Wilson's Prom and Fairy Penguins

Our day began with a three hour road trip south east of Melbourne to Wilsons Promontory aka Wilsons Prom. It is a national park at the southernmost end of mainland Australia. Right as we pulled in, rain started to pour and what was a pretty morning turned into a cloudy afternoon. However, that didn’t deter us and we drove further into the park.

After skipping the first hike we planned to do because many people spotted snakes and told us they turned around (if the Aussies weren’t doing it we weren’t either), we ended up at Squeaky Beach. Supposedly, the sand, due to its fineness, makes a high-pitched squeak with each step but the only sounds we heard were those of howling 40 mph winds. Nonetheless, we had fun leaning back into the wind and walking to the giant, lichen covered boulders. 

Next we did the Prom Wildlife Walk where we spotted many kangaroos. It took us a while to notice them because they camouflage into the landscape so well. Once we saw one though, more and more kept  appearing. It was like a game of Where’s Waldo but with furry pointy ears.. On the walk, we came across a friendly German family. They had just visited New Zealand and were on their own Australian road trip. It was nice sharing travel tips while we walked back to our cars and we wished each other the best on our journeys. 

The Big Drift was our final stop in Wilsons Prom and it did not disappoint. We walked about a mile and half through an old cow pasture and started to make our way up a hill. The hill became more and more sandy as we continued walking until it was all sand, then it became much harder to walk up the steep incline. Almost to the top, the view looking up was of a giant sand cliff. Finally reaching the top, we looked forward and our whole environment had completely changed. We just saw endless rolling hills of sand. We made our way across the dunes to one that had the steepest dropoff. Ethan, of course, started running as fast as he could to jump off the top of the dune. Tori was a little more hesitant but eventually did a few jumps too. It turned out to be a lot of fun, so much fun that we lost track of time and had to run back to the truck in order to make it on time to see the penguins. 

Phillip Island is a place that many people told us it was touristy but we had to see just once. We agree with that assessment. It’s home to a colony of Little Blue (Fairy) Penguins and at every sunset people gather to watch the Penguin Parade (truly charming country–watching the Fairy Penguins appear on the shore in the Penguin Parade). These little guys spend all day in the ocean feeding and looking for food until it starts to get dark so they can cross the beach safely to get to their home for the night. 

Turns out the penguins were running behind schedule and were 50 minutes late. Finally, they emerged one by one out of the ocean to form a band of penguins so they could protect themselves from the pesky seagulls. Safety in numbers, Kowalski. Their chatter is much louder than you would expect for something the size of a mason jar. As we walked back to the truck, we listened to the sounds of penguins conversing with their friends and families, recounting their days out at sea.