KANGAROO ISLAND - PART II

We drove past Vivonne Bay, but by the time we got there it was getting clouded over and getting close to 5 pm - since it's winter here, a bit dark to really appreciate what is supposed to be spectacular water.  We had three couples in the car - Charlie and me, a doctor from John's Hopkins, Dick and his wife Judy, and an Italian couple.  The Italian couple were supposed to catch the 6:30 flight back to Adelaide, but Time decided to drop Charlie and me off at our B and B before he dropped the Italian couple at the airport.  Distances are deceptive on the island, it's 100 miles long and about 35 miles wide with many dirt roads to boot.  We began at the south and drove for a very long time on paved roads, then switched to dirt roads, then smaller dirt roads - it was getting darker and later.  We finally arrived at Stranraer Homestead (our B and B) run by Lyn and Graham Wheaton.  The place is a working sheep farm with wonderful rooms.  Lyn set out a huge dinner - pork and water chestnut appetizer, wine, with lamb, couscous and superb vegetables, followed by a great sweet of chocolate and lemon.  We had a wonderful talk with Graham who said that if it weren't for the rain he'd show us the paddock.  He has 7000 sheep on his farm and talked about the problems he and his brother had when in the late 80's early 90's the bottom fell out of the wool market.  At about 8:30 Jim showed up to take us out on our night viewing of animals trip.

Jim then drove to Kingscote to collect another couple who were going on the night trip.  After we got them, we drove down pitch-black lanes looking for creatures.  We then went onto dirt roads, and Jim shown a bright light onto fields.  Sheep weren't there, but loads of kangaroos and wallabies were there.  The wallabies are very skittish.  At the first sign of the bright light they scampered off the grass, went under the fence, zigged across the road and headed for cover.  The zig across the road often was their undoing, many get squashed.  (We did not harm any wallabies in our search).  Jim explained that the bright lights on koalas shine back white, pink for kangaroos and wallabies, and very bright pink for possums.  We saw two very bright pink spots in a tree.  The possum sat there, while we got out of the car and walked across the field.  It was only when we approach within 100 yds of the tree that he scampered out of the tree and scurried away.  Australian possums 1.) have a bushy black tail and 2.) fight like the dickens if they are caught unlike American possums who hope that if that "drop dead" they'll be ignored.  The sky had cleared for a time and we could see the Southern Cross, Alpha Centari and Beta Centari, the coal sack - the whole deal.  Walking along and staring upward, Jim stopped us and pointed to an area on the ground about a half meter across in diameter.  He said, "stomp your feet".  When he shown the light on the patch of bare ground, ants were all over the top. They were meat ants - yuk.  The "joke", they don't have poison, they just crawl up your legs and eat the "meat".  Great... Australia is filled with wretched beasts

We ended our evening along the beach near Kingscote to look at the small Australian penguins (fairy penguins) that are unique to Australia.  The wind had really increased.  I felt at times like I was going to get swept off the walkways and fall into the water - nope - I've been eating a lot and am completely secure.  These little penguins nest in burrows along the rocky shore - the Kangaroo Island folks build wooden boxes for them, and the penguins are happy to use the boxes for nests.  They really are cute.  Brown, little knife shaped arms, looking peeved when we shown the red-covered light on them.  We walked along the shore for quite a while.  We had the opportunity to see two white pelicans feeding on little fish.  These pelicans can't dive, they're too buoyant, but they hunt in groups to help push the fish toward each other.  We got back to the Homestead and 12:30 am.  Straight to bed.