With a bus booking that mysteriously deleted itself, it wasn’t a strong start to my journey to Magnetic Island. Thankfully, though, this was the only blip on an otherwise uneventful trip and I made it to the hostel stress-free. Once I had checked in I dropped my bags off in the room and headed straight out with a group from the hostel on a sunset hike to Hawkings Point, one of the best locations on Magnetic to view the landscape as the sun goes down. The short but steep hike was a perfect introduction to the island, the golden light softening all its edges and illuminating the crystal clear waters and dense forest. On the way we even saw a wild koala, perched high up in a gum tree, emitting a low and loud grumbling sound (what we think was a mating call). Magnetic Island is known for having one of the highest populations of wild koalas in Australia, so I was thrilled to see my first so early on in my visit.
I only had one full day here, so the following morning I set off with a few girls I’d met the previous night to explore the area. We bought a bus ticket for $7 that would get us from south to north and all the way back again, a rare bargain in an otherwise expensive part of the world. We began with another hike to some of Magnetic’s hidden beaches, Balding Bay being our choice. The hot and sweaty trek was well worth it, as we found ourselves almost entirely alone in the sun-soaked cove, except for a couple of naturists wondering around freely… I admired their boldness, and it gave us a good giggle. The sand was so fine and soft, and the water such a vivid blue, it felt like we had stumbled upon a secret paradise. After around an hour of paddling and sunbathing, our lovely private beach started to get a little busier, so we decided it was time to move on to the next stop.
I had been told about the Forts Walk by a woman I met in Cairns; she advised me that this was the best place on the island to see wild koalas, and since I kicked off my Magnetic experience with one hanging out in a tree in someone’s front garden I was sure we’d find them here with ease. Well, it turns out koalas are much harder to find when they’re not making a lot of noise, and in the middle of the afternoon they tend to be silently snoozing. However, about half way along the route I finally spotted not one, but two grey lumps curled around a tree trunk; a mother and baby blending in pretty seamlessly with the greyish-white bark of a eucalyptus tree, it now made sense why they had been so hard to see. Further down the track we found our third koala, this time much closer to the ground but, again, having a nap. Even though we caught them at their least active time, it was such a treat to see them in their natural habitat. A firm tick on my Aussie to-do list.
Onto our final stop then: Arcadia. A walk down to the coast brought us to a rocky shoreline, and here we discovered the rock wallabies. Although still wild, they are known to feed from your hand if you remain patient and still. A lady on the bus kindly gave me a bag of wallaby feed, which attracted them at first; one fed directly from my hand, holding my fingers in it’s tiny paws (so cute!). However, they were clearly bored by it, preferring fresh food such as carrots and strawberries instead. Luckily, my friend had brought some carrots along, so we fed a few more and had plenty of photo opportunities with these photogenic creatures. To risk sounding ‘basic’, they were unbelievably adorable, but it was a relief to see that they were still very timid, meaning they aren’t completely trusting of humans despite so much close interaction with them.
I’m quickly discovering (but not entirely surprised to find) that the nature of Australia is what I’m loving the most, and Magnetic Island has certainly maintained the standard set by Cairns for wildlife experiences. I know I’ve made life-long memories here, and can’t wait to make more as I venture south.
Stay tuned, next stop: The Whitsundays.