Phillip Island (& koalas!)

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Before heading into Melbourne, we stopped by Phillip Island, which is just full of nature parks and things to see and do outdoors. 

First things first-- we needed to see some koalas before leaving Australia. So we went to the Koala Conservation Centre, where we saw plenty of koalas (and other animals) in their natural habitat. 

Koalas were really hard to find because they curl up into a ball high up in a tree and don't move for hours. It was a fun game seeing who could spot the koala first. We learned that koalas eat up to 1 kilogram of leaves per day, which doesn't provide much energy, so they spend 20 hours a day sleeping and resting! 



Someone looks sad, but he's just sleeping.

The staff in the park place signs near each koala because they are so hard to see in the trees!





Australia has some crazy looking birds! Our birds back home are so ordinary in comparison.



When seen close up, koalas are much bigger than I expected!


Can you spot the koala in this photo?

Strangely enough, the wallabies provided more action than the koalas at the Koala Centre. 


Koalas climbing... a rare sight.

Echidnas move through the undergrowth looking for ants.










Next, we went to the Nobbies Centre, which sits on a cliff overlooking the waters of Bass Straight. Here we saw Australian Fur Seals (from a distance) and a baby penguin hiding under one of the bridges. There is a boardwalk that winds through the lush green cliff, and offers views of the famous blow hole. Bass Straight is the site of many shipwrecks, due to "the rip" (a stretch of turbulent waters) and heavy fog caused by the mixture of warm and cool water. 

















The "blow hole" is a sea cave that explodes with water when the turbulent water rushes in and sprays out. 

Dinner in an empty parking sitting on a cliff above the water. This is it... last meal cooked on our little stove.





There's a "Penguin Parade" that I would have loved to see on Phillip Island, but it wasn't cheap (and we are), so we skipped it. 

There was so much nature and wildlife to experience in Australia. Those Aussies are big on wildlife  conservation and environmental love. We loved them for it. 

- Julia

24 comments :

  1. I think your Aussie road trip has been my favorite series of posts--I have absolutely loved all of them!

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    1. Malinda - Really?! That's encouraging to hear. I felt like you guys would get bored of all the scenic nature photos from our Aussie road trip. Glad we stuck with it and posted them. :)

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  2. Such beautiful pictures! I lived right by Phillip Island before I moved to Seattle and used to spend my school vacation there :) Though the Penguin Parade used to be free? Sorry you missed that :/

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    1. Tea - Wow, small world! Phillip Island to Seattle.

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  3. the koalas are so cute... and once again more beautiful beaches and nature

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  4. I've loved following your trip in Australia, because I was there about 4 years ago. It's a shame you couldn't see the penguin parade (we did when I was there) because they are absolutely adorable and a hoot to watch waddle up the beach, but there is never enough money to do everything! I can't wait to see the photos from Melbourne!

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    1. Nicole - Thank you! Yeah, we had to pick and choose the activities we wanted to spend money on. I keep telling myself "next time".

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  5. these photos are amazing. i did the penguin parade in 2000 and it was amazing. i have no recollection of it being expensive, but hopefully next time you can catch it. it was darling.

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  6. Phillip Island is truly one of my most favorite places in the world! Gorgeous shots! Too bad you had to skip the penguin parade. :(

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    1. Andi - Wow, really? You've been everywhere, it seems! You guys are making me wish we didn't skip the penguins. Must return.

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  7. It looks so idyllic and peaceful!

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  8. I've been looking forward to seeing the Penguin Parade one day. I guess I better make a point to save a few pennies here and there! Loved seeing your roadtrip. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Jill - It's not super expensive, we just couldn't do every activity. We missed a lot of touristy things in 6 months of travel. Really hope you get to see it!

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  9. Amazing pictures!!! Love it!!!
    P.S. Enjoy your trip!!!

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  10. Wow, amazing photos! Looks like the island is well worth the detour!

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  11. wow! how awesome to see koala's and other Australian wildlife up close! Thanks for the fun facts! such lovely pictures:) love Katie

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  12. Beautiful photographs! I'm a local and I never get sick of admiring koalas, they're so cute (but surprisingly vicious up close!) Just discovered your blog via your comment on line x shape x colour...enjoy the rest of your travels, you'll love Melbourne :)

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    1. Bridget - Thank you! We adore Line x Shape x Colour. So cool to share some readers with Miss Gemma. :)

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  13. The way the koalas sleep has to be one of the most uncomfortable ways that I've seen! I love how kangaroos just hang out there. That was probably quite a sight! I wanna pack my bags and go see Australia!

    Any tips for when it would be better/ cheaper to fly there?

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    1. Ana F - You'd think koalas would have some crazy buff arms to be able to cling to trees for so long, huh? No idea when it would be cheapest to fly. Sorry.

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  14. Wow what beautiful photographs. I'm now in love with your blog and can't stop looking at all of the pictures!

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  15. koalas, kangas, and SICK photos... couldn't be better.

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  16. Your blog is really inspiring. I have been reading it for while (never commented though...sorry!) But I love it!

    I really love traveling, and I want to see the world. Like for you coming to Europe for your honeymoon. Wow. I hope that I will do something like that too once I'm done with my studies.

    You take really good photos. Not surprising since you are both photographers!

    Okay, I just wanted to tell you that your blog is awesome!

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    1. Michelle - Thank you for leaving such a nice comment after reading for a while. :) Hope you get to travel sooner than later!

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