I had never heard of Kata Tjuta before we flew over it on Tuesday morning, but it is another huge rock, about 25 miles away from Uluru, and sharing its national park. The shape is different from Uluru, and the rock itself is different which means there were many exciting disoveries to be made and pictures to be taken. On Wednesday morning we were up well before dawn so that we could be at the park gate when it opened in order to make it to Kata Tjuta before sunrise. We were 4th in line at the gate, and the first car to reach the Kata Tjuta parking lot, and we set out on the trail as dawn was breaking over the horizon.
The Valley of the Winds trail winds around and through Kata Tjuta on a 5 mile hike through some of the prettiest rock and countryside you've ever seen. As the sun began to rise, the rock began to glow. Every minute brought changes to the light, and with it, changes to the colors and even the atmosphere of the place, and as we hiked we moved from barren rock to tree-filled plain. The sky slowly changed from star-spangeled black to gray to white to azure, almost but not quite rivalling the perfect cobalt of the previous day.
We had the trail to ourselves for almost 2 hours, until we were almost back to the parking lot. So many people don't go much further than the closest lookout point. Those who wander aren't necessarily lost, but those who don't wander definitely lose out.
My collage-making software still isn't cooperating, but I've posted some of our favorite pictures below.
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