Across the Sparkling Sea I See...Kangaroos?

Traveling over 9,500 miles from my last post's location, we arrive in the land of the Aussies.  Now, Aussies tend to live primarily on the Coasts of Australia - especially on the East Coast - in urbanized areas such as Queensland and the Gold Coast.  Unfortunately, many tourists flock to these destinations as well.  Venturing out to other regions, we can find many hidden treasures of the island.

Population map of Australia, 2014.  Courtesy of Reddit.com

For example, on one of Australia's smaller islands south of the mainland is populated by none other than the famous Australian marsupial, the kangaroo.  This island, actually named Kangaroo Island, is home to much more than the kangaroo, though.  According to Australia.com, Kangaroo Island is the home of animals such as sea lions, kangaroos, koalas, wallabies, penguins, echidnas, and a diversity of birds.

The island holds more than this wide array of Aussie wildlife, though.  Tourists can also experience original foods and wines, explore the history and mysteries, swim, surf and snorkel the sparkling waters, or they can simply take in the beauty of the natural land.  Though all of that sounds great, I would like to focus on the beauty and history of the island.  If you're interested in the anything else listed above, definitely visit Australia's official website as well as Kangaroo Island's official website.

Kagaroo Island's history begins with European settlers assuming that the land was uninhabited due to the lack of campfires as well as the wildlife still being, well, wild.  There is no documentation as to what happened to the natives already living on the island, however mainland Aussie natives call the island "Karta," which translates to "land of the dead."

Fastforward to the 19 century, history tells the tales of sailors, soldiers and lighthouse keepers.  While visiting the island, tourists can actually experience these parts of history by doing activities such as:

• Staying in a restored lighthouse and reading the lighthouse keeper's diaries about his day-to-day life,
• Diving the waters and personally seeing shipwrecks as old as the 1800's,
• Climbing over 500 steps to experience the same views as a European explorer did to survey the land in the 1900's, or even
• Visiting the first known mulberry tree.

If you're not into physically going places to experience the history, that's OK!  The island also has a museum full of the island's history.  

Let's get down to this 'roo business!  

While visiting the island, take advantage of the land.  Rent an ATV or a bicycle.  While out on the paths, you are guaranteed to spot several kangaroos - and other wild animals - going about their day.  Locals like to call the island "a zoo without fences," for whichever way you look you are bound to see something.  Feel free to take pictures of these island natives for they are very comfortable with the idea of humans being near.

Once you have gotten over the kangaroo hype and want to continue to see what the land has to offer, start by checking out some of the island's points of interest:

• Surf the sand dunes of Vivonne Bay,
• Go caving in the underground caves of Kelly Hill Conservation Park,
• Follow the Dudley Peninsula to Cape Willoughby,
• Swim and sail the bay, or even
• Water dive - South Australia has the best water temperatures for water diving.

If all of this doesn't have you looking up flights to South Australia, I don't know what will!  This island has it all: history, wildlife, tourism amenities, and of course the coast.  Catch you all next week when we travel back to America for another hidden cove of the heart.