Mutitjulu
Northern Territory Town Profiles Our thanks to Paul Kelly, Gangajang, The Hoodoo Gurus, The Warumpi Band and The Castle for the inspiration for Alongside s chapter headings. Thank you to the rangers, community members, shires, NTPFES employees and their families who shared their experiences and expertise with Alongside in the creation of these profiles. Copyright 2017 Alongside All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of authors. To obtain permission contact: Paige Hobbs Email: paige@alongside.org.au Phone: 0439 470 701 Level 16 The Charles Darwin Centre, 19 Smith St, Darwin Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are warned that the following book may contain images of deceased persons. hello@alongside.org.au www.alongside.org.au Design by One Idea
Mutitjulu Mutitjulu
Moving to a new location can be stressful and overwhelming for several reasons, not least because you may be moving to a remote community, or a town you have never been to before. Partners and families of Northern Territory Police are often required to move around the Territory to support a loved one in the job and while Alongside cannot make some of those changes go away, we can help reduce some of the unknowns for you. We understand that moving somewhere new can be daunting. It is our job to offset those feelings the best we can by providing you with as much information possible on the community you are about to call home. The Alongside town profiles are here to help. Designed to provide Northern Territory Police, their partners and families an overview of each location in the Northern Territory, the Alongside town profiles detail everything from the nuts-and-bolts essentials to suggestions of great things to do on the weekend, how to assimilate into local cultures and the general vibe of a place. From all of us at Alongside, welcome to Mutitjulu! Mutitjulu
FROM LITTLE THINGS, BIG THINGS GROW Town Overview Mutitjulu in Australia's Northern Territory is an Indigenous Australian community at the eastern end of Uluru, in the south-west of the Northern Territory. It is 467 kilometres by road from Alice Springs and 24 kilometres from Yulara. It is named after a knee-shaped water-filled rock hole at the base of Uluru and is in the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. The population fluctuates but is estimated at about 350 of which just over 70 percent are thought to be Aboriginal. Mutitjulu sits within the Iyarrka Ward of the Macdonnell Council. Northern Territory Town Profiles
Heritage The Muitijulu community have a strong relationship to, and history with, Uluru, one best described as one of caretaker rather than ownership. For many years, Uluru was owned by Anglo-European-Australians, with hotels placed right beside it. Traditional Custodians of the land eventually sought to gain land rights, moving hotels to the nearby Yulara and creating the community of Mutitjulu, sealing off many areas of Uluru to the public. Indigenous communities The community is located approximately one kilometre from Uluru, within the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, with land leased from the Director of Parks for 99 years commencing in 1985. The main language is Pitjantjatjara, however Luritja and Yankunytjatjara are also spoken. The Traditional Custodians are Yankunytjatjara people. Mutitjulu
WITH DIFFERENT LIVES, IN DIFFERENT PLACES Climate Mutijulu has a semi-arid climate and experiences four seasons. In summer from December to February, the average temperature range is 20 C to 37 C. In winter from June to August, the average temperature range is 0 C to 20 C. Spring and autumn experience warm days and cool evenings. All The Essentials Alcohol restrictions apply and alcohol must not be brought into, possessed or consumed within the community boundaries of Mutitjulu. Mutitjulu is on Aboriginal land and under Northern Territory law, a written permit is required to visit. Permit Applications may be lodged with the Central Land Council. The community reserves the right to forbid visitors from entering their land. Visit: www.clc.org.au. Northern Territory Town Profiles
The community of Mutitjulu has a general store, known as the Ininti Store. The store is operated by Mai Wiru, which means good food in Pitantjatjara. Fresh fruit, vegetables and meat are delivered weekly from Adelaide Markets and suppliers. Mai Wiru stores are operated by Regional Stores Council, Aboriginal Corporation. Ininti Store has a café which sells food and refreshments. For more dining options, you will have to travel to Yulara, which hasa variety of restaurants and cafés. Yulara is the next closest shopping hub to Mutitjulu. There is a shopping centre which has a well-stocked supermarket, take-away restaurants, gift shops, newsagents, a bank and ATM, and a post office. It is also the closest place to refuel. Mutitjulu
Northern Territory Town Profiles
Mutitjulu Health Service provides primary health care services to the residents in and around the community of Mutitjulu. It is an Aboriginal controlled health service. The clinic is open Monday to Friday with permanent staff on duty. Specialists visit the centre periodically. Emergency response services are provided around the clock. People suffering medical emergencies are evacuated to Alice Springs by the Royal Flying Doctor Service air ambulance, which operates from Yulara. The Yulara medical Centre is located next to the Yulara Police Station and is staffed by nurses and a visiting doctor. Yulara has an ambulance which would typically respond to emergency calls at Mutitjulu. Plugging into the outside world can be done via full telephone and internet services, broadband satellite services, Telstra3G mobile coverage and digital television. There is no local newspaper and available radio stations include RIBS 101.3, ABC 106.1 and 90.9. Mutitjulu
Northern Territory Town Profiles
Mutitjulu School caters for primary school students only. Lunch is provided daily for students. Reward schemes such as no school, no swim, are in place to help drive attendance. Nyangatjatjara Secondary College in the Yulara Industrial area caters for secondary students. It is a boarding school with separate blocks for female and male students. For the second half of the year, while not boarding at the local Mutitjulu school. There is a child care centre next to the Council Building. There is no commercial accommodation available in the community, however Yulara, which is only 20 minutes away has a variety of accommodation options. Whilst there are no major events in Mutitjulu, there are a host of events held throughout the year in the Yulara area, such as wellness retreats, Uluru Festival, Astronomer in Residence, Tjung Festival held in April, Uluru Camel Cup held in May and the Australian Outback Marathon held in July. Mutitjulu
IN CONVOYS OF SILENCE THE CATTLE GRAZE Sport The community has a swimming pool, football oval and a basketball court. The basketball court was opened in 2016, by NBA champion Patty Mills. The community has a local AFL team, known as the Mutitjulu Cats. Recreation Mutitjulu is located at the foot of the magnificent sandstone monolith that is Uluru. There are two main walks that can be done. The Base Walk (approximately nine kilometres) and the climb (is a very steep vertical rise of 350 metres). The Climb will be closed during wet weather, storms, high wind and temperatures of 36 C or more. The Mutitjulu community run several guided tours for tourists visiting Uluru, showing tourists certain sites and sharing Tjukurpa the story of Uluru, as well as of its inhabitants. These tours are called Anangu Tours, from the Pitjantjatjara word Anangu which means "people". Northern Territory Town Profiles
Other places to explore include; Kata Tjuta. Kata Tjuta are also known as the Olgas. They are a group of large domed rock formations. Hike around the soaring rock domes at sunset and watch them glow and change colour with the surrounding desert landscape. Valley of the Winds and Warlpa Gorge Walk. You will need to be reasonably fit for these two walks. The views, however, are breathtaking making it well worth the effort. Kings Canyon. Kings Canyon is part of the Watarrka National Park. Walk along the red rock cliffs and take in views of the forest of palms below. Art There is no art centre in Mutitjulu, however there is in Yulara. Maruku Art Centre has for over 30 years shared stories of culture and country of the local people. The name Maruku, literally means belonging to black. Approximately 900 artists make up the collective that is Maruku. Commonly the centre stocks paintings and wood carvings. Additional to the retail arm, Maruku offers tours, workshops, demonstrations, traditional ceremonies and exhibitions. Mutitjulu
I M TOLD I M GOING PLACES Mutitjulu is located 24 kilometres from the town of Yulara and 470 kilometres south-west of Alice Springs. The drive to Alice Springs takes about five hours. A two-wheel drive vehicle is suitable unless you wish to venture off road. The Ayers Rock Airport is also known as Connellan Airport. It is situated near Yulara, around 30 kilometres away from Mutitjulu. The airstrip is an all-weather international sealed strip with night facilities. Domestic flights are available daily from Yulara to Alice Springs and other capital cities as per schedule. There are several scenic flights offered by private charters. Distances out of Mutitjulu; Uluru...9km Yulara...26km Alice Springs...470km Darwin...1968km Northern Territory Town Profiles
PLACES TO START Tourism NT tourist site has fantastic information of all parts of the Northern Territory, and everything you could ever need to plan for your trip or relocation to the Northern Territory, city, rural and remote included. www.northernterritory.com/plan The Ayers Rock Resort website is an excellent resource for information on accommodation, resturants and tours. www.ayersrockresort.com.au The Maruku Art Centre website has information on tours and workshops that they run. www.maruku.com.au/about/ If four-wheel driving is your thing, the team at 4WD Australia has a brilliant section on tracks in the Northern Territory and is a solid place to research your adventures whilst at Mutitjulu. www.4x4australia.com.au The Northern Territory s Bushtel website has profiles on all communities in the Northern Territory. The profiles provide a quick snap-shot of information on each community. www.bushtel.nt.gov.au Mutitjulu
Northern Territory Town Profiles
Mutitjulu
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