After the Australian Outback Marathon: Kata Tjuṯa

The Route: Yulara → Kata Tjuṯa Dune Viewing Area → Walpa Gorge → Yulara Logistics: Hire car or organised tour, about 45 minutes each way. Park pass required. Marathon Month: July Duration: Day trip

Yulara ──(approx. 45 mins by road)──> Kata Tjuṯa Dune Viewing Area ──(10 mins)──> Walpa Gorge car park
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The Australian Outback Marathon finishes near Yulara on a Saturday in late July. Two days later, with Uluṟu seen, the legs may be ready for Kata Tjuṯa: 36 steep-sided domes of rock about 50 km west of the resort, some taller than Uluṟu itself, and much less visited.

July at Kata Tjuṯa is the heart of the dry winter. Mornings are cold enough for a hat and gloves until the sun is well up, and days reach about 20°C under clear skies. This is the comfortable season for walking here. In summer, the longer walks close in the late morning because of heat; in July, they stay open all day, though the rangers' advice on water still applies.

Kata Tjuṯa means "many heads" in Pitjantjatjara. The domes are made of conglomerate, a rock of cobbles and boulders cemented together, laid down as a fan of debris from an ancient mountain range and later tilted and eroded into their rounded shapes. Like Uluṟu, they are sacred to the Anangu, and the details of their stories are not shared with visitors.

The road from Yulara runs west past the Uluṟu turn-off; allow 45 minutes. Organised sunrise and sunset tours run from the resort for anyone without a car. A park pass is needed; the one bought for Uluṟu covers Kata Tjuṯa too, if still valid.

Dune Viewing Area

The Kata Tjuṯa Dune Viewing Area is a raised platform on a sand dune on the approach road to the domes, reached by a short boardwalk with some steps from the car park. At sunrise it catches the first light on the eastern faces of the domes, with Uluṟu visible on the eastern horizon. It is the least demanding way to see Kata Tjuṯa and the best place to begin the day.

Walpa Gorge

The Walpa Gorge walk is 2.6 km there and back, into a cleft between two of the tallest domes. The track is rocky and uneven underfoot and climbs gently all the way in; the return is gently downhill. At a slow pace it takes about an hour, with a shaded shelter at the end among the plants that survive in the gorge's damp microclimate. Post-marathon calves will notice the rocks. Wear the trail shoes from Saturday.

The Valley of the Winds walk, a 7.4 km loop over steep, rough ground between the domes, is one of the best walks in Central Australia. On the second day after a trail marathon, it is too much. The first section to the Karu lookout, about 1 km each way, gives a view into the valley for a far smaller price; the climb is steady and rocky. Decide at the car park.

Getting Back

Allow 45 minutes to return to Yulara. If staying for sunset at the car park viewing area on the western side of the domes, leave promptly afterwards: the park's gates close in line with sunset, and the road is dark and busy with wildlife at dusk.