Today was a 10 out of 10 day. It started with Pete and I visiting Kings Canyon ( Watarrka National Park) just after dawn. There is a breathtaking walk around the rim of the canyon and then you can descend to the canyon floor. In the above photo Pete and I have just finished climbing up to the start of the walk

Walking across the ridge....

...views to the other side of the canyon ( can just see some people on the other side)..

...the walls were so sheer ....

....starting our descent down to the valley floor into what they call the Garden of Eden.

The permanent waterhole on the valley floor....

It is a magical place, we stopped and listened to the silence and admired the colours. The aboriginal people ask that we do not swim in this water.

On the top again looking over to the other side...the beehive like boulders were amazing...

...we think a perentie...

Looking back at the sheer cliffs on the other side...one of the best short walks we have ever done.

Then we were off to Uluru, another interesting drive through some very pretty country...above is Mt Connor which is a large mesa ....

...and  these are Desert Oaks which I came to love...

The swimming pool at the campground at Yulara which we were very grateful for when we arrived.

And then in the evening we had our Uluru sunrise and Field of Light. The Field of Light is an art installation by Bruce Munro , it comprises 50,000 solar-powered stems all put together by hand. As the sun set, we drank our wine, watched the stars come out, the colour on the rock change and the installation lights come alive. A night to remember and an end to an awesome day.

One of the surprises for us on this holiday was the town of Alice Springs. Unlike what we had heard we thought it a very pretty town . There are hundreds of large eucalypts surrounding the buildings and the backdrop of the mountain ranges giving the place a quiet beauty. Above is the building for the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory.

The Todd Tavern..a classic!  

The Todd River which was named by surveyor W.W.Mills after Lady Alice Todd, wife of Charles Todd, previously Postmaster General of South Australia.

The East and West Mac Donnell Ranges  in the heart of Alice Springs.

Next camping stop was Kings Creek Station which is a working cattle station but also has a very well maintained camp ground....look at that RED sand.

There were camels...

From the station one could look out to more rugged mountains...

Pete and I had set today aside to explore the beautiful, weather-beaten MacDonnell Ranges that are on either side of Alice Springs. We visited the East MacDonnell Range first, above is Emily Gap.

Eight kilometres further on is Jessie Gap, another quiet and pretty spot.

Corroboree Rock...a very strange looking dolomite outcrop.

The start of the Trephina Gorge Walk which loops around the gorge's rim then down to the valley below.

I love the ghost gums...

The 4WD track to John Hayes Rockhole... a new experience for me.

The John Hayes Rockhole...worth the bumpy ride...

....so pretty..

In the above photo we are now in the West MacDonnell Range at Simpsons Gap.

Stanley Chasm...such a narrow corridor that slices through the range, the walls rise to 80 metres.

Our last stop and my favourite was Ellery Creek Big Hole. The water and the chance to swim under those towering cliffs was the attraction. Pete and I swam the length of the gorge, at times floating on our backs staring up at the walls of red rock.

How lucky we felt at the end of the day to see and experience nature's stunning beauty.

Leaving Coober Pedy and heading to Alice Springs...

The town of Coober Pedy is surrounded by little piles of dirt...

...and these piles of dirt look so funny on the horizon ...

After a really long drive we arrived in Alice Springs and were thrilled when we saw our delightful ensuite and a swimming pool.

It was a very hot day but Pete and I wanted to see as much of Coober Pedy as we could. Above is a photo taken from The Big Winch Lookout, which is in the centre of the town.

Pete standing on the artificial turf of first tee of the Coober Pedy Golf Course. There wasn't a blade of grass on the whole course!

Faye's underground house....built by hand by three women ... most of the furniture has been retained from when the ladies lived there.

The Serbian Orthodox Church, one of the two underground churches that we visited.

The Dog Fence is the longest continual construction in the world, stretching 5,300 kilometres, built to protect the sheep country in the south from the Dingo in the north. It is about 15km from Coober Pedy.

The magnificent and vast Moon Plain is a mass of dark and shining rocks....15 kms from Coober Pedy.

Kanku- Breakaways Conservation Park ...is an Aboriginal Heritage Site and stunning landscape 23 km north of Coober Pedy.

  

After all that sight seeing we searched for a cool place for a rest and a drink...where better than an underground bar!