Heaven.
Kings Canyon, Northern Territory.
Temptingly, the lower walking route is also in the shade. It’s a good deal shorter than the upper walking route too. And has a lot less stairs .. being generally, flatter. And lower.
I look at my water bottle – already a quarter gone in the intense 35 degree heat. I wipe my forehead. My Aussie hat has developed an authentic Aussie sweat stain. I look longingly at the promise of shade the lower walking route offers. I look jealously at the portly German pensioners strolling past the sign without even a second glance, and straight towards the dark of the canyon itself. And I look rather forlornly at the others I am with who are already bounding up the stairs of the the upper walking route in an alpha male and female Tomorrow-Belongs-To-Them vigour.
This is Healthy. We are Being Active. I am Exhausted. We are only 30 feet from the car park.
We are at Kings Canyon. A good 300km north of Uluru, Kings Canyon is in the Watarrka National Park, and is a joy of a diversion off the Way. After several long drives: a good walk is the perfect chance to stretch the legs, isn’t it?
You do have to do the upper walking route. That’s my advice anyway. I’m sorry, but there’s not much point strolling around the bottom of the canyon, no matter how tempting it is. Apologies to those unable to climb the (not quite) endless steps up, but to not see the canyon from above is to miss the spectacle. A bit like going to Paris an not going up the Eiffel Tower at least once. It’s churlish.
The full upper walk is something like six km in the round, and takes around three hours plus stoppage time for breathers and snapping.
But it is a steep climb. There are steps, and lots of steps (apparently it’s called “Heart Attack Hill”), but the reward at the top is to stand on the edge of 150m cliffs and gawp in admiration of red sandstone; the work and wonders of aeons of erosion; and how high you have climbed.
The benefit of a good walk is the lack of guilt felt at the end of the day when someone places food and wine before you. We stay overnight at the Kings Canyon Wilderness Lodge, about 20 minutes from the canyon itself. The Lodge is a boutique camp ground of luxury tented cabins: glamping for people who don’t even want to deal with a tent.
The cabins are like little homes. A huge double bed sits in the bedroom, with swish light fittings, and furniture, and zip-up window blinds. Across one’s very own verandah one finds one’s very own bathroom with one’s very own walk-in shower and enough space to have a party. Some cabins come with a roll top bath. All have air-con. I decide to move in permanently.
Food is served under the stars. There’s a fire in the fire-pit. We are overwhelmed with chargrilled kangaroo fillet, and steak, and barramundi – washed down with fine, local wines. Amazingly, the legs don’t ache at all. We go quiet, looking up at the Southern Cross, and spot satellites and shooting stars, and can see the Milky Way as clear as daylight. Heaven.
