Back to the Big Island

1st June 2022

Today we head back to the Big Island.

After a lovely hot shower we were able to enjoy a cooked brekky outside sitting on our lovely lightly padded fold up chairs and rolled out table. Fortunately, the sun was shining and not too cold or windy.

We then headed for Emu bay, stopping at the lavender distillery and shop💜. It is off season so we didn’t get to see the lavender in full bloom. It would have been good to compare them with the lavender fields in Aix-en-Provence, South France. Beverley is an aromatherapist and enjoyed seeing the different types and varieties of lavender. Some were being grown for use for aromatherapy oils, others, for soaps, fragrances and teas.

We continued on to Emu beach which is normally known for it’s lovely white sands. Today it was covered in big piles of dried seaweed, reminding us of a small secluded bay we visited by yacht in Corsica. We had a quick tour of the small seaside town and were blessed to see a very old koala on the side of the street. He was friendly, enjoying the attention of a few locals then slowly ambled down the street and climbed a small tree. He joyfully munched on some leaves even though they weren’t the ones normally on koalas menus.

Next stop Discovery lagoon for some drone practice. There was only slight puffs of breeze so at least Brian managed to do some filming.

We then went to Emu Ridge to check out the eucalyptus distillery. They weren’t making any however, we got to see the machinery and watched a short film, whilst sitting in an old horse carriage, about the history of the grounds and the development over the last 100 years. We saw 2 emus in an enclosed paddock also and at the shop a staff member was holding an orphan joey (baby kangaroo) so got to pat him and learn about their survival.

It must be our lucky day, as we continued driving, Brian spotted something moving slowly across the street. As we got closer it was an echidna who tried to hide close to a bush with all his spikes on display.

We then ventured to Flinders hill and climbed about 250 steps to the top. The 360 degree view was worth it. This vantage point and area was discovered and named by a young Scottish scientist about 180 years ago.

The rest of the afternoon we relaxed at Brown’s beach, where we stopped on our first day.

Now off to the ferry back to the mainland and Cape Jervis campsite.