More exploring on Kangaroo Island

Evenings are very special here on Kangaroo Island, especially where I'm staying at Emu Bay, because at night the little penguins come in from the sea and spend the night sleeping underneath the bushes at the edge of the beach.  I didn't ever time it quite properly to actually see the penguins coming in, but armed with a flashlight and a little patience while looking, I could see many tucked away underneath the bushes.  It was a bit difficult to hold both the flashlight and my camera ... but with the help of my friend we managed to get a hold of one so I could take a picture for you.  Don't worry - we didn't hurt it in any way, and as soon as I had my photo we put it back where it came from.

The next day we decided to have lunch at the Emu Bay Lavender Farm and on the way while we were walking there we passed an alpaca farm.

The lavender harvest is finished for the year here (remember it's autumn here now) so I didn't take any photos at the farm, but I certainly did enjoy my lavender scones and lavender ice cream!

Another excursion for us was a trip into Kingscote for a little look around Kangaroo Island's 'capital' - home to nearly half of the population of Kangaroo Island.  Kingscote is situated on Nepean Bay which is often studded with yachts and fishing boats... and some beautiful views!

This is also a very special place in South Australia's colonial history as just north of Kingscote is the important heritage site Reeves Point - South Australia's first European settlement.  A community of sealers and others existed on Kangaroo Island from 1802 to the time of South Australia's official settlement in 1836.  The first ship to arrive that brought official settlers was the Duke of York, commanded by Captain Robert Clark Morgan, in 1836.

Vines aren't new to Kangaroo Island, grown as far back as 1837, but it was only in 2001 that Kangaroo Island was declared an official Australian wine region.  There are quite a few growers in this region now, with around 200 hectares of vines.  I thought it would be unjust to leave Kangaroo Island without tasting some of the local drops, so today I went to Bay of Shoals winery.  There definitely are some lovely ocean views from this winery... and not surprisingly a bottle or two made its way back to our place for dinner.

Boxing Bay is the next bay over along the coast from Emu Bay.

Saturday afternoon I went for another long walk along the beach at Emu Bay.  The seas were a little bit rougher today and as a result there were some really interesting patterns and designs in the sand.

The Pacific Gull (Larus pacificus) is a very large gull, native to the coasts of Australia.  Much larger than the common seagull, and nowhere near as common, Pacific Gulls are usually seen alone or in pairs, loafing around the shoreline, steadily patrolling high above the edge of the water, or (sometimes) zooming high on the breeze to drop a shellfish or sea urchin onto the rocks.

It was a beautiful late afternoon on the beach...