82 Australian Geographic
T
HE DECISION TO END the climb has met with a
divided response. The views of the people I meet
out here are split 50:50.
Marc Hendrickx, a former NT surveyor, is the most
prominent voice opposing the ban. He says evidence
shows traditional owners in the past have climbed and
had no issues with others climbing and that is critical
information Parks Australia has misrepresented. Since
the creation of Ayers Rock-Mount Olga National Park
in 1958, more than 7 million visitors have “experienced
the joy, wonder and exhilaration of the climb, and the
remarkable views over the desert it provides”, Marc
wrote in a letter to the UNESCO World Heritage
Centre earlier this year.
He says the safety risks have been grossly exaggerated:
“Rather than inform people about risk, Parks Australia
and state authorities just shut things down to make it
easier for themselves.” An outdoor enthusiast, Marc fears
the closure of the climb represents a broader threat for
people wanting to “get out of our mundane cities to
seek awe, wonder and inspiration”.
The Uluru climbing ban is, however, in keeping with
a trend occurring across many of Australia’s Aboriginal
sites popular with tourists. For example, at St Mary Peak
in the Flinders Ranges, National Parks South Australia
suggests visitors do not climb the summit out of respectfor the Adnyamathanha people. Climbing the summit
at Mt Warning, in the Northern Rivers region of NSW,
is contentious too because it is a sacred men’s ground
for the Arakwal people. Some tourism operators there
are concerned about the impact an official ban might
have. And earlier this year, Parks Victoria banned climb-
ing in eight areas of the Grampians National Park to
protect ancient Aboriginal rock art.
Marc has lodged a complaint with the Australian
Human Rights Commission, claiming the Uluru climb-
ing ban breaches the Racial Discrimination Actbecause
only Anangu will be permitted to practise their culture.
He says it’s also in breach of the lease agreement with
Parks Australia that requires it to preserve, manage and
protect all cultural heritage: he has nominated the chain,
summit monument and five memorial plaques for place-
ment on the National Heritage List, to prevent removal.
“Nervous” is how Steve Baldwin says he feels when
he sees people climbing Uluru. At least 35 have died
while attempting the climb and many others have been
injured, according to government figures. “We have to
go up there and do the rescues,” Steve says. “Having
been the one who’s managed the last three major rescues,
one fatal, I can tell you it’s not fun. It puts our lives at
risk. There are cultural and environmental reasons for
the closure, but Anangu get incredibly sad when anyone
gets injured or dies on the climb. I saw their faces when
a man died last year.”
Steve and his rangers will be responsible for enforce-
ment of the ban. A breach could cost $630 for walking
in a restricted area. He cites a legal case from 2016 in
which Parks Australia prosecuted three men for taking
a short cut, ending in a rescue mission. They were con-
victed and made to pay costs of more than $20,000.A
N EARLY MORNING bacon-and-egg roll on a
remote desert dune marks the last sunrise of my
first visit to Uluru. But word has come of an
opportunity to meet with two traditional owners.
I’ve learnt there are nuances in Anangu culture that
are essential to grasp: consider things properly before
speaking; avoid too much eye contact because it can be
considered rude; look at things obliquely to properly
understand; share knowledge only when the time is
right; avoid direct questioning; live in the here and now.
Author Jen Cowley writes in her book I am Uluru,
that the word closest to “feeling” in Anangu language“Nervous” is how Steve Baldwin
says he feels when he sees people
climbing Uluru. At least 35 have
died while attempting the climb.
The waterfall at Kantju Gorge fills the waterhole below
as it rains at Uluru. Anangu would hunt emu here,
counting them in and out, only spearing the last to leave.PHOTO CREDITS, PREVIOUS PAGE: RUSSOTWINS/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO; THIS PAGE: MARK KOLBE/GETTY IMAGES