Kangaroo Island Part 1 - including Seal Bay

After my arrival in Adelaide on the Ghan, I was very excited to travel the next day to Kangaroo Island, which I had heard so much about. I was to discover that Kangaroo Island is seven times larger than Singapore, and yet is only the third largest island off the Australian mainland - Tasmania being the largest of course. 

As I cannot fly, first I went on a coach from Adelaide to Cape Jervis through some very picturesque countryside. After the remote desert landscapes I had just travelled through, which I loved by the way, here were rolling hills covered with lush green grass. From golds and reds and purples and browns dotted with spinifex, termite mounds, boab trees and so forth, and rugged terrain to smooth fields of green. What a contrast! 

From Cape Jervis I caught a large, modern ferry over to the island. I was just so lucky, though. This was August, and there had just been bad weather and rough seas, so ours was the first ferry able to cross over there for a day or so. The ride was perfectly smooth and it was just great to see the island come into view. 

The ferry docked in a charming, small seaside village called Penneshaw, where I was to stay for two nights. After checking in, I explored the village, and was intrigued by a small group of birds busily flying in and out of some bushes on the beachfront over the road from the hotel.  That evening I walked to a place from where you could take a guided tour to see some penguins. There were only a few of us, which meant we could walk close to the guide, who had a torch. That was very fortuitous, as the dirt track was not lit up, of course, or the penguins would not come out of their burrows. As it was, we only saw a couple of brown penguins quite a distance from us. Unfortunately I could not photograph them though. But I was still glad I saw them and had a pleasant walk over hills overlooking the sea on what was a balmy evening. 

The next day I went on an all-day tour of the main attractions on the island. We were on just a very small coach. There were maybe only about twelve of us, all from different parts of the world. We soon bonded and had a great time on this shared experience. Driving through the island showed us some of the different landscapes on the island, from bushland to farmland to rocky shores, and different plant species. 

Our first stop was at Seal Bay, where we were taken by a special guide to see the many Australian sea-lions, including young ones, lazing on the beach as well as on the pathway down to it. It was a fabulous experience walking amongst them, though of course we had to maintain a respectful distance to avoid them becoming aggressive. I still remember our guide telling us this was the best time of the year to see them. Apparently the weather here is far too hot in summer - the temperatures on the beach can be in the high 40s (Celsius) and there is a huge risk of bushfires. 

Next we went to a bistro and museum, where we had a great lunch. We then visited a park at Hanson Bay where we saw some koalas nestled in trees.

I will continue this in my next post, as already I have enough photos to show you . . . which I hope you enjoy. 

Coming into Penneshaw on the ferry

One of the intriguing little birds and unusual plants on the foreshore opposite my hotel. I am told the birds are commonly known as 'silver eyes'. 

Off to join a tour to see the penguins.

Some more of Penneshaw.

The hike from the car park down to Seal Bay. This is a conservation park.

Looking in another direction along the bay as we walked down to the shore. 

This seal was snoozing by the path. 

View closer to the shore. 

A family group enjoying the beach.

A large male watching us. 

A gorgeous young seal.

The only view I could get of one of the koalas. 

Interesting vegetation in the park. 

  

A desert wildlife park near Alice Springs

Unfortunately I have been caught up with many commitments, so although it is almost a month later, this evening is the first time I have been able to resume my story.

I left Darwin on the Ghan, and again we had two ‘whistle stops', first at Katherine Gorge and then in AlIce Springs, on the way down to Adelaide in the south. I did not take any photos of Katherine Gorge this time, having taken them on the way up to Darwin as well as on our Kimberley tour when we went on a sunset cruise through the gorge.

But I did have some wonderful conversations with the ladies sitting next to me on the coach that took us back and forth to the gorge, which is quite a distance away from the railway. One was a Swiss lady who was very concerned about the extent of migration to her country and its impact on their society. And coincidentally, the other had recently moved from her role as an officer for our federal government department that is responsible for migration to  an advisory and managerial job.  She told me she had spent quite some time in overseas posts, and had found it extraordinarily gut-wrenching having to interview people in refugee camps and decide who Australia would accept and who would not be allowed to move here. She had to consider things like how she believed these often very traumatised people would cope in our very different society.  And she was very concerned about those of her male colleagues who were far too perfunctory and detached and had little empathy for these people. It was sobering to think how hard it must have been for her, when she had such a kind heart and so much compassion for the refugees. 

I chose a different experience in Alice Spring this time and went to a desert wildlife park. I was so glad I did, as the park showcased different environments and some of the plant and animal species found in them. The main fauna that were featured were birds and reptiles, some of which I had not seen before, including the ‘thorny devil’. When you see its photo below, you will well appreciate it how it came to be called that.

But that was not all we enjoyed at the park.  We were very privileged to have a delightful Aboriginal guide and to be able to visit an art studio on the site and meet a relative of our most famous Aboriginal painter -  Albert Namatjira.  Most of his paintings were of the stunning MacDonnell Ranges near Alice Springs. In fact, on my next big trip in this region, I stayed in Alice Springs and went on some wonderful journeys around that region. I will talk about that later. As well, we were treated to the most marvellous gourmet lunch. Who would have expected that? It was simply delicious and included a specialty dish using crocodile meat. 

It was with great reluctance I left the park and got back onto our coach to go back to the train. But I was looking forward to the trip I was doing after arriving in Adelaide - to Kangaroo Island! That will be my next story.

I hope you enjoy the photos. You will very quickly work out which one is the ‘thorny devil’. I am afraid I do not know the names of the other species, except for the red-tailed black cockatoo.  

  

Some very talented Aboriginal artists, and some unusual tropical plants

Two weeks have flown by, but at last I can resume the story of this incredible journey. 

My last day in Darwin was spent visiting some amazing gardens and a spectacular art gallery. The art gallery featured winning works of art by indigenous people from across Australia. They included works in many different media, including glass, and were simply stunning. So powerful, so unique and so beautiful! Unfortunately, however,  I could not take photographs. 

I was reminded of this when a week ago I attended ‘Dark Emu’, which was yet another spectacular performance by our internationally acclaimed Bangarra Dance Theatre. The dancers in this company are all of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent, and are superb dancers. Everything they do is very symbolic, telling stories of their past and present. In this performance they were capturing the essence of the very well-researched book ‘Dark Emu, Black Seeds: agriculture or accident?’ by Bruce Pascoe, which dispels the myth that our indigenous people were simply hunter-gatherers, and shows they were far more sophisticated. The dancers also showed the impact of the white settlers who invaded their land and massacred so many of them - the pain, the grieving . . . 

When you see the works of art such as I saw at the art gallery, the artistic sets used in ‘Dark Emu’ and the highly athletic, beautifully choreographed dancing, not to mention hearing the music, you really appreciate the rich and unique culture of our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.  

As we travelled around some coastal spots, we saw some most unusual and yet gorgeous plants in the gardens. The photos below show just some of them. I am sorry that I cannot identify them. It was a great way to spend my last day in Darwin before catching the Ghan. I am delighted to say that I was able to visit Darwin again two years later, when I trekked there after exploring the coast of Western Australia and the Pilbara region, which is famous for its iron ore. That will be another story. 

A zoo just out of Darwin and a famous beach market

Today (31 August 2018 here in Australia) is a special day for me. Exactly 180 years ago today, the ship bearing a brave young farming couple from Sussex, England, sailed into Sydney Harbour. There they were interviewed by landowner from Melbourne, then known as Port Philip,  and appointed to manage his large estate in what is now known as Hawthorn, along the Yarra River.  They arrived there by ship on 3 January, 1839. Eventually they had their own farm. 

They were two of my forebears. Now there are thousands  of their descendants living in Australia. I belong to our family history committee and we have held some major family reunions, which have been simply wonderful. My readers may remember I visited the little village of Etchingham in Sussex on my last day in England last year. 

My other forbears also arrived in Australia in that era from England and Scotland, and also were free settlers. In its early days, Australia was a penal colony. However, many of the convicts sent to Australia by the British government, under the most appalling conditions I might add, were only guilty of things like stealing a loaf of bread to feed their starving children. I would not mind in the least having desperate people like that, who did their utmost to save their family, as my forebears. 

But I digress. Back to my travels . . . 

Before I left Darwin, I did a little more touring around, travelled to a zoo  and also had a great time with friends at one of Darwin’s famous beach markets. 

The tour to the zoo was a fascinating experience. We travelled a couple of hours by coach to the zoo, then were free to wander around. It was, as is usual for Darwin and its surrounds, very hot and humid, so it was quite exhausting walking around to see the many exhibits. Unfortunately, most of my photos did not work, but I did at least manage to capture photos of a small number of the birds and snakes.

To return to Darwin we had to catch a boat along a major river that flowed near the zoo. Boarding this proved to be quite a challenge - all the waterways around here are full of crocodiles. Even Darwin Harbour has hundreds of them. Protecting ourselves from vicious little insects was equally challenging, as it turned out. It took days for all the blisters that suddenly appeared all over my skin to disappear! Nevertheless, I was glad I had this experience, as we saw the incredible importance of mangroves in this ecosystem, just as we had seen in some of the waterways along the Kimberley Coast.  

The beach market, which gets going just before sunset, was tremendous fun, with many stalls. I was delighted to be able to buy some unique gifts to take home, as well as a CD from a group of South American musicians, whose vibrant music added great joy and excitement to the atmosphere of the market. This was a very multicultural market, as is Darwin itself, with Aboriginal people mingling with people from all over the world. And before we left we joined many others on the beach to enjoy a brilliant sunset.  

I loved this sculpture inside the Aquarium. Unfortunately my photos of the fish and turtles on display were all out of focus for some reason.  

A very timely warning to any visitors to these parts. 

I am not sure what species all the birds were, but I think this is an ibis.

I assume this is a wild duck. 

I only know I was glad this snake was behind glass. 

Ditto!

A gorgeous very tiny bird.

A kookaburra, known for its hearty laughter.

How well camouflaged! 

Some of the zoo setting. We were only given a couple of hours to race around before catching the boat. 

I saw this along the river bank on the trip back to Darwin. See the roots of the mangroves. 

Making music at the beach market.