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The King’s Canyon walk starts up some steep steps and then crosses some spectacular rocky terrain. From one of the lookouts you can view the essential water hole that has made this area so special.

Once over the wall of the canyon, the visitor descends into a hidden paradise –the Garden of Eden. In the middle of a vast desert, set in dry red sandstone, luscious ancient plants and exotic birds flourish in a tiny valley that cradles precious water and unique flora.

Some of the plants have seen dinosaurs and the first people. There are even some early rock paintings nearby, but the local indigenous people ask guests not to disturb them as too many visitors would eventually destroy these ancient pieces of art.

We decided to push on to Yulara so as to see the sunrise over Ayers rock the next day. We stopped to look at what we thought was Ayers rock, but was in fact Mount Connor. Equally monolithic and imposing on the landscape, Mount Connor differs from Uluru in that it is a table-top mountain. Some tours do leave from Yulara but we could find no easily accessible routes for a self-drive visit.

We camped at the Yulara resort as there is no bush camping permitted in the area around Uluru. It was pricey -$30 for us both. We were also woken up early by masses of people leaving for the dawn viewing. Not a problem for us, but I wouldn’t camp for an extended holiday in Yulara.