Laurence and Henry's Big Adventure: Philip Island

Since you can't take photo's I'm using

ones off the Penguin Parade Site

Just ninety minutes south east of Melbourne is the magnificent natural wonder of Philip Island. This island is accessed by a bridge from the mainland near Newhaven and is situated on the Bass Strait. But what started out as just another stop on our road journey turned into a highlight of our trip to the great land down under.

It's amazing to see the Penguins pop

out of the water

We started our exploration of the island on the further most tip called The Nobbies. Here we had great vantage points to the amazing rugged coastline and out to Seal Island with its permanent seal colony. It was here among the steep slopes of the coastline that we saw our first wild penguin chick waiting patiently for its parents to return home. This windswept coastline is truly one of the most magnificent we have encountered from rugged rocky shores to tranquil sandy beaches.

From there we explored the quaint village of Cowes and of course took in dinner at another Australian institution the RSL. (Returned Service League, like our Legions but way better). And on to the Rhyll Wetland and Bird Sanctuary, where we took a walk along a boardwalk through the mangrove forests spotting black swans and terns.

Boardwalks allow penguins to roar freely

At what was a last minute decision to visit the Koala Sanctuary turned out to be one of our best Koala experiences ever. This is a koala reserve with wild animals that are partly managed but basically allowed to live very free in the very large reserve. Here we were able to stand only feet away from a mother koala and her 7 month old baby enjoying dinner and playtime. What was so amazing is that koala babies rarely stray from their mothers backside until over a year old, however this baby was on his own about 6 feet away from his mother exploring his new world. Laurence became a shutterbug and took countless photos of this mother and baby in their natural home. And while touring the koala park Laurence noticed a male koala coming down a tree and he walked right in front of us to get a better tree to eat from. This is amazing as koalas sleep 21 hours a day, eat over 3 hours a day and actually do physical activity only 10 minutes a day and Laurence caught it with pictures.

Penguin in burrow

But without a doubt the highlight of Philip Island was the incredible adventure of the Penguin Parade at sunset. At Summerland Beach the tourists all arrive just prior to sunset to wait for the arrival of the Fairy Penguins returning from a day of fishing. Like clockwork the penguins float into the bay and climb the rugged shores to feed their young and socialize with one another. Unfortunately for Laurence we are unable to photograph this amazing migration as the cameras are forbidden as the flash disrupts the penguin’s behaviour. We arrived early and got our front row seats for what was a truly amazing natural experience. Thousands of these little penguins noisily paraded only feet in front of us as they went on to their burrows and chicks. We sat for hours in the cold watching the activity as they socialized, on their impressive journey up the coastline to the thousands of nests perched through the park.