Uluru is a beautiful, charismatic place. Its dimensions are one thing: Uluru is 3.6km long and rises 348m from the surrounding sands (867m above sea level). If that's not sufficiently impressive, remember this: two-thirds of the rock lies beneath the sand. This is a monolith textured with layers of profound spirituality and timeless beauty, the epitome of desert stillness and, in the plays of light and shadow that dance across its surface, one of the richest shows in nature.
Sacred sites are located around the base of Uluru; entry to and knowledge of the particular significance of these areas is restricted by Anangu law. The landscape of Uluru changes dramatically with the shifting light and seasons. In the afternoon, Uluru appears as an ochre-brown colour, scored and pitted by dark shadows. As the sun sets, it illuminates the rock in burnished orange, then a series of deeper and darker reds before it fades into charcoal. A performance in reverse, with marginally fewer spectators, is given at dawn.