Australian Adventure: Week 22, December 18-24, 2022

This week we explored Kangaroo Island before road-tripping back to the coast, to spend Christmas in Sydney!

On Sunday we drove from Great Ocean Road into South Australia to board the ferry to Kangaroo Island. The ferry is only 45 minutes from the mainland, but it feels like a whole new world. Kangaroo Island has dedicated 1/3 of their land mass to nature reserves. In 2020, half of the island burnt in the Australian wildfires, killing wildlife, plants, and destroying homes of island locals. We watched “Down to Earth” on Netflix and learned a bit about the island before our visit - we would highly recommend it!

On Monday, we spent the day swimming with dolphins. We took a small boat out off the North coast of the island to find wild dolphins. The water was a little chilly but we had a great time snorkelling.

Later in the afternoon we visited a local honey farm to try their famous honey ice cream. On our way, we were lucky to see a koala lounging in the tree! Then, we spent some time at the beach.

On Tuesday, we went to Vivonne Bay to see the natural rock pools that have formed along the cliffs.

Then, we went to Seal Bay for a guided tour along the sand dunes. We saw some wild seals that are endangered in Australia. There are only 5000 seals left, all who call Kangaroo Island shores home. It was neat to see them so close to the beach!

On Wednesday, we went to Flinders Chase National Park to do some hiking in the park. Our first stop was a lighthouse that was still in use shining over the ocean. Then, we went to Admiral’s Arch for some beautiful cliffs, rock pools, and sea lions!

Later in the day, we saw the Remarkable Rocks - a unique rock formation in the park. Then, on our way back we saw another koala hanging out in a tree and a few kangaroos crossing the road!

On Thursday, we had breakfast at a Lavender Farm in Emu Bay. We tried lavender scones and had some delicious coffee.

That afternoon, Webster jumped in the ocean for a quick swim before we got on the ferry back to the mainland.

On Thursday afternoon, Friday and Saturday morning, we spent our time driving east towards Sydney. We covered more than 1500km in 48 hours. On our trip we stopped at my favourite local Asian restaurant, Wok in A Box, for some delicious stir fry.

On Saturday, Christmas Eve, we checked into our hotel and had a relaxing day enjoying the view. We spent some time by the pool and wrapped some last minute Christmas gifts. In the evening, we headed to Spice Alley, our favourite spot in Sydney, for Christmas Eve dinner.

This week, we are exploring Sydney! We are planning on a quiet Christmas morning, a busy week exploring our favourite spots in the city, and then NYE at the harbour with world-famous fireworks.

Thanks for following along on our adventures! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!