Travel Blog: Hopping On, and Off, Kangaroo Island

Our arrival at Penneshaw was fairly early in the morning so many weren't up and about; otherwise we probably would have seen people lining the decks to watch the sail in, just the way it always happens in Sydney. Not because there would have been anything of particular interest, and in fact we were anchored out, but just because it was land after that day and a half of rockin' and rollin'.

Kangaroo Island is one of those places that regular cruise tourists, like us, don't usually research very much. Just from the name it conjures up images of open expanses of grassland and some trees, probably a few sheep and lots and lots of kangaroos. Boy, was that idea completely out to lunch! Well, we did see all of that, plus a whole lot more. In fact, Ken Rees, in his lecture about Kangaroo Island on the previous day, began with: 'I went to the Canary Islands, and saw no canaries. Then I went to the Virgin Islands... (insert chuckles and guffaws in the obvious pause)...and saw no canaries there either. There may not be any canaries on Kangaroo Island, but there are kangaroos.'

Kangaroo Island was first inhabited in modern times in 1802, making it among the earliest settled areas in Australia, 'discovered' by Captain Matthew Flinders on HMS Investigator. Evidence has, however, also been found of habitation up to 16,000 years earlier, when the island and mainland were still connected. There's only the four mile wide Backstairs Passage separating them today.

Our tour took us over only a small part of the island, the Dudley Peninsula at the east end. The town of Penneshaw is the landing point for the ferries crossing the Backstairs Passage, so there is usually an endless stream of cars, vans, campers and trailers going to and fro. When we boarded our tour bus we found copies of the Kangaroo Island visitors' guide on the seats, and discovered for ourselves just how much there is to see and do here. We would be visiting Dudley Wines, a local winery, the Cape Willoughby Lighthouse at the extreme eastern end of the island, and Rob's Sheep Shearing for a demonstration.

The winery Cellar Door, which is the tasting room, shop and event venue, is on a lovely overlook to the Passage. Those who were tasting got to try a few very nice red and white wines along with something called 'Rippel' that changes its taste with every sip.

Yes, there are boats out on that hill! One of the activities
offered at functions is a golf driving competition. The winner is
the one whose ball stays in the boat. Don't know what
the prize is.

The event area, overlooking the Backstairs Passage

Our next stop was the Cape Willoughby Lighthouse, which, built in 1852, was the first lighthouse in the state of South Australia. Along the way we were all on the lookout for Kangaroos - after all there have to be some here given the island's name. And they didn't disappoint. Once we started seeing kangaroos, we found them everywhere, even near the base of the lighthouse which is now part of a conservation park.

Driving up to the light station

Kangaroos in the grounds near the lighthouse

A few intrepid souls even went to the top of the lighthouse, Monica included. The views are stunning, especially the rugged coastline to the south.

See Larry down there?

The coastline to the south. No wonder there's a lighthouse here.

Our final stop for the day was Rob's Sheep Shearing and Sheepdogs. Rob gave us some background on his farm, which has been owned by his family for five generations already, with his own son and still very young grandsons next in line. He also talked about his dogs, who are very important members of the team, each trained for a different job.

Rob explained a little of the history of his dogs. This one
never got any praise from his previous owner, so he didn't
do a good job. Once Rob took him over, he's turned
into a great sheepdog.

Then it was on to the shearing demonstration. Rob gave us a running commentary on the equipment he used, how to hold the sheep so it didn't fight while being shorn, and what was done with the fresh wool once the poor 'naked' sheep was allowed to leave the shed. The whole process is really quite fascinating, and the amount of wool that he sheared off in one large piece was surprising. He had been shearing since he was a teenager and obviously had it down to a science; and with 750,000 sheep on Kangaroo Island, once the season starts there's always work for a good shearer. He had also learned how to spin wool using his grandmother's old manual spinning wheel, and demonstrated the process using some of the fresh merino wool he had just shorn. Even fresh off the sheep, the wool is wonderfully soft. Most of it is exported to China for processing into yarn and manufacturing into clothing.

The process of sheep shearing. It took Rob about 7 minutes start
to finish, while talking to us the whole time.

Rob demonstrating basic spinning

We headed back to the ship after our visit to Rob's, totally impressed with everything we had seen. The rest of the island offers even more and it would be interesting to spend a couple of days exploring.

Being completely tuned to 'vacation mode', we had even forgotten that it was Valentine's Day. All the ladies received a red rose at dinner, at least in Waterside, and the Crystal Cove was decked out for a Valentine Dance. This was actually the first time we'd been on the ship for Valentine's Day. Usually we would be waiting for its arrival somewhere - Tahiti and Auckland being two places that come immediately to mind - or still at home preparing for the trip. It was, as usual, a fun time with great music.