Australian Vacation - Day 3
Kangaroo Island
What a feature packed day of touring Kangaroo Island! Undoubtedly our best day in Australia yet.
Got picked up just after 9:30 in a full sized bus by an Aussie with a good sense of humour. Everyone else except us was coming from the mainland this morning to start the tour, so right after picking us up, we went to the ferry dock and waited for the rest of the passengers. Some Canadians, some Americans, but mostly random Europeans. Took off down the main highway towards our first destination: the last eucalyptus plant on Kangaroo Island. Got the five cent tour of the place, which was somewhat interesting if only for realizing just how low tech processing eucalyptus is. Their shop had all sorts of interesting products and a baby orphaned kangaroo hiding in a pouch (not for sale unfortunately).
Our 2nd stop was a well organized lunch, followed by a birds of prey exhibition. A guy who obviously loved what he did did the presentation, which involved him bringing out bird after bird that, for one reason or another, weren’t able to be let loose in the wild. Got to see raptors, owls and a giant wedge tailed eagle which at 2.5m, has the largest wingspan of any eagle in the world. The birds would come out on his arm, and proceed to ignore all of his commands unless he bribed them with food, I guess par for the course for most pets.
The next two stops were definitely the best, as we got to see some awe inspiring coastline that just happened to have several dozen sea lions lying about on the beach. They’d mostly just lie in the sand, occasionally getting up to start some territorial dispute or just to socialize. This all held on the backdrop of a turquoise sea crashing down with huge waves just off shore. Right after that, we went to a wildlife sanctuary and got to hand feed kangaroos, pet koalas and see a bunch of other birds and animals. It was amazing!!! The kangaroos weren’t shy at all and would put their hand on yours to make sure you didn’t leave while feeding them.
The last stop was a forgettable trip to a sheep dairy farm followed by a long ride back to the hostel. Capped it off with some nice sunset views and my first kangaroo steak meal. I realize that eating kangaroo a few hours after petting/feeding them is a bit ridiculous but I had to try it. It was good and was almost exactly like steak but a bit tougher. Ironically, a kangaroo hopped by the window as I was waiting for the meal. I was waiting for the chef to come by with a dejected look telling me about the one that got away.
