rocked

Warm and dry, with just the merest whiff of disinfectant, I was back on the road before 9. The rain at Mount Ebeneezer petered out after a few miles, but I still rode on quite gingerly as the roads were wet and a bit slippy in places. Stopped to fill up after 100km, and got talking to a father and son, both on motorbikes, headed back towards Sydney. Had a good chat about routes and roads, and it made me think I should reconsider my plans for the next couple of weeks.

And suddenly there were signs for Uluru, and I found myself slowing down in anticipation. The journey here had taken so long, and I'd been plotting it out in my head for weeks. Finally it was happening, and I couldn't quite believe it. I still can't! I pulled into the very smart-looking campsite and found a pitch, and quickly dumped my gear and was back on the bike headed towards the rock.

Uluru was looming ahead of me. Muddy brown and massive under cloudy skies, it was a surreal ride... I was literally headed straight towards it. This iconic image was there, and almost within touching distance. It is very big.... And rather than get too carried away, I called into the Aboriginal Cultural Centre to find out a bit more before I stepped onto this sacred piece of land. Lots of fascinating detail, but it boils down to the simple fact that the indiginous people had lived in this area for 40,000 years. The "Ayers Rock" period has been a very unfortunate blip in a long, proud history. Finally their rights to the land were restored, after a fashion, with a deal brokered with the politicians that the land would be given back, IF it could then be leased as a national park. It's a truce - for now - but I can't help thinking that the people who've been custodians for so long deserve better. At least here the culture and traditions and art are celebrated.

And then I stepped into the park and took the walk through the trees to finally stand in front of the monolith. And I wept. Partly because I was tired, partly in recognition that I'd achieved an ambition. Lots of it was because I was missing, and am missing, Kirsty and Aidan. And missing Alex too. I blubbed, for those I love, all so far away. And for myself.

I've been lucky enough to visit a few places that had the power to provoke such a physical and emotional response in me. Amritsar was one, and the Forbidden City in Beijing. But those were man-made. Uluru has a timelessness and a stillness. It was really quiet as I walked round. Hardly any tourists. And then the sun came out, and that muddy brown became the rusty orange of my imaginings and the images we're all so familiar with. And I cried a little more.

Later, I rode about six miles out and parked up to watch the rock changing colour as the sun slowly set. What a privilege to be here to experience this. Awesome is a word most of us are guilty of using too often. It's lost its power. But Uluru IS awesome, in the truest sense of the word.