Tasmania to Tokyo – Silver Moon – Day 20 can be found here.
Today’s Chronicle can be found here.
We have deliberately not been talking about today’s excursion to Kangaroo Island, mostly because we’re unsure whether it will actually run. Instead we’ve been sneaking glances at Windy and attempting to calculate the relative ability of a tender to navigate swells and wind. Having never used tenders before, we’re not very good at it.
But what our expedition experience has prepared us for is the sea-day swell. We reached 3 metres last night but – due to the Moon’s size, the extensive use of stabilizers or the captain’s skills – we hardly noticed. Another welcome surprise.
Still – we wait, breath bated, as the morning announcement came on. When Cruise Director Zaid started with a biosecurity announcement we figure we’re in good hands – but then he confirms, tenders are operating today.
Thankfully, our full-day excursion with RAD KI doesn’t convene until 9:45 am. We still need to shake out all of our backpacks from city exploring mode to Silversea excursion mode.
But first, another rapid-fire breakfast at La Terrazza – the eggs arrive more than 5 minutes before the toast, and they have removed their gorgeous fresh-berry bar but we are nevertheless able to get what we need and get out in near-record time.
Back to the rooms to finish prepping our gear. RAD KI will occasionally offer opportunities for guests to go swimming or snorkelling at the end of their tours, so we go ahead and build out our duffle bag with all of our snorkelling equipment.
Otherwise we pack the usual – coats, rain jackets, hats, sunscreen, camera gear (with spare battery), a buff, and LifeStraw water bottles. We don’t quite clank when we walk, but it’s a near thing.
We gather up our precious excursion tickets, and then set off for the theatre where our names are checked off against various lists and we overhear the occasion whisper noting the presence of children on the ship. But no hard feelings – we get how rare it is, and we’ve already had a few friendly faces come up to ask how the children are enjoying the cruise. I enjoy the looks of surprise when we explain the children already have 90 days of expedition travel, and are currently enjoying free laundry.
We depart promptly at 9:45 am, boarding the tender. I grab the able seaman’s arm in a sailor’s grip out of habit but in truth the conditions are genuinely spicy, with moderate winds and swells around 1 metre. The tender pitches and rolls as we set out for the dock, but our driver handles the conditions with minimal drama. We’re ashore five minutes later.
More checklists, and more re-directing. One of the Silversea staff members attempts to divert us on to the wrong tour but thankfully we’ve already met Ro and Phil – owners of RAD KI – and have convened with the other two members of our group. We toss the snorkelling bag into the rear of their van, and we are off and away.
Ro has lived on Kangaroo island almost her entire life, while she met Phil in Tonga where he was running tours for people who wished to swim with humpback whales. (Many of the rules adopted by other countries – like in French Polynesia – were adopted from those rules first introduced in Tonga. We benefited from that during our own experience swimming with whales in Moorea.)
Phil and Ro were living in Kangaroo Island when COVID hit. Many of the rules in Tonga have softened with time (and bribery) and Phil’s boats needed significant investment after several years spent in monthballs. As a result, they’ve decided to refocus their efforts in Kangaroo Island. They use the money they make from their tours to support their marine conservation and citizen science efforts.
First stop is the gorgeous Pennington Bay:
We lay out the plan for the day – we’re to head down to Seal Bay to see the Australian sea lion and fur seals, enjoy a brief stop for lunch, then head through the bush in search of wild koalas, kangaroos and wallabies before seeing if we can find another suitable beach to visit. (Perhaps to snorkel?)
While on our way out, we spot a wedge-tailed eagle overhead:
Ro explains that Kangaroo Island has mostly recovered from the massive forest fires that took place almost seven years ago, though they found that time challenging due to their own animal rescue work – and the impact the fire had on wildlife. It eradicated much of the koala population, and displaced countless kangaroos and wallabies. But by providing even a modest buffer of food and water, those animals survived long enough for new shoots to emerge.
But it did get quite bad at times. At one point, Ro would wake hourly throughout the night to search for fires in the distance and put them out if needed. They also lost power, though they joked that wasn’t too bad – because everyone else cooked delicious meals for them. And once the power came back, it was time to “break out the can opener”.
We soon arrive at Seal Bay. Those without guides need to stick to the boardwalk, but we’re fine to head down to the beach as Ro also works as a park ranger.
We immediately spot a herd of adorable sea lions:
And this little one, who’s right beneath the boardwalk:
The population is limited to only 12,000 members, of which only roughly half are adults. They are considered locally vulnreable but globally endangered. Thankfully Kangaroo Island has not seen a massive influx of Avian flu which has decimated seal and bird populations in other sub-Antarctic areas like South Georgia.
An interesting fact about Australian sea lions – they will wean their pups shortly before they give birth again. If the seal does not have a new pup – or if the younger pup dies – they may resume nursing the older pups. This can span more than one breeding season, with some going for more than 4 years.
We have to stay 10 metres away, but it’s still close enough to get a close look at these remarkable creatures.
We spot one young pup hobbling across the sand in search of its mother:
And success! Mother has been found:
But eventually – as more groups roll in – it’s time for us to head out.
Except some want to pose, so I take a few more photos:
On the way, my daughter makes a fascinating discovery:
Which Ro identifies as a shark egg. Incredible!
We also spot a few silvereye birds on our way up the boardwalk:
As well as the superb berry wren in the parking lot:
Then we’re off for lunch. Ro and Phil have prepared Bento boxes for us:
Along with some delicious fruit cake, ANZAC cookies and fresh-baked bread:
Plus local beer and Australian wine. Quite the treat!
We then head off into the bush to search for wildlife. Phil forms us into teams – it’ll be Ro versus everyone else to see who can spot the most animals.
But first we stop at “Phil’s tree” to see if we can find a koala. And we do!
This is a bit of a strange one as this isn’t even a proper tree for a koala to eat from – but it does represent the last tree at the edge of the forest, so it’s a place where a younger koala can hang out as he works to establish his own territory.
We carry on through the bush and find a young mother:
With a baby on her back:
We spot another wedge-tailed eagle overhead:
And across the road we find an older female koala. Almost all of the older female koalas should have sterilization tags on them as there was a widespread campaign pre-bush fire to reduce the population – but this one doesn’t. Ro makes a note for future investigation.
If that weren’t enough, we then go off in search of kangaroos:
And the Tammar wallabies:
They can be quite skittish, but we manage to get close enough for a few photos. They seem to particularly like the sap from this tree.
We carry deeper into the bush, where we spot a juvenile Tammar wallaby:
Adorable.
We still have a bit of time, so we head down to Stokes Bay – it’s another stunning spot:
To get there, you need to climb through some close-together caves:
Not impossible, but it can be a bit of a squeeze
There is a pool in which we could go snorkelling:
It’s deeper than it looks!
But we are all done-in by this point, so we’ll try again another visit.
Farewell, beautiful beach…
We then head back to Penneshaw to reboard the ship. On the way, Ro explains how challenging it’s been dealing with the prolonged algae bloom that’s affected the area. It’s killed scores of fish and shellfish, and has rendered much of what remains risky to consume in quantity.
Throughout that, however, they and their fellow Kangaroo Island residents have persevered, and are doing everything possible to both endure this prolonged downturn and to understand the algae bloom so that they can understand its impact and how to handle similar events in the future. Ro’s a firm believer that there is good work being done, and that’s the story that should be told.
We think it’s particularly important for our kids to hear – and see – this as there are so many dire stories these days that it’s easier to give up than to understand an issue and see the people who are working hard to address it.
Soon our ship comes into view:
And we are back aboard the Moon just in time for trivia. We learn that John Lennon was the first to cross the road in the famous Abbey Road album cover, and that Os is the chemical symbol for Osmium. We correctly identify the country of origin for French fries (Belgium) and an odd number which, when it has a letter removed, becomes even (Remove the ‘S’ from ‘Seven’ so it becomes ‘Even’). Our 15 point score is sufficient to tie for second place!
We manage to carve out enough time to enjoy canapes on our verandah – a welcome excuse to try out my new macro lens:
Delicious! And something we’ve very much wanted to get back to since leaving the Cloud.
Also, here’s a better shot of the balcony to show sizing and proportions:
We then go off to the Grill for dinner tonight.
The menu:
This meal is moderately less impressive than our previous meals aboard the Moon. We’re seated in the very far corner of the Grill, and so service is mildly pokey. They also miss including prawns with both mine and my daughter’s filets.
But eventually they arrive:
The kids and I have s’mores for dessert:
But they too are somewhat mediocre – cool and chemical-tasting, and not particularly reminiscent of camping cookouts.
We wrap dinner for the night, and the kids head to bed.
I then poke my head into SALT Bar for the first time:
There I have a lovely rum-based cocktail called Technicolor.
I ask for a Silver Spirit for my wife, and I am given a different drink regarding which I have been sworn to secrecy. I even had to pinky swear. (Not kidding.)
But I will give you the speakeasy-type password, should you meet Carlos –
“Elderflower.”
And with that, I bid you good night! We have another busy day planned in Adelaide tomorrow – city highlights and a visit to the Cleland Wildlife Park.