Ayers Rock is the Red Heart of Australia. The red rock of Ayers Rock is the largest and very ancient monolithic rock in the world. This unique place is one of the main attractions of Australia.

national park Uluru - Kata Tjuta - unique nature reserve in the heart of the Australian continent, which since 1987 has been under the auspices of UNESCO. Its main attraction is Uluru (Ayers Rock) - the main shrine of the Australian aborigines and one of the most recognizable places in Oceania.

History of Uluru National Park - Kata Tjuta

The area at the foot of Mount Uluru, rich in water sources, was inhabited by Australian Aborigines more than 10,000 years ago. The Anangu tribe living here was engaged in hunting and gathering and revered the mountain as a place of sacred rites.

The first Europeans in this area appeared already in 1870 when planning a telegraph line. In 1872, Mount Kata Tjuta was discovered by Ernest Giles, who named it Olga, in honor of the Russian Grand Duchess, daughter of Emperor Nicholas I and wife of King Charles I of Württemberg. Later, in 1873, William Goss discovered the Uluru rock, which received the name Ayers Rock , in honor of the South Australian governor.
In the XIX - early XX century, the settlers tried to use the land in the area for cattle breeding and agriculture, which led to numerous skirmishes with the natives. To resolve the conflict, the authorities recognized this part of the continent as a reservation of the indigenous population of Australia.
In the 1930s the territory in the vicinity of Uluru began to gain immense popularity among tourists, and in 1958 this area was declared a National Park. Later, in 1976, the Australian authorities returned these lands to the Anangu tribe, who in 1985 leased it to the parks agency for a period of 99 years.

Attractions of the National Park and Mount Uluru in Australia with photos and descriptions

Uluru Rock (Ayers Rock)

Main attraction national park Uluru - Kata Tjuta - mysterious mountain Uluru. This unique natural landmark, which changes its color during the day, annually attracts more than 400,000 tourists.

There are many legends associated with the main shrine of the Australian Aborigines. Some of the caves in the mountain are considered portals to another world and tourists are not allowed to enter or even take pictures. This object is considered to be the intersection of invisible paths along which the ancient inhabitants of these places and the souls of their ancestors walk.

Did you know? In the vicinity of Mount Uluru, triangular UFOs have been repeatedly seen. Their appearance was recorded even by astronomers.

Mount Olga (Kata Tjuta)

In addition to Mount Uluru, another hill of the National Park, Mount Olga, is of considerable interest to tourists. It consists of 36 rounded rocks, the highest of which reaches 546 meters. In the language of the natives, the name of this place sounds like Kata Tjuta, which means "many heads" in translation.

Flora and fauna

Despite the conditions of the desert area, there are 416 representatives of the flora in the park. Many of the plants of this region have adapted to the specific conditions of the desert savanna, in which rains are very rare. Some of them need heat or even a fire in order to bloom, while others rise only after a rainstorm.
As for the fauna of the park, unfortunately, it has been significantly affected by human activities and animals introduced by Europeans. Many representatives native species disappeared or are on the verge of extinction. However, in the remote corners of the reserve, tourists can still meet red kangaroos, emu or motley monitor lizard.

Uluru waterfalls

Enough big interest for tourists are the waterfalls of Uluru in Australia. Huge streams of water are formed here after heavy rains and look especially picturesque in this desert area.

Uluru Park Activities - Kata Tjuta

The territory of the National Park belongs to the Australian Anangu tribe. In addition to the fact that the natives receive 20% of each ticket sold, they also conduct tours and take pictures with tourists for an additional fee.
There are many facilities in this area tourist routes of varying complexity. The best way to see Mount Uluru is a walk along the “Main Path”, and moving along the “Valley of the Winds” road, you will find an amazing monolith of Kata Tjuta.

The sights of Uluru - Kata Tjuta can also be viewed from a height by ordering a helicopter tour for this or visiting one of viewing platforms within the National Park.

Important! There are many ways to climb Mount Uluru. But the natives consider this sacrilege, after which an accident awaits the sinner.

How to get there

You can visit the National Park by flying from any major Australian city to Connellan Airport, 25 kilometers from which the Uluru rock is located. You can get to it on one of scheduled buses or by renting a car in the town of Yulara.

Admission fees and hours of operation

Uluru National Park is open daily from 5:00 am to 7:00 pm.
The entrance ticket to the park will cost you 25 Australian dollars (approximately 18 euros). The duration of its action is 3 days from the date of purchase, which gives tourists the opportunity for a thorough acquaintance with most of the sights of Uluru - Kata Tjuta.

Video overview of the sights of Uluru National Park - Kata Tjuta

Uluru National Park is one of interesting places for relax . Especially for you, we have selected for you a short and bright video about the bewitching views of Uluru.

Perhaps our readers were lucky enough to visit the Uluru Katayata National Park in Australia? Write about your impressions in the comments!

Uluru Waterfalls July 1st, 2014

This place is one of the main attractions of Australia. Uluru is a large sandstone rock formation whose orange color is due to the presence of iron oxide in its composition.

The rock has an oval shape with a diameter that ranges from 3 to 3.5 kilometers. Uluru is located almost in the very center of the green continent. She is listed as an object world heritage UNESCO. Every year, about half a million tourists come to this rock. However, only a few thousand manage to see unique phenomenon when streams of water fall in cascades from a rock. During the rainy seasons, from November to March, even in such a dry area, a considerable amount of precipitation falls. It is they who form these temporary waterfalls.

Let's take a closer look at this place...

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Uluru rock, or Ayers Rock, is a 350-meter oval-shaped rock. Uluru (accent on the last syllable) is located in the very center of Australia. Its length is more than 3.5 km, and its width is about 3 km. The base of the rock is indented with caves, and the caves themselves are decorated with ancient rock paintings and stone carvings.

Once upon a time, in the center of the continent, a mountain range towered, representing an island in the middle of Lake Amadies. The products of the destruction of rocks were deposited at the bottom of the reservoir, forming a rock. By appearance Uluru resembles a giant elephant lying on its side. From afar, the monolith looks very smooth, but close up, irregularities, cracks and furrows are clearly visible on the surface.

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The desert climate is characterized by temperature fluctuations: the nights are cold here, and the midday heat reaches 40 degrees. The stone expands when heated, and contracts when cooled, which causes it to crack. The unique mountain giant consists of red sandstone, the special properties of which allow it to change color depending on the lighting during the day. At dawn, the black silhouette of the mountain brightens, acquiring a dark purple hue. The sun rises higher and Uluru flashes purplish red, then glows pink, and turns golden by noon. The fantastic play of colors continues all day long.

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In the 19th century Mount Uluru was first seen by European Ernest Giles. He noticed a rock from the shores of Lake Amadeus, but he could not reach it. And a year later, the English explorer William Goss climbed to the top of the miracle mountain. He named the rock "Ayers Rock" after the Secretary of State South Australia Henry Ayers. The name "Uluru" was given to the rock many centuries ago by local natives. This word means nothing. Archaeologists believe that the natives inhabited the areas adjacent to Uluru as early as 10,000 years ago. Thanks to the spouting spring and caves, Uluru has been a haven for ancient tribes for hundreds of years.

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Tourists began to visit this place only in the middle of the last century, after the construction of the highway through this area was completed. Since 1985, Uluru has officially belonged to the Anangu tribe, however, the stone giant was leased to the government for a period of 99 years for use as a national park. The annual rental fee is $75,000 plus 20% of each admission ticket. The natives are interested in the development of tourism and, in accordance with the agreement, do not interfere with visiting the peak of Uluru, to which their sacred path leads.

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Rainfall falling off the unusual rocky surface of Ayer Rock creates a beautiful spectacle, which was captured by photos of bad weather over Uluru National Park. During the bad weather on October 14, 7 cm of precipitation fell. This area receives 15.5 centimeters of precipitation per year.

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The photographs show how water flows down the rocky slopes of Ayer's Rock in waterfalls. This area is known as the driest point in the Red Center of Australia with a stone hill rising 350 meters above sea level, which the local Aborigines call Uluru.

The pictures were taken after a stormy night when it rained and about 7 centimeters of rain fell.

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The pictures show that the stone slopes under the influence of water flows and light change their color from dark burgundy to purple. A truly magnificent sight was the stone slopes of Ayers Rock with rolling streams of water, which was photographed for us by Peter Carroll.

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Uluru is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of Australia's premier natural attractions, visited by over 400,000 people every year. Uluru is an orange-brown rock (Uluru's orange tint comes from the iron oxide it contains) that can change color different time days. At dawn, the silhouette of the rock brightens, acquiring a dark purple hue. The sun rises higher and Uluru flashes purple-red, then glows pink, and turns golden by noon.

The mountain is located in the central part of Australia. Height - 348 meters, width - 3 km, length - 3.6 km. Thanks to seismic shocks (three hundred million years ago), the mountain received its vertical layers.

There are different points of view on what Uluru really is. Some write that this is the second largest (after the Australian Augustus) monolith in the world, others argue that Uluru is not a monolith at all, since underground Uluru connects with Mount Olga (the mountain was named after the daughter of Russian Emperor Nicholas I - Grand Duchess Olga), located 25 km from Uluru.

Thanks to a spring flowing in the area, the area near Uluru has been inhabited by people for 10 thousand years (even ancient cave drawings) and the natives have their own version of what Uluru is.

The amazing colors that the mountain shines with are simply mesmerizing. Given the red sandstone of which the rock is made, and the rays of the sun falling at different angles, it changes its color from dark purple to golden.

Someone else calls her a block or a rock, maybe because she stands confidently in the center of Australia, in the desert (once ancient sea) in a sacred place. And it seems that the mountain is as lifeless as everything around. But no, after desert thunderstorms, drops of water flow down the mountain, which feed local plants. A spring at the foot of the mountain saves animals and natives from thirst.

The mountain has two names. Uluru - symbolizes the connection with the earth, it was the natives who considered it a living part of the natural world; Ayers Rock - got its name in honor of Henry Ayers, then the governor of South Australia.

Mount Uluru keeps legends about itself. From generation to generation, local aborigines performed rituals on the mountain, telling about the birth of the world, and their rituals kept a secret for outsiders.

The Anangu tribe is the guardian of Uluru, who even now do not allow tourists to climb the mountain, thus protecting the sacred place from spiritual and physical pollution.

The Aborigines of Australia live in harmony with nature, they inherited such an attitude from the spirits that lived on ancient rock Uluru, which is considered a sacred place and keeps ancient rock paintings.

Local legend says: on the sunny side of Uluru lived the Mala tribe (people - hare kangaroos), on the shady side lived another tribe - Kuniya (snake people). One day, both of these tribes were invited by the Windulka tribe to a feast, but the invitees were carried away by lizard women who came to visit them.

As a result, the owners of the holiday, to which no one appeared, became angry and sent angry dogs without hair with huge teeth (sometimes they say that they were dingoes) to the tribes that offended them, as well as poisonous snakes that lived near Mount Olga (the aboriginal name of the mountain is Kata -Tyuta).

As a result, a grandiose battle took place near Uluru and both tribes (Mala and Kuniya) were exterminated. Uluru, on the other hand, rose from the earth and contained the souls of the dead tribes. There is a belief: whoever takes even the slightest part of Uluru will be cursed, and many tourists confirm this belief: after the misfortunes that have fallen on them, people try to mail pieces from the sinister rock back to Australia.

Curious are the appeals of the natives, written on the walls of the center, calling not to climb Uluru in sacred places and not even take pictures of them. Although one of the points of the contract, according to which local communities receive more than 700 thousand dollars annually for the use of the Red Stone, is the permission for tourists to climb Ayes Rock anywhere, except for places of worship.

Although it is not at all easy to climb it. Uluru is a smooth, red-colored bare stone of enormous size turned by time. Try to get on this one!

Even with close range Uluru looked absolutely smooth, with smooth flowing lines, reminiscent of dunes forever frozen in stone. Its surface is covered with gray and red blotches, strongly reminding us of large scales. No wonder the natives often associate this rock with giant snake, then with a huge lizard.

In 1872, the first European, Ernest Giles, a traveler, visited here. In 1985, the Australian government leased Uluru to the local Anangu tribe for 99 years, so it is the Australian Aborigines who are the official owners of these places. Aborigines do not interfere with the flow of tourists to Urul, because. for the tribe good opportunity earn.

Entry ticket valid for three days, costs 25 Australian dollars and 20% of the cost of each ticket goes to the Anangu tribe. Aborigines do not like it when tourists climb Uluru (its height is 348 meters) and have repeatedly turned to the Australian government with a request to ban climbing the sacred rock for them.

In addition, climbing Uluru is not safe: 35 people have already died while trying to conquer the rock. If the natives have not yet achieved a ban on climbing, then one ban is very strict: you can’t take pictures in two places of Uluru, where initiation rituals take place.

There is no tourist complex directly next to Uluru, so those wishing to visit famous rock stop in the town of Yulara, which is 18 km away. from Uluru. If you try to translate from English ( official language Australia) of the word "Uluru", then nothing will come of it, because This is a word from the local Aboriginal language. However, scientists have not figured out the origin and meaning of the word "Uluru" in the Aboriginal language.

Sometimes this word can be used as a surname among a tribe living near Uluru. From 1873 to 1993 the official English title this rock was Ayers Rock. In 1993, the Australian government decided to introduce dual names (English + local) for Australian natural features and the rock was named Ayers Rock / Uluru. In 2002, at the request of the natives, the rock was officially renamed Uluru / Ayers Rock.

The road spreads along the endless and lifeless plain. Behind one and a half thousand kilometers of the road to the heart of the Australian deserts - the town of Alice Springs, and from it - another four hundred kilometers to the south-west, to the outskirts of the most impregnable Gibson Desert in Australia.

Behind him were the low Flinders Ridge, the shores of Gardner and Eyre lakes bordered by a white strip of salt, and the sandy ridges of the Simpson Desert stretching towards the horizon, in places covered with thickets of thorny bushes - scrub.

But the main thing that remains in the memory of the last two days car travel- this is a monotonous, absolutely flat flatness of the surrounding landscape: reddish-brown sands with rare bushes of thorny grass - spinifex.

The monotony of the road is broken only by occasional bridges over dry riverbeds—screams filled with water for a day or two only once every few years, when the wet season is particularly heavy with rain.

Against this background, a gigantic chocolate-brown rock suddenly appears on the horizon, which becomes more and more grandiose as it approaches it, all the more miraculous. Ayers Rock (this is the name of this unique stone hill) is probably the largest rock monolith in the world.

Its oval hump, 2.4 kilometers long and 1.6 kilometers wide, rises 350 meters above the surrounding plain!

There was a lot of controversy about its origin at the time. The mystery of the emergence of a huge mountain range in the middle of an endless, flat, like a table, desert gave rise to a lot of the most incredible assumptions, such as the fact that this is a giant iron meteorite that fell on the plain thousands of years ago.

But later geologists explained the appearance of Ayers Rock in a much more prosaic way, which, of course, did not make it less impressive, although, perhaps, it became less mysterious. According to modern science, Ayers Rock is a typical product of erosion - the never-ending process of natural forces destroying high relief and turning rugged terrain into a plain.

At the same time, more durable rock masses that survived are called remnants by scientists. They can be found in the Sahara on the Tibesti plateau in our Northern Urals, in Arabia and in US state Georgia in the famous Monument Valley. A typical remnant is and widely famous mountain sugar loaf in Rio de Janeiro.

However, Ayers Rock undoubtedly overshadows any of them both with its size and the impression of absolute unreality that arises at the sight of a huge rock reigning over a plain that stretches for hundreds of kilometers around.

The first European to see Ayers Rock was the Australian explorer Ernest Giles, who then crossed the Gibson Desert from north to south in 1872. However, the local Aboriginal tribes by that time had known this rock for many centuries.

They called it Uluru ("The place where there is a shadow") and annually gathered near it for ritual festivities.

Some tribes believed that the rock fell from the sky in ancient times, others attributed its appearance to the giants who created it even before the arrival of people in this country, and still others believed that Uluru was the abode of the Wanambi Rainbow Serpent, the supreme judge over all living on Earth.

It was at the behest of Vanambi that his servants created humans and populated the desert with them. The children of Uluru multiplied and laid the foundation for all the aboriginal tribes, and every year they came to sacred mountain to glorify the best hunters and gain courage for new feats.

Time and natural forces have worked hard on the surface of the rock, leaving notches and scars on it, and even large recesses of the most bizarre shape. Giant, animal-like footprints, dents on a strong stone gave rise to many legends and beliefs among superstitious indigenous Australians.

Traces on the rock, according to the natives, were left by the monstrous huge dog Kura-Punya, sneaking towards the hunters' camp in order to devour them all without a trace. Only the help of the everlasting friend of people - a cheerful kookaburra bird, which with its cry warned people about the approach of a terrible beast, saved their lives.

Or the gull bird, and now one of the favorite birds in Australia. Her cheerful cry, similar to human laughter, begins the morning broadcasts of Australian radio.

In the caves at the foot of the cliff, many Aboriginal ritual drawings have been preserved, and without exaggeration it can be called the main center of the primitive culture of the indigenous people of Australia.

The dimensions of the caves are impressive: the largest of them reach eight hundred meters in length and thirty meters in height.

Three lakes formed in them, filled during the rainy season with water seeping through the cracks of the rock.

In the hot summer, when all the springs in the area dried up, the natives found here shelter from the hot rays of the sun and life-giving moisture.

But some lakes and caves were considered forbidden and protected from ancient times by sacred taboos. Yes, everything locals they believed that Lake Mutijula ​​would bring inevitable death to any daredevil who dared to swim in its waters.

After all, it was here that the Rainbow Serpent Vanambi himself chose as his place of residence and, so as not to be disturbed, poisoned the lake with the magical poison of Aran-Gulta, from which there is no escape.

Other caves already by their name (like "The Grotto of the Cut Throat") scared away the curious. Involuntary trembling caused people and repeated booming echo in the Cave of Laughter.

And dark as night, Putta Grotto was inhabited, as the legend said, by the spirits of dead children, waiting for the moment when they could move into a new, just born body of a child.

Along the steep slope of the mountain, a narrow path leads to its summit. Not everyone can overcome a risky climb, although metal railings have now been installed in the most dangerous places.

To the purely climbing difficulties, there is also the need to carry a supply of water in a capacious flask - otherwise the climber will face death from dehydration or sunstroke.

From the height of Ayers Rock, a panorama of a vast desert, almost devoid of vegetation, opens up. Only at the foot of the cliff do rare groves of stunted eucalyptus and acacia-mulga grow green.

A few kangaroos and emus nibbling at spinifex's thorny shoots as they move leisurely across the red, heat-cracked plain.

In the distance, the bizarre massif of Mount Olga is blue through the air haze. Before him in a straight line 24 kilometers. Rare here, but heavy downpours carved deep furrows-gorges in it, breaking the massif into thirty rounded remnants.

The aborigines gave Mount Olga the apt name Katajuta ("Mountain with many heads"). WITH opposite side the silhouette of Mount Connor, located twice as far, is barely visible.

Unlike Mount Olga and Ayers Rock, it has a flat top. Covered with gray-green grass, this peak, when viewed from an airplane, contrasts sharply with its neighbors.

Now the Ayers Rock area has been declared a National Park, and the flow of tourists who want to see unique rock, is growing every year.

Despite the remoteness and inaccessibility of this corner of Australia, located in the very center of the continent, people on cars and planes get here to admire the beauty of the extraordinary landscape, which cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

Of course, in the mountains and deserts of Australia and along its coast there are many beautiful and amazing places. These are the Great Barrier Reef with its fabulous inhabitants, and the picturesque Blue Mountains, in the depths of which the two hundred-kilometer system of Jenolan caves is hidden, and the protected Kangaroo Island and Shark Bay, and cool coniferous groves and waterfalls of Tasmania, and ghost lakes Western Australia disappearing every year, only to reappear in a different place…

Tourists coming to a distant continent from different countries world, enchants underwater coral multicolor barrier reef or the majesty of the cave halls of Genolam, where the grotto of the Devil's Carriage Shed reaches a height of one hundred meters!

And yet, having enjoyed the spectacle of these beauties, having talked with friendly kangaroos and koalas in the national parks of the coast, an inquisitive traveler will certainly insert a new film into the camera and set off along the dusty highway running along the border big desert Victoria and the Simpson Desert.

His path will not be easy and not close. The Main Miracle of Australia, hidden in the depths of the Great Deserts, is not soon revealed to man.

Most of the tourists arriving on the Australian mainland tend to visit the world-famous Sydney Opera House, watch kangaroos and koalas, or go diving off the Great Barrier Reef. All these attractions definitely deserve the attention of tourists and vacationers from all over the world. But there is another place here, which in last years becomes a particularly popular tourist destination.

450 km from Alice Springs (often called the middle of Australia - it is located in the center of the motorway and railway connecting northern and southern part mainland) and 18 km from the resort of Yulara (here is tourist area and Ayers Rock Airport) is one of the main historical natural attractions of the Australian continent - Uluru rock. Also known as . This is the largest rock in the world, which is a pure monolith (that is, solid stone). In addition, Uluru is also one of the oldest geological formations, dating back to the Archean era (the age of the rock is about 680 million years).

The size of Ayers Rock is amazing. 348 m high, 1.6 km wide and 2.4 km long. The circumference is about 9.4 km. The location of Uluru is also unusual. The rock rises in the middle of a vast desert plain, which makes it even more majestic and grandiose against the background of the surrounding landscape. When you look at Ayers Rock from a distance of several hundred meters, it seems perfectly smooth. But as soon as you get closer, a completely different picture emerges before your eyes. The monolith is completely covered with cracks, furrows and notches, which nature itself has created over millions of years.

Strong winds, temperature fluctuations (during the day there is unbearable heat, and cold at night) and heavy rains created a natural "drainage system" on the surface of Uluru, through which flows of moisture rush to the foot of the cliff. Here, below, there are water sources that allow some aboriginal tribes and dozens of animal species (possums, kangaroos) and plants (eucalyptus, acacia) to exist in this desert area. According to archaeological excavations, Aboriginal tribes already lived in these places more than 10 thousand years ago.

But all these features would hardly make Ayers Rock one of the most famous symbols of Australia, which attracts more than 500 thousand tourists every year. The Uluru rock has another quality, for which it was nicknamed the "chameleon rock".

The rock-monolith gained the widest fame due to its unique feature– change color throughout the day, depending on the weather and time of day. Moreover, Uluru does not just darken or brighten, depending on the lighting, but completely changes color - from brown to fiery red, from lilac to blue, from yellow to lilac. That is why she is often compared with a real professional in disguising the animal world - a chameleon. Just imagine how the ancient tribes living at the foot of Ayers Rock reacted to such a color representation.

In fact, all this magic is easily explained. Mineral composition Uluru is represented by arkose sandstone (with impurities of quartz and feldspar). He is the main culprit in changing the color of the monolith, depending on the weather and lighting. In addition, as a result of chemical analysis, iron oxide was found in the rock, which gives the rock a fantastic fiery color. At night, the rock looks like a huge black silhouette, which in the early morning, under the first rays of the sun, turns purple, then red, pink, and yellow-orange by afternoon. Uluru looks especially unusual when it rains, in cloudy weather, showing a cold lilac-blue gamut of shades. They say that you can photograph Ayers Rock without a break. And all the pictures will be different from the rest.

Origin rock Ayers Rock

Around the formation of a stone block in the middle of an endless Australian desert There were many rumors, assumptions and conjectures. Scientists, explorers and travelers have put forward dozens of theories, many of which are simply fantastic. Some time ago there was a theory according to which Uluru is part of a meteorite that once fell in these places. And only recent research has been able to shed light on the origin of the Ayers Rock monolith.

Thousands of years ago, in the middle of the salt lake Amadius (which today dries up and loses its area), there was a large Mountain chain Peterman, which is, in fact, an island. So, the Uluru rock was once part of this mountain range, which almost completely disappeared under the influence of natural forces. According to scientists, Ayers Rock in its "structure" resembles icebergs plowing the waters of the Northern Arctic Ocean. After all most of rocks are under the surface of the earth. Somewhere at a depth of 6 km.

The history of the discovery of Uluru

No less interesting is the history of the development of these places. The first European traveler who saw with his own eyes grandiose creation of Australian nature was the Englishman Ernest Giles, who emigrated to Australia with his family in 1850. It happened in 1872 when an explorer spotted Ayers Rock from the shore of Lake Amadius. The monolith was located about 40 km from the traveler, but the discoverer did not manage to get to it.

He nevertheless conquered the summit of Uluru a year later, but he no longer became the first. Before him, another traveler, William Goss, had already climbed the chameleon rock. It was he who named the rock Ayers Rock, after the future Prime Minister of Australia (at that time it was "fashionable" to call natural monuments in honor of statesmen).

Aboriginal legends and mysteries of Uluru rock

No other symbol of Australia is surrounded by as many legends and stories as the rock of Uluru. For the natives, this is not just a rock - it is sacred place which they treat with all honors and respect. They tell ancient legends about the origin and purpose of Ayers Rock.

At the top of Uluru there are giant dents, which the natives believe are the traces of a mythical creature - the huge dingo dog Kulpunya. The monster left dents when it tried to sneak up on the sleeping hunters to maul them. But people are lucky. They were saved by a kookaburra - a bird that woke people up in time with its cries.

According to one of the legends, Ayers Rock appeared in the "time of dreams", when our planet was just forming its current appearance. The rock served as a guide to one of the so-called "dream paths". It was built by the giants who also created man and the earth. They gave the earth to the water serpent Wonambi, who was the highest deity. Later, people multiplied and gave rise to all existing Aboriginal tribes. And all these tribes to this day annually return to the Uluru rock to pay respect to the gods. And the Anangu tribe, which considers itself the direct descendants of those ancient giants, is today recognized as the oldest human race on Earth.

Another legend says that two tribes lived near Uluru - hare kangaroos and python people. According to legend, the female python Kunya laid her eggs in one of numerous caves in Ayers Rock. Later, natives hatched from these eggs. A tribe of venomous snakes originated from the brown snake Liru. They attacked a tribe of python people. The latter were able to escape thanks to the intervention of the goddess of the earth, Bulari, who was the patroness of the hare kangaroo tribe. The hare kangaroos themselves were also attacked by the descendants of Liru, but were able to escape thanks to the ability to gallop like a kangaroo. Bulari unleashed a poisonous cloud on her enemies. And the bodies of the defeated enemies were buried inside the Uluru rock, which, according to the natives, is empty inside. Numerous recesses that can be seen around the rock are considered by the locals to be footprints of the hare kangaroo tribe.

According to other legends, inside the empty area, which is located inside the rock of Ayers Rock, there is a source of great energy. Another belief tells us about the water python, which was the owner of the rock. And on its slopes lived another hero of Australian myths - a black monitor lizard.

According to one legend, Uluru is a living animal that, like an ostrich, stuck its head in the sand. On one of the days of the year, he straightens up to look around. We do not know how shamans learn about the approach of this day, but during this period festivities are held in honor of the "living rock". Perhaps that is why no Austrian native dares to climb to the top of Ayers Rock. After all, such an action is considered a terrible sacrilege that can anger the gods.

Pavda, tourists do not really believe in all these stories and confidently storm the steep slopes of Uluru. And, I must say, in vain. After all, as statistics show, every year several people die, never having overcome a one and a half kilometer climb up the mountain. And all accidents occur under very mysterious circumstances: due to heart failure.

Aborigines also do not recommend taking fragments of the monolith as souvenirs. And thousands of pebbles returned by tourists are proof of this. Often, along with a stone, people send letters in which they talk about the streak of misfortune that appeared in their lives after they picked up and brought a piece of Uluru with them. According to the management of the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, of which Ayers Rock is a part, sometimes tourists return real cobblestones weighing 5-7 kilograms. And everyone complains about the losing streak.

Another mystery of Ayers Rock is the rare torrential rains that hit the desert once every few years. All of them go exclusively over the rock-monolith. Moreover, not a single weather forecaster has yet been able to predict the approach of precipitation in these places. Clouds appear from nowhere and disappear into nowhere. It is also interesting that the shamans of the local tribes always know about the approach of rain in a few weeks. During this period, the tribe begins to pull up to the sacred stone.

Caves, rock art and the connection to UFOs

The countless caves that adorn Ayers Rock have preserved a large number of rock carvings left by ancient tribes. Some of these underground corridors are just under a kilometer long. Inside you can find whole lakes that are filled with life-giving moisture during the rainy season. Not all caves and lakes are open to tourists, as they are sacred to local tribes.

If you study well rock art in the caves of Uluru, you can see the image of the sky god Wanjin, who, with his outlines, very much resembles some kind of astronaut. But the drawing is about 5000 years old. By the way, in Lately from Uluru-Kata Tjuta Park comes a large number of statements from eyewitnesses who allegedly observed UFOs over Ayers Rock. In any case, something similar to the plates of aliens. True, flying objects had the shape of a large triangle.

Ayers Rock for Tourists

It is interesting to observe the growing interest in the Uluru rock from tourists. In the first half of the last century (more precisely, from 1931 to 1946), only 22 travelers climbed to the top of the monolith rock. Such a small number is connected, first of all, with the absence of any roads.

But since 1950, when the construction of the highway was completed here, a stream of tourists who want to see with their own eyes Australian miracle, increased significantly. People travel here to this day in cars and planes. In 2000, the number of tourists exceeded 400 thousand people, and today the annual flow of people who want to see Ayers Rock exceeds half a million people.

Since October 26, 1985, Ayers Rock has been officially recognized as the property of the Anangu tribe. True, modern natives did not become "greedy", but decided to let tourists into these places. True, for the benefit of his tribe. Uluru was leased to the Australian government for 99 years. annual rent is $75,000. In addition, Aboriginal people receive 20% of the cost of each ticket to Uluru-Kata Tjuta. The cost of a three-day ticket for one person is $25.

The most desperate tourists can try to climb to the top of Ayers Rock to enjoy beautiful view stretching for many kilometers around the desert. True, to walk 1.6 km of the way, you need to have remarkable health and strength. Indeed, in addition to necessary equipment, have to bear large stock water, without which the rise becomes deadly. Fortunately, metal railings were installed in the most difficult places.

But don't think that comfortable rest and Ayers Rock is incompatible. After all, there are luxury hotels nearby, ready to provide vacationers with all the necessary range of services. At the service of tourists is the five-star Ayers Rock Resort (Ayers Rock Resort) or the three-star Lost Camel (Lost Camel).

Uluru Rock has been part of the biosphere reserve which is included in the UNESCO heritage list. And ten years later, in 1987, Ayers Rock was officially recognized as a monument of world importance.