Help Me Climb Uluru - Last Chance to Climb Is Tomorrow, Can I Get There from Sydney in Time?

Super doobie on 24/10/2019 - 15:38
Last edited 24/10/2019 - 16:37 by 1 other user

This is my plea to the OzBargain community. I know it's last minute and will appreciate all your help.

CAN I GET TO THE TOP OF ULURU BEFORE IT IS CLOSED FOR GOOD?

Tomorrow is the last chance anyone will have to climb it. On the 26-10-2019 there will be no access and a closing ceremony.
I'm looking for a return flight or car / camper hire to get me there. I am on the central coast but would fly from Sydney or Newcastle and or hire transport from between Sydney and Newcastle.

PLEASE NO LECTURES, OR EDUCATING ME ON ULURU.

Please list the best deals you can find. Getting to the top is my main focus. I would like accommodation but I can figure that out myself. I'm sure I'm not the only one interested in a deal for this.

Thanks in advance.

Travel

Comments

  • RecklessMonkeys on 25/10/2019 - 09:43

    What's your exact address so that we can all come and trample around your back yard?

    • Cluster on 25/10/2019 - 10:03

      Well, practically the Aboriginal people of Australia owned 100% of the land mass. You're trespassing. Pay up.

      • SlickMick on 25/10/2019 - 16:30

        The invasion of Australia wasn't done very well. Since when do the conquerors submit to the defeated?
        I don't think we'll be making any demands of those that come next.

        • SirFlibbled on 28/10/2019 - 11:49

          You might want to read Mabo No 2. This is actually covered.

          • SlickMick on 28/10/2019 - 13:44

            @SirFlibbled: That's the bs I'm referring to.

            Any established villages/ towns/ cities they would have claim to, but you can't just say "we settled the whole country" - or the parts that somebody else is now interested in.

    • HighAndDry on 25/10/2019 - 12:37
      +5

      Do the traditional owners pay rates and land tax on all that land?

      • RecklessMonkeys on 25/10/2019 - 13:08
        +1

        You feel entitled to 65000 years of back taxes?

  • kanter on 25/10/2019 - 10:00
    +1

    Too late, but you can still go to a church naked or have a ham toastie at a synagogue or mosque

    • Cluster on 25/10/2019 - 10:02
      +5

      I didn't see anyone climbing Uluru naked or eating forbidden food on it. Maybe your analogy needs a bit more work.

      • vikvance on 25/10/2019 - 13:12

        Yeah, all they did was urinate and defecate on it. (see link below)

        It's interesting to imagine the reaction if someone took a dump on the Cenotaph, and especially if the person happened to have a Muslim name.

        https://sites.google.com/site/impactoftourismuluru/impact-of…

        • SlickMick on 25/10/2019 - 16:33
          +2

          Is that a reason to shut down the rock? Should we close down all significant sites to avoid defecation?

          I wonder why some sacred sites are more respected than others??

          • kanter on 26/10/2019 - 08:21

            @SlickMick: Well obviously this one isn’t respected enough. It’s been a sacred site for thousands of years, it’s miles and miles away from anything else, why would people travel for hours just to climb on it, where there is nothing special to see because it IS the thing you’re there to look at, and they know it is a lack of respect to the locals.

            It seems to upset people that Aboriginal people get some recognition

            • SlickMick on 26/10/2019 - 14:00

              @kanter: Perhaps will all the tourist dollars spend there, better facilities should have been provided.

              Maybe we know that people are claiming that we're being disrespectful, but we respectfully disagree.

              In the interest of avoiding racism, wouldn't it be better to not give special rights to certain people based on race??
              Dunno about "upset" but it's a joke all the bs recent weak governments are tolerating and shoving down our throats.

              • nith265 on 27/10/2019 - 12:12

                @SlickMick:

                Perhaps will all the tourist dollars spend there, better facilities should have been provided.

                I'm no expert in how to best design tourist facilities for world famous natural attractions but somehow building a toilet block on the top of Uluru doesn't seem like the best idea.

                There are facilities at the base of the rock.

  • OzHunterNSW on 25/10/2019 - 10:10

    The only way now is direct flight to Alice Springs then a private charter helicopter to the rock.
    It takes three days to drive.

    Get your ass moving

    • Cluster on 25/10/2019 - 10:26

      http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDD60801/IDD60801.94462.shtml

      Reasonably strong wind gusts today. 2pm is the last test to see whether the climb can be done.

      • GG57 on 25/10/2019 - 10:41
        +1

        What a shame <scarcasm>

      • cynicalmike on 25/10/2019 - 10:51
        +2

        secretly hoping the op flew out at considerable expense.

        ahhh schadenfreude. my dear old friend.

    • nith265 on 25/10/2019 - 15:16

      source video from that article https://youtu.be/azvPwcp-AvQ from about 5 days ago

      "stay on the chain!!!"

      jesus that looks like zero fun hanging onto that chain with all your kids in tow! Top looks cool

  • rb123 on 25/10/2019 - 10:47
    +1

    You can still climb it tomorrow, it will just cost a bit more.. $10k

    • GG57 on 25/10/2019 - 10:49

      Citation required

    • Cluster on 25/10/2019 - 10:51
      +4

      Yes, the entry fee is $10k from tonight. After Monday the climb becomes more difficult with the removal of the chain, but there are plenty of adventurer videos on Youtube showing people trespassing into interesting places for a challenge. I don't expect Uluru to buck the trend.

  • AS2035 on 25/10/2019 - 12:10
    -3

    The doors are shut… no one will ever climb it

    Was disgraceful site as thousands lined up… no respect for a scarred site..

    • Seedy seed on 25/10/2019 - 16:31
      +4

      I know ill get slammed for this but ffs its a rock… On a side note why is it sacred?

      • Baysew on 25/10/2019 - 16:39
        +2

        AS2034 said it was scarred not sacred.

        • AS2035 on 26/10/2019 - 18:14

          so it was a typo.. you are still not climbing it

      • Hybroid on 25/10/2019 - 16:42

        It is said to have spiritual and cultural significance for local indigenous tribes going back 60,000 years. We don't have to agree or believe in it, but respect is a basic human decency that seems to be disappearing for the sake of instagram photos and the like.

        https://ulurutoursaustralia.com.au/blog/the-significance-of-…

        • bobbieb on 25/10/2019 - 18:34
          +4

          The site seems to roll out the same old trope that tends to be dispensed when there is no specific dreamtime story applicable.

          Basically:

          • The whole world and its people were created through the collaboration of 10 ancestral beings.
          • Uluru is part of the world.
          • Uluru was therefore created by the ancestral beings.
          • This somehow imbues this this particular rock formation with particular cultural and spiritual significance.

          Conveniently, the variations in the natural structure and erosion of the rock over the millennia just happen to still bear testimony to the contributions of each being.

          I'm pretty sure that if I looked hard enough, I would find a remarkable likeness of the magnificent and loved Flying Spaghetti Monster. I will be there shortly with our holy delegation to assert our claims of this site too.

  • Cluster on 25/10/2019 - 12:31
    +3

    ABC radio just reported the climb is open again as winds died down. Schadenfreude feelings have been premature it seems.

    • cynicalmike on 25/10/2019 - 13:12

      he could still fall and break his neck. my bets are on that now.

      • payton on 25/10/2019 - 18:45

        So bitter and full of bile.
        Sorry that your hopes were dashed, lol.

  • holdenmg on 25/10/2019 - 13:10

    Ten of the best things in Australia you can still climb
    https://www.traveller.com.au/ten-of-the-best-things-in-austr…

  • Cluster on 25/10/2019 - 13:33
    +2

    https://www.smh.com.au/national/wild-wind-spoils-climbers-pa…

    "Several climbers who made it through the gate eventually had to be helped back down by rangers after they ‘‘froze’’ during the descent, overcome by fear of the precipitous path worn smooth by tens of thousands of reeking boots over the past 70 years."

    Reeking boots? Can we can an update as to the sanitary condition of their underwear too? Instead of reporting on the news and events we have active advocacy by journalists.

    • cynicalmike on 25/10/2019 - 14:46

      was Pauline Hanson one of them? probably cos of those Reeking boots

    • GG57 on 25/10/2019 - 14:47

      I didn't read that as advocating a particular viewpoint. That writer is more a journalist than a reporter, and probably added that description to add interest to the facts of the story.
      It seemed to be well-balanced writing in my view.

  • rb123 on 25/10/2019 - 14:26
    +6

    OP, please update if you made it there…

  • [Deactivated] on 25/10/2019 - 16:25

    PLEASE NO LECTURES, OR EDUCATING ME ON ULURU.

    This post is immature nonsense.

    • RecklessMonkeys on 26/10/2019 - 08:51

      OP would prefer to remain ignorant.

  • onetwothreefour on 25/10/2019 - 16:28
    +1

    OP, where the bloody hell are you?

    • Seedy seed on 25/10/2019 - 16:33

      Havin a mingle with ol bingle.

  • abel on 25/10/2019 - 17:01
    -4

    WOW. So proud of the community. Way to see this guy is a tool. Moderators this crap posting is not useful. Get rid of it. Let's save buckets of cash together. Power to the people and all that 👊

    • Cluster on 25/10/2019 - 17:03
      +2

      Censoring this post is not doing anyone any favours. It's far better to keep it here for future reference as it's an important part of the narrative surrounding the last day of climbing. I can imagine researchers coming back in the future to document the extreme measures people were willing to take to squeeze in a visit at the last minute (the so called Climbing Fever in the last days).

    • payton on 25/10/2019 - 18:42
      -1

      Moderators this crap posting is not useful. Get rid of it.

      On the contrary, this post was very useful - in highlighting that the preachy, moral chest beating 'respeccc mah culture' crowd is actually nasty and full of vitriol. Good job!

  • zombrex on 25/10/2019 - 17:29
    +2

    The self-righteousness that people hold over others for simply walking up the side of rock is really pathetic, especially when it is for not conforming to spiritual beliefs. Climbing the rock does no harm. The Aboriginal people themselves had no problem climbing it in the past and there is historical evidence to support this.

    Also conflating the disrespectful actions (defecation) of a tiny minority to the majority is grossly unfair. If that were the case then there would be no park, beach or nature area open for access in this country.

    There are also economic reasons for stopping the climb. This has been admitted.
    If people can't climb maybe they will take part in expensive paid experiences like segway scooters, bike ride, bush cooking, helicopter rides and so on.
    And don't worry the prices they charge for all of these activities are ridiculous because it is a captive market.

  • Super doobie on 25/10/2019 - 18:59
    +6

    MADE IT. WOOHOO.👍

    • Cluster on 25/10/2019 - 22:57

      Well, you made it just in time. Were you nervous that the climb wouldn't be open today after being closed in the morning?

    • onetwothreefour on 25/10/2019 - 23:29
      +10

      Pics or it didn't happen.

  • payton on 25/10/2019 - 19:13
    +4

    What a time to be alive. Its been an amusing two days

    a close-minded academic celebrating too soon
    This witch doctor actually trying to curse visitors to Uluru
    another rube who celebrated too early

    https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/hundreds-queue…

    Check out the replies of this tweet
    The sound of people trying to impose their absurd moral standards on others
    How nice of the activists to be wishing death and injury on people they never met, people who've never done them harm.

    • Cluster on 25/10/2019 - 23:00
      +1

      What a huge line up. I must say people were incredibly optimistic leaving it to the last day. October had many days above 36C where the climb was closed.

      As for the tweet: "A curse will fall on all of them."

      It's a good thing magic words never did anyone any harm. Curse away.

  • whooah1979 on 26/10/2019 - 09:26

    Will the ban impact the amount of tourism to this location and town?

    • sharka on 26/10/2019 - 10:00

      Absolutely!
      I wouldn't be surprised if there was a sudden drop in tourist and tourism revenue for the area.
      Even from an international standpoint that is all the area is known for

    • SirFlibbled on 28/10/2019 - 12:05

      Not in the long term. The number of climbers has fallen significantly over the past 20 years as more and more people respected the traditional owner's wishes. This was the reason they were allowed to close the climb (as it dropped well below the agreed 20% mark).

      In the short term there will be a small drop in numbers going there specifically to climb it, but considering it was about 15% of people who climbed, most of those were likely with a group and not all climbed (meaning they would have went anyway), there might be a small drop in revenue.

  • Dont Care on 26/10/2019 - 10:28
    +2

    settle down. you'll all be able to climb again when the aboriginals see how many tourism dollars they lose.

    • whooah1979 on 26/10/2019 - 12:17
      +1

      They’ll probably ask the federal government for a handout to cover the lost revenue.

      • Eeples on 26/10/2019 - 23:27
        -3

        That comment is probably racist.

    • AS2035 on 27/10/2019 - 14:43
      -1

      It's a sacred site.. idiots throw bottles down, poo and wee on the site .. the path is well worn out plus there was the make shift barrier that was doing damage.

      Do you want people to come to your house, use it for toilet, throw their rubbish around?

      • whooah1979 on 27/10/2019 - 14:50

        They’re more than welcome as long as they pay $25 (or $12.50) at the gate.

  • Eeples on 26/10/2019 - 23:24

    Not being dehydrated on the climb is very important. Trouble is no loo at the top and when it rains wee and poo washes down. Not pleasant.

    I think it’s important that aboriginal people decide on what sites are special and what should or shouldn’t be done to them.

    OP sounds like he might be dog whistling.

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