WARRAWONG EARTH SANCTUARY - DEC 1999

Soon after immigrating to Adelaide in October 1999, I made new friends immediately because I didn't know anyone there prior to my arrival. One long time friend called Asher, arrived in Adelaide from Bristol. He stayed for 5 weeks and we travelled out and about including a guided tour of Warrawong Earth Sanctuary high in the Adelaide Hills.

Asher was surprised by the amount of new friends that I had made and introduced him to, in the short space of time that I left Gloucester. He has since visited me 3 times because he loves Australia! (Surprise surprise).

We had our own tour guide called Melissa, who said we were the first people that she had given the tour, since she had only just started working there. I must say she was a natural and certainly educated us concerning the abundance of animals, flora and fauna there, which were all native to Australia.

All the wild life lived in their natural habitat and was free to roam as they pleased. None lived in cages. The whole compound covered a huge area surrounded by a high fence to keep out predators such as foxes or dingoes. No cats or dogs are allowed in. The idea is to promote the growth and development of these animals, especially those that were near extinction.

We walked around large lakes containing turtles and a wealth of fish and other marine species. Walking through the man made rainforest was an experience as the sprinklers kept the forest area permanently wet. The boardwalk links various areas together and is maintained to a high standard by “The friends of Warrawong.” There were scores of kangaroos just relaxing all over the place with both the Grey and Western Red living side by side.

There are all kinds of animals such as potaroos, bilbys, Koala bears and many nocturnal creatures that only come out at dusk or during the night. Numerous native Australian trees have been planted around the area and are very tall.

The Rainbow Lorikeet parrots are very colourful and quite noisy when in large flocks. They love sweet food such as peaches, nectarines and the honey water that the park ranger pours into their feeding tray. This results in hundreds of the birds descending from the trees and surrounding area to completely take over the bird tables. Asher used his video camera to capture the whole event, which certainly makes compulsive viewing.

After this fascinating tour by Melissa, we had a delicious meal in the restaurant. There is a good souvenir shop where gifts and memorabilia can be purchased at reasonable prices. There are other Earth Sanctuaries around Australia and I also visited Yukkamurra Earth Sanctuary near the River Murray a few days earlier with my new friends! I would highly recommend a visit to Warrawong or Yukkamurra, as it is such an awe-inspiring occasion, with a considerable amount to see.

Mount Lofty is the highest part of Adelaide's surrounding area and not too far from Warrawong, so we stopped there for more sight seeing!

We could see the sea and right across the metropolitan city, so decided to head for the beach.

Asher and I travelled from Adelaide Hills straight down to Glenelg Beach. This only took approximately 30 minutes, where we watched a game of volleyball. This was just a typical Saturday where there are multiple events happening every weekend. We are so spoilt for choice.

THE RIVER MURRAY

While visiting Yukkamurra Earth Sanctuary with friends, we stayed in cabins on the banks of the River Murray at Swan Reach and participated in ‘river life', which meant kayaking on the Murray. We watched the local teenagers with their high powered speedboat as they casually water-skied up and down the river which is their playground.

There were some large houseboats on the river and the views from the high banks were fabulous, particularly during sunrise and sunset. Another thing that I just could not comprehend was the absolutely HUGE eucalyptus trees that grow along the river bank in large quantities.

Many of the trees are ancient dating back thousands of years and they are exceptionally wide. It felt quite humbling as we walked through the unspoiled landscape with virtually no people or houses to be seen.

This was the first time I had encountered so much space, especially when looking straight ahead with only flat land, which met the sky on the horizon. This is when I realized that Australia is a gigantic landmass, with a staggering amount of natural scenery to be explored.

Oh yes, I think I'm going to love living here!