Penguins!!!!!

We’re moving to Phillip Island today and the easiest way for us to get there is via the Queenscliffe to Sorrento car ferry, it cuts off some 80+Km and a drive through Melbourne. Much to Dave’s delight we’re first in line at the ferry and drive on first, it’s like a small version of the cross channel ferry. We watch the scenery roll by as the ferry takes some 40 minutes to cross the huge bay to Mornington Peninsula. This peninsula looks more affluent and heavily built up as we drive up to Mornington but then as we drive across the peninsula the houses thin out until there’s only flat farm land in sight and very little traffic on the long straight roads. The bridge  from San Remo across to Phillip Island appears quite suddenly off to the right and the views of the bay open out. The campsite is next to the beach with smaller sandy pitches under eucalyptus trees. There are large coot like birds wandering around the site inspecting everyone’s cars and vans while the porcupines dig for ants in the sandy soil.



A Little Penguin in its burrow

The excitement is now building but there are several hours to occupy first, so a stroll along the beautiful beach meters from our site helps occupy me. Soon it’s time to go, why am I so excited well tonight we’re going to see the penguin parade. This has been one of my main objectives since we decided to come to this part of Australia. But first we’re driving to “The Nobbies” an exposed promontory where seals live just off the headland – not that we can see any today, just a few penguins in their nesting boxes. The views however are wild and dramatic and on the way back to the penguin parade, lots of wallabies are beginning to move around at dusk. At last the penguin parade, we check-in and get our VIP passes – it was the only tour we could get booked onto several weeks ago and we didn’t want to miss out on the experience. The whole building is over-run with people – well mainly Chinese actually (they are expecting 86 coaches tonight alone). David our ranger guide (is David the most common name in Oz?) takes us for a short briefing on the Penguins before leading us down to the Sky box – nothing to do with TV. The 9 of us in the group are given binoculars to watch for the penguins, they’re so heavy I’m leaning backwards trying to hold them up! 8.45pm the first few Little Penguins cross the beach, it’s fascinating watching them gather in groups at the water’s edge then making the dash up the beach for the hillside. From the viewing platform we follow their progress up the sandy pathways to their nesting burrows, it’s hard work at 1 foot tall and with legs only 2 inches long climbing some 1 in 2 slopes! The ones at the top must nightly curse their long walk home. Some are so fat preparing for their moult they fall on their bellies and lay there like stranded fish to catch their breath. At the top of the boardwalk we have to pause to give way to penguins at the world’s only penguins crossing where they have right of way. A truly magical experience, thanks goes to my mum for the great Xmas present it’s one I’ll never forget.