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Bent Spoon Nomination for Climbing Ban

ULURU KATA-TJUTA NATIONAL PARK BOARD AND PARKS AUSTRALIA are up for a Bent Spoon award from Australian Skeptics for the ban on Climbing Ayers Rock.
The nomination reads....
Uluru (Ayers Rock) was probably first climbed by the first humans to arrive in central Australia about 30,000 years ago. This first group of humans left their mark on Uluru and Kata Tjuta (the Olgas) in the form of petroglyphs that remain a mystery to both the current custodians and anthropologists. Based on the inclusion of the dingo in their creation myths the current custodians the Anangu people arrived at the Rock only about 4000 years ago. They also climbed it as demonstrated by their myth of the Hare Wallaby Men who dragged the “Ndaltawalta Pole” (a large flake of arkose on the northwest corner of the Rock) across the summit leaving the deep grooves that we now know are due to differential erosion. In the 1970s the traditional owners had no problem with tourists climbing the rock. Paddy Uluru who was recognise…
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Recent posts

Cultural Vandals rip out the Heart of OZ

The Hon. Melissa Price MP
Minister for the Environment and Energy
Parliament House
CANBERRA ACT 2600.

Dear Minister
Cultural Vandals rip out the Heart of OZ
I have been informed that the Board of the Uluru Kata-Tjuta National Park in collaboration with Parks Australia intend to effectively destroy four internationally significant cultural monuments at Ayers Rock once they ban visitors climbing it in October 2019. These include:
the summit monument, five metal plates placed in memory of people who have died climbing the rock, the chain, and of course banning The Climb itself.  It seems all trace of non-Anangu history and culture is to be wiped from the Rock, and the Federal Government are standing by and letting it happen. 
The bronze directional plaque and summit monument celebrate the work of the Division of National Mapping and the Reserves Board of the Northern Territory. The bronze plaque was cast in Melbourne and erected in December 1970 by Northern Territory parks staff including l…
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Anywhere Alright at Toby's Uluru

Cross posted from Quadrant Online: Ayers Rock: a monolithic con job

Toby Naninga: Anywhere else is alright!
The current Board of the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park claim that the climb is sacred and should not be accessed by visitors but in February 1975 a Traditional Anangu Elder and senior law man, Toby Naninga, provided a different view in an interview with ABC's current affairs show This Day Tonight. It seems aside from the Men's initiation cave, Warayuki, and the Ngaltawata pole, traditional owners at the time had no objection to tourists visiting any other area of ritual significance at Uluru. This includes the Climb!

ABC have not permitted me to show the full video in public as "the traditional custodians of Uluru have advised that this footage is not suitable for posting on social media". When asked why the reply from ABC was: "There are several reasons for this recommendation – such as aerial views of Uluru and the specific sites included in the footage.…
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A guide to climbing Ayers Rock

Climber's Handbook: a guide to climbing Ayers Rock

The book is coming together nicely, just a few more words to put down and first draft will go to the Publishers soon.

A mocked up cover below.

A guide to climbing Ayers Rock Available from Connor Court soon!
A Guide to Climbing Ayers Rock Since the handover of Uluru – Kata Tjuta National Park to its traditional Anangu owners in 1985 “the Climb”, that great Australian outback institution, undertaken by about 7 million Australian and international tourists has been neglected, disparaged, maligned and ignored by the Board and Managers of the National Park. In October 2019 baring a change of mind of the Board, or successful legal action, the Climb will be officially banned for cultural and safety reasons that do not hold up to close scrutiny. Sadly, since the early 2000s those who have undertaken the climb, have been made to feel guilty about simply enjoying the natural world. This should not be the case. Official documents, fact sheets …
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Climb for Science 2018

Climb for Science: in Gosse's footstepsBefore it's banned, your chance to walk on the side of logic and reason! 
Saturday July 14 to Friday 20 July 2018.

Simply climb the rock sometime between July 14 and 20 and post a photo of yourself on social media at the summit cairn in your Climb for Science gear. 
Hey, given the rarity of the climb actually being open these days if you get up anytime between now and "B-day" please also post a photo.


Celebrating the 145th anniversaries of the assent of Ayers Rock by William Gosse and cameleer Kamran.
Climb for Science will honour scientific exploration and research in central Australia with a celebratory climb up Ayers Rock/Uluru.
The climb will be banned due to ignorance and petty bureaucracy on October 26 2019.
Some of the expeditions...
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Climbing Legends #12 Traditional Owners

Climbing legends #12
Series of posts celebrating climbers of Ayers Rock.

#12 Traditional Owners
Since 1991 Parks Australia and the Park Board have pushed the message that the Traditional Owners don't climb Ayers Rock. As we have shown this message is demonstrably false. Below is a short list of Traditional Owners who have climbed the Rock. This is only a small fraction of what would include a cast of thousands stretching back into the Upper Pleistocene, when humans first arrived in the region. The list is derived from references by prospectors, anthropologists, rangers and tourists. Many non-Anangu Aboriginal people have also climbed as tourists over the years.
The current group of Traditional Owners (Pitjantjatjara, Yankunytjatjara and Ngaanyatjarra language speakers - collectively known as the Anangu) likely arrived at our arkosic inselberg some 4000 years ago. This is based on the inclusion of the Dingo in Anangu creation mythology. Dingoes arrived with seafarers to Australia aro…
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Fastest Times Up and Down

There are many ways to experience the climb from a slow stop start walk to soak in the views to a sprint. For those interested in speed here are the current top ten times UP and DOWN on Strava (11/7/2018).
UP
DOWN
Fastest women: UP: Pavlina 21:55 set 26/6/2018 DOWN: Susan Nixon 19:46 set 17/6/2018
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Right to Climb Top Ten

Right to Climb Top Ten
Since 1 November last year we have posted over 70 articles about the Climb.
These have demonstrated:

The "We never Climb"/"We don't Climb" message is fake news.Cultural concerns about climbing are only a recent invention and were not held by past Traditional Owners who knew more about Aboriginal Laws than the current Board. The Board has broken a promise made by past Traditional Owners.The ban on climbing is immoral and illegalVisitor statistics are unable to justify the ban.The climb is a low risk activity for fit and healthy people who stick to the marked trail.Parks Australia have failed in their duty to protect park heritageThe views are worth the effort.Stories about the climb are inspirationalOther natural places are under threat.
Thanks for reading and make sure you spread the message. The case for the proposed ban continues to unravel. Not sure what will be left of it in 473 days time, other than red faced bureaucrats laying barb w…
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17th death on the Rock

17th death on the Rock
ABC report that a 76 year old Japanese man collapsed on the steep part of the climb and despite first aid, was not able to be revived. The elderly Japanese man likely died as a result of heart complications, probably brought on by existing (perhaps unknown) medical conditions and over exerting himself. He appears to have died revelling in the opportunity life provides. RIP Brother of the Rock.  Our thoughts with his family and the first attenders who did their best to treat him. It's sad, but life goes on, and so should the climb.

His death marks the 17th death ON the Rock since 26 May 1962 when 16 year old school boy Brian Strieff, on a school excursion with Carey Grammar, wondered off the main path in heavy fog on the way down and fell to his death.

ABC's report indicate it is the 37th death, but these figures from Parks Australia have not been substantiated. It seems that many of the deaths Parks Australia claim to have occurred ON the Rock occurred in…
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Ayers Rock and Statistical Legerdemain

Ayers Rock and Statistical Legerdemain
Now on Quadrant Online!

Ayers Rock and Statistical Legerdemain
To justify its seizure of a marvel that belongs to all Australians, not just Aborigines, Parks Australia said that a mere 20% of visitors attempting the climb would indicate public support for closing it down. Obtained via an FOI request, those vaunted numbers have been twisted into sheer nonsense.

 How the 20% was arrived at!
Based on our earlier article the 20% myth.

legerdemain
ˌlɛdʒədɪˈmeɪn/
noun: skilful use of one's hands when performing conjuring tricks.




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