THE RED CENTER
- Erin Spyker
- Oct 30
- 16 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
February 2024
Adelaide, South Australia
G'day family,
I have put my life in Perth on pause to spend the next 12 days road tripping through the Australian outback! Starting in Adelaide, we are heading to Uluru, the heart of Australia. Then we continue more North all the way up to Alice Springs before turning around and making our way back down South. To say I am excited for what's in store is an understatement. There is something so poetic about visiting the heart of Australia during my last month in this corner of the world. It feels like the end and the beginning of everything that is to come.
So without further ado, here is my trip to the Red Center
We have been on the road for a few days now, and boy, has it been wonderful. On day 1, I flew to Adelaide, where Emily, Sara, Basile, Cody, and I had a long-awaited reunion. After catching up on the last few months, we found a cozy corner of the airport to roll out our sleeping bags and try our best to get some sleep.
When we woke, we picked up our rental car and spent the afternoon packing it FULL of camping gear and stocking up on non-perishables at Costco to get us through 12 days of red sand, the boiling sun, and lukewarm water. To say it's a tight squeeze is an understatement, but after all, who doesn't love cramming into a vehicle full of camping gear and good friends?
Once we were ready to hit the road, we headed to Port Augusta, but not before paying a visit to the Lochiel monster, which has made its home in Lake Bumbunga Salt Lake. It was a great place to get out, stretch our legs, and face a monster.
After arriving at camp, we cooked dinner, explored the wide open space around us, and gathered to watch the sun go down. As we thanked her for a beautiful day, we began to get excited about the days that lie ahead, but as the moon lit up the sky and the stars put on a spectacle, our excitement slowly turned to exhaustion, so we brushed our teeth and crawled into bed.
Today, we are in for a treat: 10 hours in the car with an outside temperature of 40C+. Luckily, we have air conditioning and a good stereo to get us through. Our destination is the Northern Territories border, setting up one tent in South Australia, and the other in the North!
We followed the road through Coober Pedy -an underground mining town known as the Opal Capital of the world- and through Glendambo - a town consisting of 22,500 sheep,
2,000,000 flies, 30 humans, and a convenience store-
So far, Australia's outback has proven to be unlike anything I have ever seen. Though I will admit, the constant emptiness that seems to surround us proves to be quite boring at times. However, we have made a scavenger hunt for our trip! I am on the lookout for an emu, a gray cloud, a shooting star, a camel, and a purple vehicle.
Wish me luck! Till next time,
Erin.
P.S. The flies this far north are absolutely ridiculous! Despite the world falling silent this far from anything, that peace is disrupted by the constant buzz of flies and the need to swat them away from your face. Depriving them of that irresistible cocktail of salt, moisture, and dead skin cells that reside on our faces. It is enough to drive a person mad.
February 2024
Uluru, NT, Australia
Hi Family,
In the heart of Australia, there lies a giant. Older than the Himalayas, taller than the Eiffel Tower, and one of the most sacred places in the world, is Uluru.
As the map on our phone counted down, our faces drew closer to the window, and excitement grew in the car. Ahead in the distance, we could make out the shape of a giant, disrupting the endless plains of central Australia. The sensations of excitement + relief that had grown in the car were soon to be crushed by the reality that we were getting excited about the wrong rock and Uluru was still another 30 minutes away. Once we arrived, we had a good laugh at our foolishness, for this place makes that other rock look like nothing more than a pebble.
Now, I invite you to step back 500 million years. A time in Earth's history when the continents we know today had not yet taken their place on the map, and everything was crashing into each other like kids in bumper cars, creating chaos and changing landscapes.
One of these collisions created a mountain range known as the Peterman Ranges. When they were formed, they were as tall as the French Alps, but over time, the ranges began to erode and sediments ran off the sides. One stream, made entirely of sand, began to pile up in one location -You're going to want to remember this sand pile, for she plays a crucial role in this story-.
With the rise of global sea levels and tectonic forces causing Earth's crust to sag, Central Australia got swamped with water, and for but a brief period -millions of years-, Australia had an inland sea, home to large marine creatures.
Limestone and mud sank to the bottom of the sea, settling on top a large pile of sand and creating so much pressure that the pile fused into solid sandstone.
Then, violent shifting of tectonic plates caused this giant piece of sandstone to flip on its side, where it sat for 100 million years before winds and rain passed through the region, eroding the softer rock and leaving only durable sandstone exposed.
That is the monolith that we see there today, 300 million years later, and known all around the world as Uluru. A red giant whose walls change color with the position of the sun, an entity that has witnessed ice ages, the rise and fall of many species, and probably nothing but a tripping hazard for dinosaurs.
Thank you for having us.
For days, the sky has felt so huge, full of clouds straight out of Springfield. I have just been waiting for something out of the ordinary to interrupt the blue, and here it is.
Its presence is full of peace; it almost feels like home.
Speaking of home, tonight we are seeking refuge off the highway next to an abandoned old car and a scraggly tree. It feels as though we are the only people around for miles, and the stars of the night sky shine above our heads.
Tomorrow we will give her our time.
Ciao for now,
Erin
Uluru & Kata Tjuṯa
February 2024
Palya family, welcome,
For approximately 50,000 years, Uluru has been the home of the Anangu people. In their culture, stories are inherited; some are only told in certain households, some only to men, and others only to women. These stories date back to the Dreamtime, a period in which ancestral beings came into an empty world. A spiritual essence that blends law, nature, and wisdom into one singular worldview. These spirits came in the form of animals, sweeping the landscape, creating, destroying, and rearranging the nothing into something.
The space in which I stand today is alive with these stories, and there's a mosaic of cultural and spiritual tales sketched into the landscape in the form of rock art and intricate symbols that pass down knowledge from generation to generation. Coming to Uluru as a
tourist, we are told only the most basic versions of these stories, and that alone is an incredible privilege. However, I do not feel these are my stories to tell. If you are interested in hearing these wonderful stories, please click here.
As we walked around Uluru, we were told stories of creation through memory and depicted in the illustrations of the ancient ones' journey. We were shown places where battles occurred, the women's sacred space, the ancient kitchen, and as we marveled at the art on the walls, an overwhelming feeling of gratitude came over, feeling lucky enough to have caught only a glimpse of this being's history.
The Anangu believe that there are spaces in this rock in which they can communicate with and receive their ancestors' blessings, and many visitors to Uluru report feelings of inspiration and a spiritual connection to the place itself. From the minute I stepped out of the car, I felt just that.
As the sun rose higher in the sky, we sought out shade in the visitors' center, where we watched a short film and learned more about the place we are at before piling back into the car to pay a visit to Kata Tjuta, a collection of 36 dome like rock formations that tower above you, 546 m high and once again, you remember what its like to feel so small.
Kata Tjuta is also a sacred place to the Anangu people- specifically the men, for this is where they would hunt, and make weapons and tools. Though Katja Tjuta is open to the public, the cultural stories and knowledge are not. We walked through the domes, gawking at the uniqueness of this place before arriving at Walpa Gorge, a refuge for desert plants and animals. It was spectacular.
We had a few hours before the sunset, so we took advantage of the Uluru resort pool and their refreshing ice-cold cucumber water. This was the coldest water we'd had in days! I could feel my body thanking me.
Before we knew it, it was time to head back to watch the sun set on Uluru and gets lit up a brilliant orange. We watched as the shifting of the sun revealed spaces in the
rock we could not see during the day. It was a magical experience and the perfect way to say goodbye to such an inspiring place, for tomorrow we hit the road and leave Uluru in the rearview.
It's a bizarre feeling to be at the heart of Australia while having so little time left in this part of the world, but it feels like the perfect way to close this chapter of my life. I have had time to truly reflect on all the experiences I have had over this past year and a half. I have grown immensely as an individual, have learnt what is fulfilling and important for Erin, and have made friendships to last a lifetime. All I have left to say is thank you.
Talk soon,
Erin
Kings Canyon, NT
February 2024
Hi,
This morning, just like every other morning, we woke to the buzzing of flies outside our tent. I have just grown to embrace it, for no matter how hard I try to fight them off, they keep finding their way back to me. This is me taking control. -for about 5 minutes before I swat like a crazy person-
Our day started with the usual boiling of water for coffee and a breakfast of apples and peanut butter. I was on coffee duty this morning, so as I waited for water to boil, I pulled up my socks and laced up my hiking boots in preparation for the day to come. With a steady hand, I gracefully fueled up my friends until I arrived at my mug, spilling BOILING water down my leg and into my boot, where my sock fused to my skin.
Knowing that the only water around for miles was unsettlingly warm, I took a deep breath and, very calm, cool, and collectively, tore down our tents and packed up our sleeping bags. Remember how I said that I was learning to surrender myself to the flies? Well, that has now gone out the window as their idea of paradise is the patch of burnt skin on my ankle. I also can no longer wear my hiking boots, so flip flops it is!
We said goodbye to our campsite and hit the road to Kings Canyon, where we will spend a few nights at one of the coolest campsites ever! It is at the top of a hill, on the edge of a cliff, looking over what could totally be the outskirts of Radiator Springs. We played cards, ate beans, and let the wind carry our worries as we screamed into the wide open spaces of the Northern Territories.
With every day spent in the outback, I fall more and more in love with it all. Everything is stained red from the sand, every day holds promise of something out of the ordinary, and here, we are graced with a presence I am yet to describe. I am so happy to be here.
Today we did the King's Canyon rim walk! We woke up early because we had to complete the hike by 11 am, as the heat becomes too extreme after that time, and it is considered too dangerous. So, I slipped on my flip flops, slapped on a hat, slopped on my sunscreen, and away we went, up and up and up until we were looking down into a canyon that seemed to be bottomless.
As the trail led us down into the mouth of the canyon, the vegetation grew richer, and the shade from the nearby trees relieved us of the beating hot sun. We marched on only to find ourselves at the Garden of Eden, home to many bird species and fauna alike. It is also where we gave our feet a rest and reenergized with a peanut butter wrap and what seemed to be the best apple I have ever had. Despite the urge to allow the water that lay at my feet to consume me, it is strictly forbidden to swim here due to its cultural significance to the Luritja and Arrernte people, who have called this place home for over 20,000 years.
Once we reached the parking lot, we cooled off in the water fountains and hit the road, anxious to spend the night at the tropic of Capricorn! But first, we made a mandatory Ice cream pit stop.
Till next time,
Big E
Alice Springs, NT
February 2024
Hey everyone,
This trip has brought me face-to-face with millions of years of history, taught me so many important things about the Indigenous culture here in Australia, and has drastically shifted my perspective on the meaning of place.
It has given me time to think and reflect on what it all means. What is important in this lifetime, not only for me but for the world around me and the people in it. It has reminded me once again that our time here is precious. None of this belongs to us; it never has, but the least we can do is play our part in ensuring that it will still be here for generations to come. For I cannot and will not imagine a world where these landscapes and the culture that keeps them alive cease to exist.
We have spent the last few days in Alice Springs - the capital of the Red Center- where we stumbled upon a Chinese cultural celebration, visited an old-style saloon with swinging doors, and spent an afternoon at an incredible watering hole! Ellery Creek is the name. Em, Basile, and I went on a side quest to a beautiful and peaceful spot to swim. The rock walls towered above, and if you looked closely, you would find birds hiding away in the crevices. It was spectacular.
This morning, Basile brought Emily and me breakfast in bed, consisting of Apples, Peanut butter, and a coffee. Then complained yet again about the stench of my feet. What can I say, a week in flip flops in the desert will do that to a gal.
Not much journaling got done in Alice; the days just slipped through my fingers!
Love,
Erin
A planet other than our own, SA
February 2024
Hello,
My question of the day is, Where tf am I?! Just when I thought we'd passed through the best landscape of the trip, these last few days laughed in my face. I feel like our car has transformed into a spaceship and taken us to a galaxy far, far away.
Our first stop on the journey South was the Painted Desert, and holy smokes, did it blow me away. This phenomenon stands in the remains of an inland sea bed and took Mother Nature 80 million years to create. Here is where we spent the majority of our day swatting at flies, climbing as high as we dared, and daydreaming of aliens.
As our eyes grew heavy, we bid the painted desert farewell and set up camp at a homestead right between here and there. We were treated to picnic tables, pit toilets, showers, and the company of chickens! The wide open space around us soon became host to the spectacle of tonight's sunset. I felt tears welling in my eyes as yet another beautiful day came to a close. Thank you, Sun. We will see you again tomorrow.
This morning was a luxury; we slept in until a shocking 8 am and had our first showers of the trip. We washed ourselves clean of all the red dirt that was hiding away in every crevice you can imagine, said goodbye to the chickens, and hit the road.
Our first stop was the Kanty Breakaways National Reserve. Remember how I said that yesterday's stop was extra terrestrial? Well, this place takes us even further away from Earth. I kept waiting for an X-wing to appear, or for Mad Max to kidnap us.
In the last year and a half of exploring Australia, I have been lucky enough to see countless sights that have taken my breath away, but this time I have spent in the The Outback has been the most spectacular experience I have had by far. It has allowed me to see the world through a different light. I am beyond grateful for this road trip; it has been everything and more.
For another lunch consisting of yet again a chickpea & bean wrap, we stopped in Coober
Peddy. A strange opal mining town where, at first glance, you may believe it to be quite barren. But here, it's cafes, restaurants, hotels, and churches that lie hidden below the sand, just out of eyes' reach. Coober Peddy was made to be an underground town because the daytime heat is too unbearable.
As we reluctantly ate our wraps and rehydrated, we played a very intense game of water bottle soccer. As our sweat blurred our vision, we longed to be buried underground.
We attempted to explore an abandoned underground church but were quickly disappointed to find that it had collapsed over time. We said our goodbyes and made our way to our home for the night. A roadside rest stop overlooking a salt flat as far as the eye could see.
-Erin
Adelaide, SA
February 2024
Hi family,
Over these past few days, I have felt as though we are on a journey through space and time. As we creep closer to civilization, it's almost like coming back down to Earth, and this morning, we have landed on the moon.
When we arrived at our camp spot last night, the sun was on her way to you, family, and our main focus was setting up our tents, cooking dinner, and getting out whatever spikey thing had dug itself into my foot. However, this morning we made our way down the hill and took a walk on the moon. It was pretty
incredible. I got to live my dream of being an astronaut, even if it was just pretend.
We then packed up the car, piled in, and hit the road to Adelaide. After a few hours of driving, our tummies grew hungry, so we made a pit stop in Port Augusta for a lunch consisting of, you guessed it, beans and chickpeas all wrapped up with avocados, peppers, taco seasoning, and a fried egg. Being reunited with lush green grass, we lay in the shade, dug our toes into the dirt, drank COLD water, and enjoyed the sound of the wind blowing, free from the relentless buzzing of the flies. Part of me is going to miss those irritating little guys.
Upon our arrival in Adelaide, we picked up six pizzas, six sides, and our Italian friend Luca for a sunset picnic at Glenelg Beach, where we were reunited with our friend, the Ocean. We took off our shoes and splashed around like children as the sun filled the sky with oranges, pinks, and yellows.
Luca is still the wonderful, joyful soul we met in Tasmania all those months ago. As we feasted, we shared stories from these past few months, and boy, did we laugh! The kind of laughter that takes your breath away and fills your body with joy. Just six friends from all over the world who just so happened to be in the same place at the same time. I have to remember to cherish moments like these, for who knows the next time we will all be in the same place at the same time.
Once we said goodbye and see you tomorrow to Luca, we strolled the beach that seemed to have it all. They've got a Ferris wheel, a jetty, and live music coming from the restaurant nearby. As Emily and I were walking past the Ferris wheel, we gawked at the $15 ticket to ride and asked each other, "What kind of person would pay
$15 to go around in a circle?!". Before we knew it, we had bought our tickets and were getting our souvenir photo taken.
Our carriage door locked, and away we went! As we reached the top, Basile called to see where we had disappeared to, and all we had to do was tell him to look up. Once he spotted us, he laughed and laughed before doing a bunch of flips on the sand, making sure we could see him too. It was hilarious!
As luck would have it, over the next few weeks, Adelaide is home to the second-largest arts fringe fest in the world! On the beach tonight, there was a stage hosting a dance troop's dress rehearsal, so naturally, we peered through the fence to get a front row seat to their captivating performance. Their music carried us as we ran up and down the beach with our arms stretched out wide, under the lights of the Ferris wheel and the glow of the stars. It felt as though I could fly.
Soon enough, the excitement of such a big day caught up to us, and we piled back into the car to search for a place to spend the night. We must have spent at least an hour and a half driving through the hills, but at every campsite we were met with a closed gate, and every open field refused to host us. Back to the beach we went to roll out our mats and lie under a blanket of stars while the sound of the sea carried us to dreamland.
Not a bad place to be.
All my love, Erin
Good morning,
Today I woke with the sun on my face and sand in my hair. It was perfect. There is some sort of heaviness in the air this morning, for it is the last day of this wonderful adventure.
It was a day of playing tourist, peeking into shops, and admiring the art all around the city. -Thanks, fringe fest!- We relaxed under the shade of a tree and recharged our batteries for a night on the town. Our last supper was at Betty's Burgers, where fries cost extra and wine is to be snuck in and poured under the table. After a delicious meal, we met with Luca again for $3 beers, live music, and good vibes. The bar we were at had a room with a stage, sticky floors, pool tables, and a general musk that just lingered in the air. It was perfect.
We naively thought that it wasn't going to be too crazy a night, as we are all flying tomorrow, but live music, $3 beers, and wrapping up 12 days in the desert calls for a good time.
We danced like no one was watching, played some killer games of pool, and chatted up the lead singer of the band. Once we were done, we made our way back to our home on the beach and were knocked right out. We woke feeling like a million bucks, but that soon changed when a raging hangover slapped us in the face as we began to organize and tidy the car, typical. My afternoon was spent with bread and butter before making the trek to the airport, where I flew back to Perth.
Thank you all for such a memorable trip. Until next time,
Here and Therin
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