Today turned into a bit of a long day, but that was really the plan; the whole day was based on me catching the 16:30 ferry off of Kangaroo Island, and everything that I have done today had that in mind. Usually with hindsight you'd have done things differently, but the plan to head to the far west of the island yesterday was absolutely the correct decision.
Up with the alarm as usual, and into breakfast at the hotel during which I made a tentative plan for the day. All packed up and away by 09:20, the first job was to find some fuel. I checked on the app, and the fuel prices on the island are very high, so I took the half hour drive to Kingscote for a quick 'splash and dash' .... 20 litres should see me to Adelaide this evening.
Then back on the road as I headed for Stokes Bay on the islands north coast. Satnav took me down another of those rough roads for 45 minutes until I found the sealed tarmac again a few hundred yards from the car park. To say that both I and the car were well shaken would be a bit of an understatement!
At Stokes Bay there is a fantastic beach, accessed by what is called a 'tunnel', but is in reality just a jumble of huge rocks that you have to navigate through. The beach was beautiful, and I took the opportunity to stretch my legs and walk the length.
On returning to the car, I bought a coffee at the beachside cafe, and decided to follow the sealed road back to the main northern highway on the island. I decided that I'd drive back to Kingscote, and have an explore of the largest town on the island. On the way to Kingscote, I was aware of something in the centre of the main road so slowed. It was a Koala sitting in the centre of the road, and as I slowly passed I was on the receiving end of a glare for daring to disturb it!
Into Kingscote, and there really wasn't much there of note. A stop at an outlook for the views back to the mainland and along the island that weren't helped by the overcast and occasional shower that was passing through. I then parked up and had a wander through town, but was soon back in the car again at just before 13:00.
It was time for moving in the general direction of the ferry terminal at Penneshaw, but not before one of the places I'd really wanted to visit. A drive of 30 minutes bought me past the road to American River where I stayed last night, and to Prospect Hill.
From the car park a series of flights of stairs lead to the top of the hill where there is a lookout platform. The website says that there are 500 stairs, but I don't believe that's correct .... I did try to count on the way down, but lost count at around 140 and wasn't about to return to the top to start again! It wouldn't surprise me if there were 250, and they counted both the ascent and descent for the website.
Up the staircase, and when I'd recovered my breath I had the most fantastic panoramic view of the island. Back down to the car, and I rejoined the road heading for Penneshaw. I remembered the multiple roadworks from yesterday, so I wanted to give myself plenty of time, and as expected I hit every red light. At one I was held for over a quarter hour and asked to move off the road onto the verge while a wide load came through; a truck with a building 6 metres wide.
I arrived at the ferry terminal almost two hours before my sailing; the previous ferry had just departed, so I checked in and set off to explore the area ...... I'd been asked to return to my car by 16:00 for boarding. I had a wander, and found a cafe for a coffee and pastry. Then returned to the ferry terminal and explored the wharf area before boarding commenced.
I was asked to reverse onto the ferry, so did so and was guided into a space right at the far end; I was paying so much attention to the instructions with my wing mirrors folded in, it wasn't until I was parked that I realised that I as only about 4 inches away from the vehicle next to me. The crew really know what they are doing.
Up to the passenger deck, I found a comfortable seat right at the front to the ferry in the lounge area, so watched the mainland grow closer, and spotted a passing pod of cetaceans ..... my first thought was dolphins but didn't get enough of a look to be sure!
It was about an hours sailing time back to Cape Jervis, and then for the two hour drive to Adelaide, where I'm staying for the next two nights before my epic across Australia adventure begins. I'll need to backtrack a bit here .... this morning I'd phoned the hotel to double check the parking and check in as I'd be arriving late. It's just as well I did as reception was going to be closed, so I'd need to get my keys from a combination protected box. However, they had no way of contacting me to let me have the instructions. So, I was able to provide my email so I knew how to get in!
I disembarked from the ferry as dusk started to fall, and set the satnav to the car park next door to the hotel. As it became darker, the satnav display was bright, so I left the queue of traffic at a lookout to try to figure out how to dim it. I couldn't figure it on the spot, so continued and soon caught up with the line of traffic. As darkness fell I could see kangaroos in the fields, but thankfully none on the road.
Google Maps navigated me successfully to the car park, and just a few minutes following the instructions I'd been sent bought me to the hotel front door. I retrieved my key, and found my room before bringing the rest of my luggage from the car.
I'd arrived at 19:30, and my stomach was telling me that it was a long time since my 07:30 breakfast, so the priority was dinner. The bar and restaurant here was closed, so I headed out into Adelaide and found a gaggle of fast food establishments just a few minutes away; I'd had a hankering for a KFC for a while, so satisfied that before hitting the sack ....... hence the delayed update to the blog.
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