Just off South Australia’s south eastern shore, there’s a remote and windswept island that’s a haven for wildlife. Kangaroo Island (known by its initials, KI) has just a tiny fraction of the population and development of Tasmania, and attracts relatively few visitors each year, and yet it’s Australia’s third largest island. We’d been considering spending … Continue reading Wild Island
Travel
The Scorching Skies Above Us, Part 3
We were expecting to wake up to a deluge, but despite the previous evening’s intense cloud lightning and rainbows, I don’t think a single drop of rain fell in the Flinders region that night. We awoke to a typically dry and dusty day, and as soon as I opened my eyes I knew it was … Continue reading The Scorching Skies Above Us, Part 3
The Scorching Skies Above Us, Part 2
The odd scene I’d witnessed at Lake Bonney (see Scorching Skies, Part 1) was the only negative experience of an otherwise magical week in Lyrup, but as we lifted Bailey and Saffy into the car and set off deeper into the Australian Outback, I couldn’t stop thinking about the masses of dead fish washed up … Continue reading The Scorching Skies Above Us, Part 2
Fairy Tale of Wimmera
Just beyond the shadows of the Grampian mountains, among the dusty plains of the Wimmera, there’s a little wooden shack that has a heart and a soul. It was built by a local farmer, Graham, from timbers that he rescued from old tumbledown farm buildings, and furnished and decorated by his wife Buffy, and their … Continue reading Fairy Tale of Wimmera
Quirky, Funky, Arty Tassie
When it comes to finding places to stay on our travels, there’s only one thing that beats showing up to find the place we’ve booked is a beautifully feathered nest. It’s turning up to discover that our host is a famous artist. That’s what happened when we arrived in the village of Franklin in Southern … Continue reading Quirky, Funky, Arty Tassie
Tasmania’s Adorables
Newsflash: Tasmania has nearly all of Australia’s most adorable animals, concentrated in one small island state! What’s more, they’re cuddle-sized, non-poisonous, and they’re not out to kill you. That last bit might sound a bit extreme if you haven’t been travelling in the Aussie outback for the past six months. Believe me, a lot of Australian … Continue reading Tasmania’s Adorables
Third Corner
The Third Corner of our Australian adventure didn’t quite work out the way we planned. Our original idea was to take a Wilderness Tour involving a plane ride into the heart of Tasmania’s South West National Park, where very few people venture. It’s considered one of the best ways to see the true Tasmanian wilderness, well … Continue reading Third Corner
Australia Day
26th January is Australia Day. Marking the anniversary of the landing of the “first fleet” of convict ships from the UK in 1788[1] it is not without controversy, recording, as it does, the beginning of the immigration of non-indigenous people to this country, with all that later resulted for the Aboriginal people. It also … Continue reading Australia Day
Bay of Fires
"Bay of Fires" Once upon a pristine beach Of dolphin swell and pearly sand, We splashed, barefoot, through crystal pools Of fossil-peppered, surf-hewn rocks, A tidal gift of ancient land. Bright waters - sapphire, turquoise, jade, Fade to aqua-mirrored sheen, Recede in arcs of glistening foam, And spiral shells, and fizzing stones. A rhythmic, iridescent … Continue reading Bay of Fires
Racing to the Edge of the World
It's true, I've been worrying a lot lately about the catastrophe that is Donald Trump. But you might be relieved to learn that this isn't a 'Survivalist' Trumpocalypse rant or a rewrite of "On the Beach". This is a story about time and how travelling makes me more conscious of how little of it we … Continue reading Racing to the Edge of the World
Four Corners Australia 