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We were awoken by two rather chatty Japanese men who were having a hilarious conversation in the shower. At around 5:30am, something very funny was being discussed in the men’s wash room.

At 7:15am we were stung for $25 each for entry to the national park. When converted to sterling and the three day validity taken into account, this was not really bad value but it felt expensive.

The sunrise viewing car park was very busy and one might think it is a lot of effort to drive several thousand kilometers to watch a rock light up. However, the beauty of the sunrise here is owed to the unique composition and colour of Uluru itself. The rock is almost grey as the night lifts and then goes through several colour changes – yellow, golden, orange – before beaming red throughout the daytime.

We thought that we might be disappointed at the Aborigines request not to climb the rock -we had, after all, traveled a long way to get there and wanted our money’s worth. After visiting the cultural centre we were still cynical about the value of walking around the base. However, as one traditional owner had stated on a sign, once you walk around the rock, you don’t need to climb it any more. He was right.

Although the actual given reasons for asking guests not to climb are secret, it is clear why the locals regard this lump of rock as sacred. We felt very spooky in certain enclaves of the rock, especially around the calm waterholes sheltered in between towering red rock buttresses. Traditionally, only the men of the tribe or clan would climb to the summit for important ceremonies that would sometimes last for days. These ceremonies and rites are explained to participants on a need to know basis. Uninitiated tribe members and visitors to the area are not told of the significance of these traditions. As the climb is regarded as sacred and often closed for safety reasons, visitors are requested, but not instructed, to refrain from ascending.

Ayers Rock is unique in the true sense of the word. You will never see another mountain like this one. It is as though a spaceship crashed into a flat plain and had molten red rock poured over the top. All over the smooth red exterior of Ayers Rock, there are patches which have eroded away and look like they have melted, leaving a honeycomb appearance. The inner rock is actually a light grey.

The many caves and ripples throughout the rock structure give the illusion of movement, frozen many millennia ago after some catastrophic event. The scientific jury is still out on how exactly Ayers Rock was created. The indigenous population has its own creation stories involving supernatural beings that strode the landscape using immense powers to form and shape the rock. The explanations in the guide book point to a combination of volcanic and plate forces that acted in different ways over many ages.

The shape of the rock is so strange, otherworldly and immense, that one could imagine life or spirit inside of it. It has the same quality as the grandest European cathedrals -awe inspiring and indicative of a larger purpose. The ten kilometre walk around Uluru fills a whole day and is adequate compensation for not climbing to the summit. Original cave paintings are on display depicting platypus and waterholes amongst other things.

As we do not have an appropriate license for publishing photographs of Ayers Rock, we have refrained from showing pictures of Uluru itself.