Do the flies inhabit Uluru during all seasons? We are going mid-May and wonder whether we need to take the netting sold by REI. Any answers would be appreciated.

mirsy, we were there in March and the flies were horrendous but did not stop us from loving the experience. However we were told at that time that the flies would be gone by May. Good luck!

If you have any netting then take it with you !!!

I was there last month and HAD to buy a head net.

Percy

We were in Uluru one June and there were flies but not bad enough to require netting.

The weather starts to cool off by May and so do the flies.

As a local, I always wear black. It doesn't show the flies on my back.

Cheers

I did the walk around Uluru a few years ago when I went and there were certainly flies, but bizarrely when I got close to the rockface (eg. to look at painting/carvings) the flies miraculously disappeared.

Geological anomoly or some mysterious force emanating from the rock? You decide...

Look on the bright side, you know how many calories you can loose waving your hands in the air 24 hours a day!?

We went in mid-to-late May of last year, and the flies were plentiful, but they weren't awful. We had bought nets, but we never had to use them.

our fly nets were the envy of netless hikers. I'm sure it will make an intersting fashion accessory someday

AndrewDavid

Not much use for them in Canada I guess Andrew?

PeterAlan, I hear there's a fly season coming, but I'm hoping if I don't think about it won't come this way. We do have the threatened invasion of that infamous Australian predator Neilus Cammackus threatened for mid September

cheers
AndrewDavid

Sorry Andrew but I'm not sure how much protection the veil will afford you in that regard!

PA we've alerted the border to check his rabies certificate so we should be OK

AD

Oh, for heaven's sake, flies are tiny creatures which cause some annoyance. They don't do anything much to upset humanity - around Ulura where its generally very dry they will flock to sweat producing humans in search of some moisture.

A/D, rest assured that the Cammacks will be a low-impact and low-profile presence, in fact hardly noticeable. On another forum I promised an excitable evangelical lady that I'd refrain from persecuting Christians during my visit (she seemed to think that they're something of an endangered species in the US, which did surprise me a little), so I'll take it easy on everybody else too. Yes, I've had my shots, so I won't be running around biting the caribous and beavers either. Not unless they're served up on the dinner table washed down with a half-decent red.

re the flies:
just keep your mouth closed!

Hey, that's fat-free protein you're passing up!

Go out early in the morning to avoid the flies. They don't come out until at least an hour after sunrise.
Bon Voyage.

Neilus Cammackus,
You may want to do your decent red wine drinking south of the border. You'll be in shock (and without the benefit of cheap alcohol to assuage it) when you check out the wine, beer and liquor prices after you cross the border. Anyone heading north is always advised to stop at the duty free.

AndrewDavid

Andrew, thank you for that sound advice! I must check the Canadian duty free allowance. Cheap booze is one of the many attractions of the United States. Should I smuggle you one of those super-cheap flagons of Canadian whiskey I saw in US supermarkets?