Exceptional Kangaroo Island
2019-02-08T01:46:14+00:00
Main Info
Former wildlife ranger, Craig Wickham has assembled an expert team of guides who want to show you the best of Kangaroo Island. Their motto? ‘Good food, good wine and wildlife in the wild’.
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Armed with his passions for tourism, conservation management and farming, as well as three years’ experience as a National Parks and Wildlife Service ranger, Craig has designed half- and whole-day touring experiences that cleverly blend understanding, environmental awareness and hospitality.
Of course, with knowledge and experience comes connections and access, so you get to visit natural (often spectacular) habitats to see the animals that have made KI famous.
On tour, your guide also becomes your chef. Depending on the focus of the tour, lunch might be taken in a private bush setting (perhaps a seafood barbecue of King George Whiting and grilled local haloumi cheese) or a picnic served on a clifftop taking in the magnificent views of the Southern Ocean.
Since 1986, Exceptional Kangaroo Island has been crafting a very special experience for visitors to the island, focusing on its wildlife, natural history and heritage, and finding places that are off the well-beaten tourist track. The Telegraph (UK)
Kangaroo Island
Kangaroo Island is famous for its abundant wildlife species and natural beauty. Covering almost 4500 sq km (a third of which is conservation land), the island is relatively free of feral species allowing animal and bird populations to thrive.
See koalas in millennia-old native forests, walk among sea lions on pristine white-sand beaches, dive historic wrecks to see the famous Leafy Sea Dragon, watch Ospreys wheeling over rocky headlands…
Rich farmland and fertile seas have supported spirited island communities that are rich in history, culture and cuisine. Today, the passions of art communities, wine growers and artisan food producers help complete this extraordinary off-shore escape.
Exceptional Kangaroo Island operates day tours and collects guests from all accommodation venues or Kingscote airport. Tours can be on a share basis with a small group of other travellers, or a private charter where the tour itinerary is tailored to suit your interests.
Couples
Families
Honeymooners
Small Groups
Solo Travellers
Island Life Itinerary
Get an introduction to Island life – an island where things take time, an island where drivers wave as they go by, or even stop for a chat…
Have a cuppa with some home-made cakes before taking a walk down a country track through tall eucalyptus trees where koalas snooze overhead. Travel through some of the Island’s best farming country to the North Coast and Lathami Conservation Park.
Walk quietly through the bush with your guide. What makes that noise? Whose tracks are those? Look for wallabies which are almost extinct on the mainland, and a kangaroo found only on KI.
Break for lunch and enjoy a delicious meal featuring local seafood, fresh salads and fine South Australian wines at a private bush location. At Seal Bay Conservation Park, walk with your guide among Australian sea lions on a beautiful sandy beach. Watch pups nursing, or playing in the surf, see old bulls bearing the scars of territorial disputes and learn about their unique breeding biology. The remainder of the afternoon is spent exploring more of the south-east region of the island with destinations and experiences chosen to reflect seasonal opportunities.
Flinders Chase Focus Itinerary
Flinders Chase National Park is a wilderness that covers the entire west end of the Island. It’s home to kangaroos, wallabies, possums, goannas, echidnas, koalas, platypus and many birds including rare Cape Barren Geese. Visit Rocky River, site of an impressive visitor centre interpreting many facets of the park and its history.
At Cape du Couedic, visit a fur seal colony: once decimated by hunting in the early 1800’s, it now numbers over 20,000 animals, usually observed at rest on the rocks or frolicking in the surf under Admirals Arch, a spectacular coastal grotto.
On the headland above is a beautiful stone lighthouse where three light keepers and their families lived, maintaining a warning for ships. With no road access until 1940, life was tough — supplies came by sea only every three months.
Another impressive stone structure had a different architect: the Remarkable Rocks are huge natural granite sculptures carved by relentless winds, rain and salt from the Southern Ocean. The end result looks like a Henri Moore and Salvador Dali had a meeting of minds!
Good wines and local produce feature highly in our picnic lunch which we can enjoy out in the bush before exploring more of the Island. Depending upon the day, the afternoon might include a visit to “Grassdale” in the heart of Kelly Hill Conservation Park, the secluded pools of the Rocky River or a rugged South Coast cove.
Nearest major City/Town
Kingscote, the largest town on Kangaroo Island
Adelaide, the capital of South Australia
Air Access
Regular daily scheduled or charter flight from Adelaide to Kingscote is approximately 30 minutes.
Sea Access
Sealink operate regular ferry transfers from Cape Jervis (South Australian mainland) to Penneshaw on Kangaroo Island.
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