Getaway
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Walking with wildlife
Indigenous culture
Clean and green
Tourism Whitsundays
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On Kangaroo Island, off the tip of South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula, half the native bushland is just as it was when explorer Matthew Flinders named it in 1802 and more than a third is protected as a national or conservation park. Walk within metres of hundreds of rare Australian sea-lions, watch little penguins waddle home from the sea or swim with the island’s resident pods of dolphins. National parks offer a range of camping options from designated bush camping through to sites with cooking and bathroom facilities. Getting there: Kangaroo Island is 45 minutes by SeaLink ferry from Cape Jervis in South Australia www.tourkangarooisland.com.au Tasmania’s Maria Island was once a convict settlement and then a whaling station before National Parks took it over 40 years ago. Now it’s a place for walkers, wanderers and wildlife. It’s also a bit of a rock star with dramatic limestone fossil cliffs, Painted Cliffs and the towering dolerite columns of Bishop and Clerk. There are basic camp grounds near the ruins at Darlington, French’s Farm and Encampment Cove. Getting there: a half-hour ferry trip from the wharf at Triabunna Visitors Centre www.parks.tas.gov.au 56 | Go Camping Australia
The Tiwi Islands, comprised of Bathurst and Melville Islands, 80 kilometres north of Darwin, are renowned for the geometric art forms that are produced there. Aboriginal owned and administered by the Tiwi Land Council (TLC), four beaches have been made available for boat operators to camp for up to seven days by way of a permit. Any camping on the islands must be arranged through AFANT - Amateur Fishermen’s Association of the Northern Territory. Getting there: the Tiwi islands can be reached by light plane or private charter www.nt.gov.au or www.nlc.org.au The Whitsunday Ngaro Sea Trail follows the footsteps of the Ngaro people, the traditional owners of the Whitsunday area. Opened at the start of 2010, the trail is a blend of spectacular bushwalking over land and sea across South Molle, Hook and Whitsunday Islands. The largely self-guided Sea Trail is dotted with campsites and the waters are generally calm and easy to traverse in a kayak or small boat. Another option is to be dropped off at a Whitsunday island of your choice by Scamper, a barge-like transfer boat that drops people directly onto the beach for camping. www.whitsundaycamping.com.au Getting there: the 74 islands of the Whitsundays can be accessed from Shute Harbour and Airlie Beach www.tourismwhitsundays.com.au
Get shipwrecked on Wilson Island, a small coral cay 15 kilometres north of Heron Island on the Great Barrier Reef, without leaving a dirty carbon footprint. With just six luxuriously appointed safari-style tents on the entire island, you’ll see more turtles than humans. For bare-foot luxury at its best, you can even rent the entire island. Getting there: boat transfer or helicopter from Gladstone to Heron Island, then a 40-minute boat transfer to Wilson Island www.wilsonisland.com Woody Island, off the coast of Esperance in Western Australia, is a pin-up for sustainable holidays. With plenty of wildlife like little penguins, southern right whales and Australian sea lions, a marked dive and snorkel trail and enough species of birds to keep twitchers twittering for days, Woody has something for every castaway. Visitors can stay in safari huts, pre-erected tents or BYO tent from late September to early May. Getting there: Woody Island Nature Reserve is located 15 kilometres south-east of Esperance in the Bay of Isles www.woodyisland.com.au