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Series Code: TIJ
Program Code: TIJ003116S
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00:33 On the 4th of August 1872 Earnest Giles and a small 00:38 company of explorers arrived at the Charlotte Waters Telegraph 00:42 Station which would be their last outpost of civilization for 00:46 some time to come. Here they rested and re-shoed their horses 00:51 and made sure they had all the gear they needed for the journey 00:54 ahead of them. They left the station on the 12th of August 00:59 and made their way to the Finke River about 100 kilometers down 01:04 the road. Giles and his expedition were part of a 01:08 growing group of scientists and explorers thronging to the heart 01:12 of Australia in search of new frontiers. Their great objective 01:17 was to cross the barren plains of the Great Red Center 01:20 and reach the shores of Western Australia. Australia's 01:25 Red Center is rugged and unforgiving, yet adorned with 01:30 beauty and brutality in equal parts. Yet in the face of clear 01:34 and present danger many of these early explorers pushed eagerly 01:40 westward. The triumph of discovery propelling them on 01:44 their way. During this expedition of 1872 Earnest Giles 01:49 would make some amazing discoveries one of which is the 01:54 famous rounded peaks of Mount Olga also known as Kata Tjuta to 01:58 its aboriginal custodians. In the vicinity of Mount Olga rises 02:04 the massive bulk of Australia's most recognizable natural 02:08 feature, the formidable Uluru. Today we explore the rugged 02:14 beauty of Australia's Red Center The towering rocks, unique 02:19 terrain and vivid color schemes of this vast expanse of largely 02:24 unspoiled land. It's full of surprises and lessons just 02:28 waiting to be discovered. Join us as we make this incredible 02:34 journey into Australia's heart land, the Great Red Center. 02:58 In October 1972 about two months after they departed the 03:02 Charlotte Springs Telegraph Station Giles and his company 03:06 were camped near King's Creek which winds its way along the 03:10 floor of King's Canyon. Taking his second in command 03:15 Carmichael with him Giles left camp and started in an easterly 03:19 direction on an exploratory mission of the area. They 03:24 struggled to find good watering holes for themselves and their 03:27 horses. This was an ongoing problem as water is scarce in 03:31 this area. At long last, they stumbled onto a large salt land 03:37 stretching out as far as their eyes could see and obscuring 03:41 their way forward. They found that the lake was boggy and the 03:45 water in it pure brine. The salt encrusted top layer of the lake 03:51 held their weight but crumbled under the weight of their horses 03:54 They tried in vain to cross but the horses kept breaking through 03:59 the top crust and falling into the hot blue mud underneath. 04:02 Just beyond the reach of this salty swamp a tall mountain was 04:07 silhouetted against the sky. Giles was fascinated by this 04:14 mountain range and was determined to get across the 04:17 salt lake to explore it. However try as they might, they just 04:21 couldn't get across and finally they headed home in search of 04:28 water. Giles named the prominent mountain he had seen Mount Olga 04:31 and the salty bog Lake Amadeus. A few months later another 04:38 ambitious expedition set off from Alice Springs Station in 04:43 April 1873. This group of explorers was led by William 04:48 Gosse, a surveyor. Gosse's party had horses, camels and enough 04:54 provisions for eight months. Around the four-month mark the 04:58 group set up camp near King's Canyon. Shortly after they 05:04 arrived at King's Canyon Gosse his Afghan cameleer Camron set 05:09 out on a recognizance mission. Along the way, they sighted an 05:13 an imposing monolith rising silently from the flat red 05:18 red-brown plains around it. Fascinated Gosse rode around the 05:23 base of the rock and then proceeded to climb it barefooted 05:27 From the summit he saw several other mountain ranges in the 05:32 distance. Gosse named the moonlight Ayers Rock in honor of 05:37 Sir Henry Ayers the chief secretary of South Australia. 05:41 He then named the mountain ranges to the southeast the 05:45 Musgrave Ranges. Gosse and Camron returned to camp 05:50 elated and Gosse made a record of his discovery in his journal. 05:55 Uluru is one of Australia's most recognizable landmarks and 06:02 perhaps its most famous icon. It's located right at the center 06:06 of Australia and serves almost literally as Australia's heart. 06:11 It towers 348 meters. This makes it taller than the Eiffel Tower, 06:19 Big Ben, the Statue of Liberty and the great pyramid of Giza. 06:24 The custodians of both Uluru and Kata Tjuta also known as the 06:27 Olgas are the Unungu people. And both sites have great 06:32 spiritual and cultural significance for them. 06:37 Uluru is actually an inselberg which means it's much like and 06:42 iceberg on land. It rises abruptly from a vast flat plain 06:46 and yet much of its bulk is actually underneath the surface 06:50 extending an amazing two and a half kilometers underground. 06:56 Interestingly both Uluru and the Olgas are part of the same 07:00 underground rock. By the 1920s Uluru and the Olgas were part of 07:12 southwestern aboriginal reserve. By the 1940s tourists began to 07:18 trickle into the area and were required to obtain permits from 07:22 the Northern Territory government. Many of these 07:26 tourists made the trip into the area from Alice Springs which 07:30 were the closest township and back then was a two day bus 07:34 ride away. Often buses would get bogged in the soft sand 07:38 and passengers would have to get out and push the bus to get the 07:43 vehicle moving again. In 1958 Uluru and the Olgas were severed 07:50 from the Southwestern Aboriginal Reserve and a dedicated National 07:54 Park spanning some 1300 square kilometers was created. The park 08:00 was named Ayers Rock-Mount Olga National Park and placed under 08:05 management of the Northern Territory Reserves Board. The 08:09 rough terrain and inhospitable conditions didn't deter the 08:14 flocks of tourists and numbers swelled in the 1970s. This 08:20 forced the government of the Northern Territory to plan the 08:22 development and construction of a dedicated tourist town that 08:27 would service the needs of visitors to the area. The town 08:31 was named Ulara and is located 11 kilometer north of Uluru. 08:37 Unesco also listed the Uluru/ Kata Tjuta National Park as a 08:45 biosphere reserve in 1977. Biosphere reserves are 08:50 ecosystems that enable scientists to explore 08:53 biodiversity, sustainable use of natural resources and 08:59 conservation. The traditional custodians of the land the 09:03 Anangu people were extremely adept at conservation and land 09:07 management. During the winter months of the year the Anangu 09:12 people conducted controlled burns in the area. Fire was used 09:16 as a tool to make the land productive as it made way for 09:20 new growth. The Anangu would only burn small patches of the 09:24 land at a time so that the fires would not flare out of control. 09:29 Through this practice the land would look like a patchwork 09:34 quilt of burnt and unburnt areas and within each of these patches 09:39 different animals and plants would thrive. This gave the 09:42 Anangu a much broader variety of food than if they had set the 09:47 entire plain on fire. Recently burnt areas would have plants 09:52 sending out tender young shoots of regrowth while areas that 09:57 had been burnt previously would have the same types of flowers 10:00 and plants flowering or bearing fruit. This provided for 10:05 biodiversity and gave the land a chance to rest which in turn 10:10 allowed for sustainable land management. When the Anangu 10:16 were driven from the area in the 1930s traditional 10:20 control burning of 10:21 the area ceased. Throughout the 1940s the land flourished in 10:26 the wake of good rainfall. Then in 1950 fire ravaged the land's 10:32 fueled by the vegetation that had been left to thrive over the 10:36 past 20 years. The fire decimated about one third of the 10:42 park's vegetation. This pattern continued to repeat itself over 10:46 the next few decades and in 1976 two major fires burned out 10:51 three quarters of the park. Several species of medium size 10:56 mammals became extinct emphasizing the need for sound 11:00 land management practices. Today controlled burns are carried out 11:06 in keeping with the traditional land management patterns 11:10 practiced by the Anangu people. This ensured the preservation of 11:14 the ecosystem within the park and contributes to a sustainable 11:21 future. The area is home to a wide variety of amazing and 11:28 unique wildlife. All five families of Australian lizards 11:31 are present here. One of them being the thorny devil. They're 11:36 active during the heat of the day and eat ants and other 11:40 insects. The world's deadliest snake the Fierce Snake or 11:45 or inland taipan hides in cracks of the dry land to avoid the 11:49 heat of the day. The venom from one bite is so toxic it's enough 11:57 to kill over 100 people. There's also a variety of mammals such 12:00 as red kangaroos, wallaroos and dingo's. The region is rich in 12:06 birdlife. There are 150 species of birds including ring-necked 12:13 parrots, mulga parrots, budgerigars and wedge-tailed 12:16 eagle. The wedge-tailed eagle has a wingspan of over two 12:20 meters and can travel over large areas of the outback searching 12:25 for anything that catches its eye. Even young tawny frogmouth 12:30 who are masters at camouflage can't always avoid detection. 12:34 And there are plenty of Imus. They are the largest bird in 12:39 Australia. These flightless birds are constantly searching 12:43 for food in the arid red sand. The area is also rich in plant 12:49 life and the Anangu people used 140 species of plants for food. 12:56 Many of these were harvested for their seeds or for other 13:00 practical benefits. For example resin was extracted from the 13:05 spiky spinifex bushes to make glue strong enough to attach 13:09 handles onto stone tools. About 40 kilometers west of Uluru the 13:17 towering dun peaks of the Olgas or Kata-Tjuta rise from the red 13:22 earth of the central Australian plain. Kata-Tjuta means many 13:27 heads and this reflects the 36 domes that make up the group of 13:33 rocks. Also in the vicinity of Uluru and the Olgas are King's 13:39 Canyon and Palm Valley. It was at King's Canyon on the banks 13:42 of King's Creek that the explorers Ernest Giles and 13:46 William Gosse camped when they first entered the area. It was 13:51 from their campsite here that they both ventured out on 13:55 scouting trips of the land and discovered Uluru and the Olgas. 13:59 The walls of King's Canyon rise over 270 meters. The King's 14:06 Canyon solar power station is Australia's largest flat plate 14:10 solar photovoltaic station. It began operation in December 2003 14:17 The solar power station reduces diesel consumption by 105,000 14:22 liters per year and saves more than 300 tons of greenhouse gas 14:28 emissions a year. Another important natural landmark is 14:35 the Palm Valley area located within the Finke Gorge National 14:39 Park. The area is an east-west 14:41 valley in the Prichauff? Ranges. It's usually quite dry but 14:49 hidden within it are small pockets of semi-permanent spring 14:53 fed pools that allow the unique flora to survive the otherwise 14:57 harsh conditions. During periods of heavy rainfall a large amount 15:02 of water flows through the valley gorge bringing the barren 15:06 desert area to life. When this happens a variety of aquatic 15:12 life takes up residence in the streams of water. Species like 15:16 desert fish, shield shrimps, tadpoles and frogs flourish. 15:23 Albert Namatjira the famous aboriginal artist learned the 15:27 techniques of watercolor painting from Rex Battarbee on 15:32 a two-month-long trip they made into the Palm Valley Area. 15:36 Battarbee wanted to paint the rugged central Australian 15:38 landscape and took Namatjira along as his cameleer and guide. 15:44 All of these amazing natural features are found within the 15:49 Northern Territory. The Northern Territory of Australia has five 15:54 major towns which act as supply centers servicing the large 15:59 swaths of land surrounding them. These five centers are Darwin, 16:04 Alice Springs, Katherine, Tennant Creek and Nhulunbuy. 16:08 The southern part of the territory is arid and 16:12 experiences very little rainfall Interestingly 18% of the 16:18 Australian mainland is considered desert area, but 35% 16:22 of the continent receives so little rainfall that the area is 16:27 effectively a desert which means that only 65% of the Australian 16:33 continent is habitable. The most significant exploratory 16:38 expeditions to reach the northern territory were John 16:41 McDouall Stuart's expeditions charting the Australian mainland 16:45 from south to north. His successful expeditions from 1861 16:51 to 1862 led to the discovery of land that was of agricultural 16:58 value. He also encouraged the colonial government to consider 17:01 establishing a permanent northern port. In 1869, the 17:07 South Australian government sent George Goyder to establish a 17:11 settlement in the northern territory. They proposed the 17:15 site of the current city of Darwin. The settlement was to 17:19 encourage settlers to move into the area and raise livestock. 17:23 Goyder successfully established the settlement and named it 17:28 Palmerston. Two years later the undersea telegraph cable link 17:33 between Australia and London came ashore at Palmerston making 17:38 it an important hub for international communication. 17:41 Palmerston was later renamed Darwin in 1911 after the 17:47 naturalist Charles Darwin. Alice Springs is the closest 17:54 township to many of the popular natural features in the northern 17:58 territory. It is situated roughly in the very center of 18:02 the Australian mainland and the surrounding region is known as 18:06 Central Australia or the Red Center. In 1871 the surveyor of 18:13 the new overland telegraph line discovered a water hole in the 18:17 area and named it in honor of Lady Alice Todd who was the wife 18:21 of the telegraph pioneer Sir Charles Todd. Todd accepted a 18:27 position as the head of the Electric Telegraph Department of 18:30 South Australia. He arrived in Adelaide with his 18-year-old 18:35 wife, Alice, and discovered that his department had no telegraph 18:38 lines. Todd began by setting up telegraph lines between Adelaide 18:43 and Port Adelaide and then Adelaide and Melbourne. In 1859 18:50 he came up with the idea of a transcontinental telegraph line 18:54 extending from Adelaide to Darwin. By 1870, plans were laid 19:00 to construct the Australian Overland Telegraph Line from 19:05 Port Augusta in the south to Port Darwin in the north. The 19:09 line was completed on the 22nd of August 1872. In 1929, a rail 19:17 line linking Adelaide to Alice Springs was constructed and in 19:21 the year 2003 the line was extended north to Darwin. The 19:27 passenger train linking Adelaide to Darwin is called the Ghan in 19:32 honor of the Afghan cameleers and workers who helped build the 19:36 railway line. A trip on the Ghan is listed as one of the world's 19:41 great train journeys. Afghan workers who were really workers 19:46 from various parts of the middle east came to Australia in the 19:50 19th century. They brought their camels with them and used the 19:54 animals to set up a transport and delivery operation 19:58 servicing remote settlements in the northern territory. The lack 20:02 of local shops led many of the settlers to depend on the Afghan 20:08 camel trains to supply their household needs. During the 20:12 construction of the railway line the camel trains carried 20:16 building materials for the line from Adelaide to Alice Springs. 20:20 They also carried materials for the construction of the 20:23 the telegraph line. Camels were better suited to the harsh 20:28 desert climate of the Australian center than horses or other pack 20:33 animals. After the construction of the railway line and with the 20:37 advent of motor vehicles Afghan camel trains became redundant. 20:41 Many of the camel drivers or cameleers returned to their 20:45 homelands while others remained and settled in Australia. Most 20:50 of the camels were released into the wild where they thrived and 20:55 multiplied. Today Australia has the largest camel herd in the 20:59 world. There are about one million camels running wild in 21:04 the Red Center. The heart of the Australian continent is a dry 21:12 and barren land punctuated by immense mountain ranges 21:15 scattered across its sandy face. Each of these mountains stand as 21:21 ancient witnesses to the ever changing face of the continent. 21:26 Through the highs and lows of plenty and scarcity these rocks 21:30 have remained unyielding and unchanging. The massive 21:35 sandstone faces of Uluru and Kata Tjuta are a testament to 21:40 the consistency and constancy of nature, it's power to withstand 21:45 the raging tempests of time and fortune, its resilience in the 21:50 face of drastic change. The Bible uses the symbol of a rock 21:56 in the desert to illustrate the great unchanging nature of God. 22:01 In particular, it illustrates three aspects of the character 22:05 of God. Firstly, the Bible refers to God as a rock of 22:10 refuge and shelter. Here's what the Bible says in 22:13 II Samuel chapter 22 and verse 3: 22:31 This concept is mentioned over and over again in the Bible like 22:37 in Psalm chapter 62 and verse 7: 22:49 God is able to offer us shelter and rest from the highs and lows 22:54 of the human experience. In the shade of his love and 22:58 faithfulness each weary traveler can find refuge and pause for a 23:03 moment of much needed peace. Secondly, the Bible refers to 23:09 God as our rock of strength. Notice how King David refers to 23:15 God in Psalm 18 and verse 2: 23:32 Rocks, especially ancient ones like Uluru and Kata Tjuta, have 23:38 weathered the worst assaults that nature has thrown at them 23:42 and have endured. As our rock of strength, God enables us to 23:47 endure the fierce tempests of life unbowed. God's strength is 23:51 able to give us the resilience we need to weather our personal 23:56 storms and to empower us to go the distance. Finally, the Bible 24:02 refers to God as the Rock of our Salvation. In II Samuel chapter 24:07 22 and verse 47 King David acknowledged God as the Rock of 24:12 of my salvation. Here it is: 24:24 The word salvation refers to deliverance or preservation from 24:30 harm, ruin or loss. And in many ways God's hand preserves and 24:35 delivers us. The first instance of his preserving power is seen 24:40 in his ability to deliver us from the harm, ruin and loss 24:44 that sin creates in our lives and in the lives of those around 24:49 us. The second instance is found in God's ability to deliver us 24:55 from the harm that our own unwise choices might create in 24:59 our lives. And thirdly, God is able to deliver us from the ruin 25:04 and loss that the unwise choices of others create in our lives. 25:09 Even in the scorching red plains of Australia's desert heartland 25:14 the hand of God has written a message of love for each of us. 25:18 To each of us he says, I am your rock, I am your refuge from the 25:25 uncertainties and perils of life I am your strength to endure 25:30 the trials and challenges of life and I am your salvation to 25:35 preserve you from the pain and loss that you face in life. 25:39 Jesus offers to be your rock and mine. If you would like to find 25:44 shelter in him as well as experience the true inner peace 25:48 and happiness that he offers then I'd like to recommend a 25:52 free give we have for all our Incredible Journey viewers today 25:56 It's a small but powerful Bible study guide Bridge to a 26:01 Satisfying Life. This easy to read Bible guide is our gift to 26:06 you and is absolutely free. I guarantee that there are no 26:10 hidden costs or obligations whatsoever. This Bible study 26:15 guide, Bridge to a Satisfying Life, has enriched the lives of 26:20 many people and it's sure been a blessing to me. I know it'll 26:24 be a blessing to you too and I want to make certain you get a 26:29 copy. So make sure you take this opportunity to receive the gift 26:33 we have for you today. Phone or text us at: 26:39 0436333555 in Australia or 0204222042 in New Zealand or 26:47 visit our website TiJ.tv to request today's free offer and 26:54 we'll send it to you totally free of charge and with no 26:56 obligation. Write to us at: 27:12 Don't delay. Call or text us now 27:16 If you've enjoyed today's journey to the Red Center of 27:22 Australia to visit Uluru and the Olgas and our reflections on the 27:25 refuge, peace and happiness that God provides then be sure 27:30 to join us again next week when we will share another of life's 27:34 journeys together. Until then let's ask God to be our rock, 27:39 our shelter and our salvation. Let's pray. 27:44 Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the beauty and majesty of 27:49 Uluru and the Olgas, Kata Tjuta. Today we are being reminded that 27:55 we all need a place of refuge when we are facing the storms 28:00 and challenges of life. We need a place of safety. There is 28:04 nothing stronger or more secure than your love. Thank you for 28:09 being our Rock, our shelter and our salvation. In Jesus' name 28:14 we pray. Amen. 28:17 ♪ ♪ |
Revised 2020-08-03