Frommer's Australia from $50 a Day 13th Edition - To Parent Directory

KANGAROO ISLAND 511
3 Kangaroo Island £
110km (68 miles) South of Adelaide
There is nowhere better than Kangaroo Island to see Australian marsupials in the
wild. Spend a few days here with the right guide and you can walk along a beach
past a colony of sea lions; spot hundreds of New Zealand fur seals playing; creep
through the bush on the trail of wallabies or kangaroos; spot sea eagles, black
swans, sacred ibis, pelicans, little penguins, the rare glossy black cockatoo and
other birds; come across goannas; pick out bunches of koalas hanging sleepily in
the trees above your head; and, if you’re lucky, see platypus, echidna, bandicoots,
reclusive pygmy possums—the list goes on.
The secrets to Kangaroo Island’s success are its perfect conditions; the most
important of which is the fact that there are no introduced foxes or rabbits to take
their toll on the native inhabitants or their environment. The island was also never
colonized by the dingo—Australia’s “native” dog—which was believed to have
been introduced from Asia some 4,000 years ago. About one-third of the island is
unspoiled national park, and there are plenty of wildlife corridors to give the animals
a chance to move about the island, lessening the problems of inbreeding.
While the animals are what most people come to see, no one goes away without
also being impressed by the scenery. Kangaroo Island has low mallee scrubland,
dense eucalyptus forests, rugged coastal scenery, gorgeous beaches, caves,
lagoons, and blackwater swamps. The effect of 150 years of European colonization
has taken its toll, though. In South Australia as a whole some 27 mammal,
five bird, one reptile, and 30 plant species have become extinct since the state
was discovered by the English seafarer Matthew Flinders in 1802.
The island’s history is a harsh one. Aborigines inhabited the island as early as
10,000 years ago but abandoned it for unexplained reasons. In the 19th century
it was settled by pirates, mutineers, deserters from English, French, and American
ships, and escaped convicts from the eastern colonies. Sealers also arrived
and took a heavy toll on the seal and sea lion population—in just 1 year, 1803
to 1804, they managed to kill more than 20,000 of these animals. Between 1802
and 1836, Aboriginal women from both the mainland and Tasmania were kidnapped,
brought to Kangaroo Island, and forced to work catching and skinning
seals, kangaroos, and wallabies, and lugging salt from the salt mines.
In 1836, Kangaroo Island became the first place in South Australia to be officially
settled. The state’s capital was Kingscote, until it was abandoned a couple
of years later in favor of Adelaide. In spite of its early settlement, Kangaroo
Island had very few residents until after World War II, when returned soldiers
set up farms here. Today, more than a million sheep are raised on the island. The
island also acts as an official bee sanctuary to protect the genetic purity of the
Ligurian bee, introduced in 1881, and it is believed to be the only place in the
world where this strain of bee survives.
ISLAND ESSENTIALS
WHEN TO GO The best time to visit Kangaroo Island is between November
and March (though you’ll have difficulty finding accommodations over the
Christmas school holiday period). July and August tend to be rainy, and winter
can be cold (though often milder than on the mainland around Adelaide). Many
companies offer 1-day trips to Kangaroo Island from Adelaide, but I would advise
you to tailor your holiday to spend at least 2 days here, though 3 or even 5 would
be better. There really is a lot to see, and you won’t regret spending the extra time.