings out the many shades of colour for which Uluru is renowned. This evening get to know your fellow travellers over a delicious meal at Ilkari Restaurant at your hotel.

Start the day with an impressive sunrise over Uluru from the sunrise viewing area. Take a walk at the base of Uluru and hear timeless stories, see rock art, and visit Mutitjulu Waterhole, once an important water source for the Aboriginal people and animals in the area. Visit Curtin Springs Station at lunch time. Curtin Springs has been home to the Severin family since 1956, when Peter Severin arrived with his young wife Dawn, their toddler son Ashley and 1,500 head of cattle. Take part in a paper-making workshop at Curtin Springs Paper then sit down to a barbecue lunch and meet one of the locals as you hear about the Severin family and the logistics of running a million-acre cattle property. This evening you’re treated to Local Dining Experience, Under a Desert Moon, set in the wilderness under a canopy of the southern night sky (weather permitting). Enjoy sparkling wine and canapés followed by a four-course dinner, prepared from fresh produce.

Perfect for observing the changing colours of the landscape, today you’re off on a sunrise six-kilometre Rim Walk exploration of the spectacular Kings Canyon. As you venture around the rim, highlights include the domed ‘Lost City’, and the luscious ‘Garden of Eden’. If you’d prefer a more relaxed walk you can opt for a walk along the Creek Bed. Afterwards you’re off the beaten track, travelling along the Mereenie Loop Road past Gosses Bluff, through the West MacDonnell Ranges and then continue to Alice Springs for dinner at your hotel.

This morning you will visit the historic Overland Telegraph Station and learn about the overland telegraph line and why Alice Springs is in this location. Then you will travel out to the West MacDonnell Ranges, where you’ll will take a walk into Angkerle (Standley Chasm) and Simpsons Gap. Tonight, enjoy a Local Dining Experience with your hosts at an open-air barbecue dinner with campfires as the Milky Way lights up the wide Australian sky.

This morning you’ll visit the Royal Flying Doctor Service, to see how this facility provides medical assistance to those living in remote outback Australia. Before your trip comes to an end, visit the School of the Air and learn how children living in the far reaches of the Outback receive an education over the air waves. Your Inspiring Journey concludes in the late morning.