TR June 2016 Uluru, A Spur of the Moment - Homeward Bound and end of TR on Day 8; 02/25

[franandaj]

Wow! That helicopter flight looked amazing! The breakfast looked pretty good as well.

I love a good vacation where flying takes a role!

 

[zanzibar138]

Another great day so far! It looks fantastic from the helicopter!

 

[dolphingirl47]

I absolutely adore the colours in that photo.

Breakfast looked very nice.

.....we decided to take to the skies.

I would not be brave enough for this, but the views were stunning.

What is in the photo is one of the reasons why I have been dragging my heels about coming to Australia up to now.

Corinna

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Gorgeous pics of the clouds. Also, how fantastic to do a helicopter flight. Such a memorable experience.

 

[Aussie Wendy]

The helicopter ride would have been amazing. Love the sunrise pics too.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Your sunrise shots looks very impressive.

That is neat that you did a helicopter ride and was able to get a lot of nice shots on the ground.

 

[ACDSNY]

You've exceeded my expectations with those sunrise/clouds pics, they were stunning. I loved the flowers and seeing the aerial shots too.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Loving your pictures, brings back so many memories. Sounds like you are having an amazing time.

One warning, just be on the look out for Camels on the roads, when we were there, driving from Kings Canyon back to Ayers Rock, we rounded a bend in the road and all of sudden the there were two camels in the middle of the road.....was amazing to see, but scary too.

Hope you continue to have an amazing time

We were not so lucky with the wild Camels. We only saw a very dead carcass of the cow on the side of the road.
Thank you for reading along.

Wow! That helicopter flight looked amazing! The breakfast looked pretty good as well.

I love a good vacation where flying takes a role!

I suspect that flying may take more of a role in future vacays. Both DH and I loved the ride.

Another great day so far! It looks fantastic from the helicopter!

We really enjoyed the helicopter ride.

 

[PrincessInOz]

I absolutely adore the colours in that photo.

Breakfast looked very nice.

I was very impressed with the breakfast buffet at Kings Canyon. Yes, sunrise was very nice that day.

I would not be brave enough for this, but the views were stunning.

That first step is always the hardest. Once you're in the chopper, the views just take over everything else.

What is in the photo is one of the reasons why I have been dragging my heels about coming to Australia up to now.

.....and the snakes, spiders and other creepy crawlies.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Gorgeous pics of the clouds. Also, how fantastic to do a helicopter flight. Such a memorable experience.

It was a very memorable experience. Not cheap, but memorable!

The helicopter ride would have been amazing. Love the sunrise pics too.

Thanks Wendy. Hope everything is well with you.

Your sunrise shots looks very impressive.

That is neat that you did a helicopter ride and was able to get a lot of nice shots on the ground.

Thanks Bret.

You've exceeded my expectations with those sunrise/clouds pics, they were stunning. I loved the flowers and seeing the aerial shots too.

Thanks. Hope you'll enjoy the rest of the updates!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Red Centre Way


I have been known to go out of my way to hit the magnificent Four Corners area in the US. That’s about 13,500 km (or over 10,000 miles) to get from here to there. For me, I’m totally attracted by red sand, red rock and amazing gorges.

Well….guess what? There’s another area full of red sand, red rock and amazing gorges that’s only about 2000 km away. It's a lot closer than Arizona!


I think I’m going to need to spend a lot more time exploring the Outback in Australia.


On my bucket list and moved a long way up the list…..is the Red Centre Way.






The track between Alice Springs and Uluru is completely sealed.





But I’m sure going to need a 4-wheel drive for that Mereenie Loop stretch.





For anyone wanting to come this way. I had booked this trip on the spur of the moment. If I’d done any research whatsoever, I would definitely have booked an open jaw type ticket….into Uluru and out of Alice Springs…or vice versa. Next time!





(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

Six Minutes of Brilliance


I started out this day wishing for and getting clouds. Be careful what you wish for! I got clouds…..it followed us all the way down the Red Centre Way, past Fool-Ulu.





…All the way into Uluru proper.





I set my camera up to make the most of the situation. When Mother Nature gives you clouds, that’s the time to pull out the ND filter.





All things considered, I was quite happy with getting streaking clouds with the rock as the sun set.





I won’t bore you with the gazillion pictures I took of streaky clouds at sunset. Heck! Even I was bored after a while. I was just about getting ready to pack up when…..





Somehow….on this super cloudy day…..there was a gap at the horizon. In that gap, the sun shone brightly.....And the rock just glowed. Even more incredible. I was there with the right set up.













Six glorious minutes of rockglow and then it was all over.






All I can say is that I felt incredibly lucky to have been there for this amazing opportunity. It was just brilliant!




(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

Bunya Bar, Desert Gardens Hotel


After sunset, we headed back to our hotel and went in search of a light meal. None of us were in the mood to wander too far from the hotel and we weren’t particularly hungry, so we headed to the main building and found Bunya Bar.





Believe it or not, the bottomless pit of my teenage son decided he wanted the cheese board.






Yes, he decided to eat the cheese and crackers and fruit rather than the board. The cheese and crackers did have more nutritional value than the wooden board.



Hubby went with the garden salad.






I went with the soft crab salad.





We also ordered a serve of sweet potato fries to share.





The food was tasty and it hit the mark with us that night. The price was to be expected for resort food.


It had been a long day for all of us. Between the drive and a slight issue with our hotel room (which will be resolved and described in the next edition), we all opted for an early night.

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Those sunset pics of the rock with the clouds and the glowing rock are jaw-dropping stunning. I ADORE your photos and the only question is which one of your so many will you sell to me so I can frame it and put it up on my wall?? You were so lucky to get that last ray of sunlight. The photography Gods were very kind to you this spur of the moment trip in addition to the skill of the photographer of course. Having seen it for myself though, I know its hard if you haven't to appreciate that that is what it looks like - no fancy photo editing required - it really glows that red and then purple.

 

[dolphingirl47]

That first step is always the hardest. Once you're in the chopper, the views just take over everything else.

I am sure that is right. I felt much the same about snorkeling. I was terrified of trying for years and then I had no choice. Now this is one of my favourite things to do.

.....and the snakes, spiders and other creepy crawlies.

Yes, indeed. I just found out that all the south Pacific islands we are visiting next year have sea snakes. I am not sure what to make of this. If it creeps and crawls, it is not for me.

For me, I’m totally attracted by red sand, red rock and amazing gorges.

I can absolutely understand this.

I love those photos.

Somehow….on this super cloudy day…..there was a gap at the horizon. In that gap, the sun shone brightly.....And the rock just glowed. Even more incredible. I was there with the right set up.

I am glad that all the stars alined for you. This is just stunning.

Corinna

 

[zanzibar138]

Wow those sunset photos... it really looks like there's show lighting around the base of the rock! Amazing!

 

[zanzibar138]

Whoops, sorry! I kept pressing reply and it kept not doing anything... apparently it was doing something after all lol!

 

[zanzibar138]

Wow those sunset photos... it really looks like there's show lighting around the base of the rock! Amazing!

 

[zanzibar138]

Wow those sunset photos... it really looks like there's show lighting around the base of the rock! Amazing!

 

[ACDSNY]

I don't know how you keep topping the previous set of amazing photo, but you do. The glow on rock pics are spectacular!