Although we often group Australia and New Zealand together, they are certainly different in many ways. While both belong to the wider British Commonwealth, and English is their primary language, the land itself is unique to each nation. Geographically, NZ is a small mountainous country of two long islands that features nearly 10,000 miles of shoreline. The climate ranges from warm subtropical in the far north to cool temperate in the far south. Australia is a land of diverse climates ranging from rainforest to green rolling hills to stunning rocky coastlines and to desert-like dry environments. Everything in Australia seems bigger, more rugged, brighter, more diverse, more unusual. While nearly the size of the USA lower 48, its population is less than a tenth of the US…creates a lot of space between population centers. And sorry Aussies, I preferred the Kiwi meat pies.
Marv and Laurie Baker, Bill, and I started our trip through Australia by flying from Christchurch, NZ to Melbourne, AUS. Melbourne is a big, beautiful modern city. We started our visit by taking a tram around the city to meet up with our street art tour guide. It was an amazing tour which took us to some splendid and often enormous paintings in many different locations around the city. The next day found us driving to Phillips Island National Park to see the Wild Life Reserve. We got our first glimpses of the teddy-bear-like Koalas in their natural habitat of eucalyptus trees. While they spend most of their lives eating and sleeping, they were still charming. After a delicious lunch of fish and chips at the Fisherman’s Co-op, we were introduced to one the large pelican species on the beach of the restaurant. The restaurant staff fed fish carcasses to a small flock of them. This attracted several huge stingrays as well. Very entertaining!
Our next drive was the Great Ocean Road (GOR). This was definitely on our bucket list, and in our planning phase we decided to give it a full three days. The GOR was originally built by returning veterans of WWI and continues to serve as a memorial to the sacrifices made by so many Australians soldiers. The coastal road starts in Torquay and ends about 150 miles later in Allansford. There were beautiful walks through some lovely national parks, dining in some picturesque small towns, and marveling at the rugged coastline and rock formations. We stopped to see lighthouses, waterfalls, wonderful overlooks, beaches, and took a tour of an animal sanctuary spotting emus, wallabies, kangaroos, koalas, lizards, and exotic birds in their natural habitat.
The first glance of the 12 Apostles rock formations was an AHA moment…like that first glimpse of the Grand Canyon. Sometimes there are no words for the amazing sights in front of us. The ocean colors of blues and greens contrasting with huge rock formations made for some unbelievable vistas. The weather even cooperated for the most part with sunshine and blue skies.
Leaving the GOR, we moved on to Adelaide, a moderate sized city near the Barossa Valley where we spent a day wine tasting and exploring this beautiful area.
Taking some of the delicious Barossa wines we bought and a cooler of food, we hopped a ferry with our car and took off for Kangaroo Island. As it turns out, the island was appropriately named. Having a glass of wine and munching on some cheese during happy hour with wallabies and kangaroos all around us was nothing short of magical. The next morning our marsupials returned and we sat on our deck sipping coffee and tea and took countless pictures. We loved the experience of staying in a fairly remote off-the-grid location surrounded by such cool and unfamiliar Australian wildlife. The daytime hours were spent exploring the island, visiting the Seal Bay Conservation Park, picnicking at the lighthouse, and hiking around the Remarkable Rocks area of Flinders NP. The seals were marvelous with those big beautiful eyes staring at you. Watching the pups play in the water was so fun and we even were able to see a newborn pup about a month old.
After flying to Brisbane, Bill and I met up with Bill’s good and longtime Aussie friend. We spent a delightful few days with Alan and Stephanie Callaghan exploring the Sunshine Coast area around Coolum, a gorgeous small town on the Sunshine Coast along the eastern coast of Australia. Shopping at some local markets, hitting up a few favorite restaurants, walking along the sandy beaches was so enjoyable as Alan and Bill reconnected and caught up with each other’s lives. Alan and Stephanie were the perfect hosts and we both had a great time.
A short flight to Cairns reunited us with the Bakers and brought us to another change of environment in Port Douglas. It was from here that we checked off another bucket list experience that did not disappoint: snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef. We sailed out on a remarkably calm day and once in the water, I thought I was in the Finding Nemo movie. So, so many colorful fish with within touching distance left me spellbound. I could have stayed out there for days. We celebrated on the return sail back to the mainland with wine and appetizers. The tour guides thought of everything. What an experience!
The next day found us in Daintree NP, which felt like being in a jungle. Wet, humid, and hot but with so many different trees, ferns, plants, and colorful birds. We spent some time exploring Port Douglas shops, markets, and an animal preserve. The preserve had a wide variety of Australian wildlife that we hadn’t seen including the large and elusive Cassowary.
Our final stop after leaving Port Douglas was Sydney. It was a whirlwind visit with a driving tour of the city, a water taxi tour of the harbor, and bus ride to the Sydney Harbor National Park. We dined on delicious seafood on the Sydney Harbor boardwalk and were enchanted by the city lights. Our last expedition was to Blue Mountains National Park about an hour away from Sydney. Just when you think that you can’t be amazed again, nature serves up another dose of awe-inspiring views. We hiked and walked along a few trails on a beautiful day, stopping for lunch in a small town near the Three Sisters overlook.
As I left Australia behind, I was struck by the thought that of all the beautiful vistas we had seen and wonderous experiences that we had, our thousands of pictures somehow did not do it justice. What an epic adventure!
