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Australia is a place of extremes. It's possesses an abundance of exclusive flora and fauna. Among the many distinctive wonders is Uluru, a monolithic sandstone monument in the heart of Australia and a cultural focal point for Aboriginal people.
A national treasure
Located some 300 miles from Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, Uluru is a defining feature of the Australian outback and the namesake landmark of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. This massive rock is also commonly known as Ayers Rock, after English emigrant and late-1800s politician Sir Henry Ayers. It is a sacred site to the Anangu, the proud, indigenous people of the land.
Uluru rises more than 1,100 feet above the remote and austere lands of the park. The monolith's surface is pitted with caves and erosion-carved trenches, looming tall and stained a sunbaked, russet red from oxidization of the ferrous stone.
The rock is over a mile wide and double that in length. A serious hiker can travel the worn, six-mile path around Uluru's base in three and a half hours. And, like an iceberg, the stone extends deep into the ground. Exactly how far is the subject of some speculation.
Walking Uluru
Thousands of tourists climb the chain-marked trails and steep slopes to the carved summit of Uluru each year. However, the Anangu people are sensitive to climbers.
Uluru is sacred to the Anangu. The Australian National Park Service holds long-term leases to the surrounding parkland, but the Aboriginal people own the site itself. While tolerant of visitors intent on making the ascent, the Anangu prefer that Uluru be experienced through a series of walks around and at the base of the rock.
However you decide to experience Uluru, understand that it is perhaps the most well-known natural landmark in a country known for spectacularly unique natural displays.
Plan accordingly should your international locum tenens assignment take you near Uluru-Kata Tjuta and the Northern Territory.