Wilsons Promontory

For the second part of the holiday we went to Wilson Promontory, about the same distance as where the 12 Apostles are, but in the complete opposite direction. It took us about 6 hours to drive from one place to the other through Melbourne. We stayed in Waratah Bay at a little hotel with only 6 rooms. It was more of a Bed and Breakfast feel which was really nice and homely. This is the view from where we stayed and also where we saw our first wild wallaby!

The first thing we did at Wilsons Promontory was go on a hike to Squeaky Beach. The hike was nice and we saw some great views and it wasn't very long or difficult. Squeaky beach is beautiful. It's the whitest sand I've ever seen. It was a really rubbish day, but I think it made the photos look even more impressive. Everything about it is just white. It's called Squeaky Beach because the sand is supposed to squeak when you walk on it, but I didn't really hear any squeaking. Regardless, it was a stunning beach.

We had some lunch at the visitor centre and saw another Kookaburra. It was searching for food and you could see it jumping down with its beak going into the ground full speed. You'd think it would break its neck by doing that, but their necks are very thick compared to other birds.

After that we went on a wildlife walk. I'm not sure what the exact walk was called but it was somewhere between the entrance of the park and the visitor centre. There was a huge car park which was completely empty, then you walk through this small little bushy area into a huge open area. For the first minute or so we were really skeptical, it didn't look like there were going to be any animals, but we were soon proven wrong when we saw our first kangaroo... and another one... and another one... etc! There were tons!!

These were our first wild kangaroos. They were literally everywhere in huge herds. They didn't really seem to mind having people walk around. They looked up at us for a few seconds before going back to whatever they were doing.

We also saw our first wombat. At first we just saw this lump of fur on the ground that was completely still, we though it was a dead kangaroo or something.. We then noticed a face and ears, and then it started running! It turned out to be a wombat. They're so cute! They're kind of a mix between a fox and a koala?

That was it for our day in Wilsons Promontory. On the second day we spent in that area we went to Phillip island to see the Penguin parade. There is no photography allowed at the penguin parade so unfortunately I don't have any photos of that, but I do have some from the drive over!

Our first stop was a few minutes away from Waratah Bay, at Sandy Point. This is a huge beach that during low tide is just a sandy point. We could actually drive on the sand! It was a huge area and there were tiny crabs everywhere! There were so many it actually looked like a huge blanket on the sand was moving.

A bit further along we stopped again for this view. I'm not sure where it was or what it was called, but it was awesome!

The penguin parade starts at sunset, which was at about 8 when we were there. You're advised to come a bit earlier to buy your tickets, have some food, watch the 5 minute video look at the souvenir shops and find a place to sit. There were 2 normal priced seating areas and one VIP area that's more expensive and further out of the way. As soon as it gets dark you start seeing large groups of little penguins come out the water. They go back in and out quite a few times before they get the courage to run out on the sand. We sat watching them for about 30-45 minutes when we got up and walked back to the visitor centre. The little penguins walk past the path so as you're walking back you get really close to the penguins. The little penguins are about 30cm tall and the closest we got to them was probably that same amount!