Kangaroo Island Warnings and Dangers

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KANGAROO ISLAND
.. Driving really is the best way to get about Kangaroo island and as the names suggests they are everywhere. To be driving and hit a Kangaroo is the worst if you have a hire car...even in your own car is a drama not only badly damaging your car and the Kangaroo but ..if they come in through your windscreen it could be a really bad situation for the occupants of the car.... Like driving anywhere in Australia Kangaroos and wildlife can just run out on the road. A lot of foreign visitors are not used to the prolific amount of wildlife that is here.
The worst time for wildlife is sunset as that is the time that they come out to forrage for food.
Take notice of safety road signs.
Drive safely and protect local wildlife..

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KANGAROO ISLAND
When travelling or maybe camping here on this wonderful Island carry and use a strong mosquito repellant. Summer sees a time for mosquito problems..Evening times are the bad times. Wear loose fitting clothing with long sleeves and long pants. Cover all bare skin with a good repellant to protect yourself to be safe. .Not only are mosquitos a pest but are very dangerous..Australia now has Ross River fever and Dengue fever both bad mosquito borne viruses to be affected with..

Kangaroo Island is a very popular place for visitors and a lot obviously come to enjoy the clean and usually isolated located beaches. The surf can be very good here and sometimes you can have the beach to yourself.That in itself is most appealing to many surfers.
Be very careful when either surfing or swimming here as the great white shark is a common visitor to these waters. The shark obviously is here for the seals on his journey from South Africa to the southern and eastern coast of Australia..A lot of the scenes in Jaws was filmed on this coast.
I came here to photograph the wonderful seal pups...not to swim..

PHOTOS TO COME..

One thing that's not mentioned in any tourist guides (that I had) is the danger of driving at night! I happened to be driving towards Penneshaw after dark and I was on a stretch of bitumen road near Baudin Beach. I had overtaken a couple of cars previously and had just overtaken a huge truck in my small car on the narrow, uneven road. Just as I was settling back in (still having my lowbeams on) a Kangaroo materialised about 15 metres in fromt of my car, and I was travelling about 100km/h. All I had time to do was to steer (swerve) to the opposite side of the road but the Kangaroo started moving and closed the gap, hitting the left side of my car. Fortunately the car was driveable but it will probably cost me a few grand to repair the damage.
If travelling at night, don't go over 90km/h, or stay behind another vehicle. Insurance or driving either an old bomb or a car with a Bull-bar is recommended.

Many of the roads on Kangaroo Island are unsealed or they were when we were there.
You have to be careful with your speed on them and they are very dusty. You car will be covered with red dust.
The rental car companies do not want you to drive their vehicles on these roads. We did....don't tell them

Watch out for KANGAROOS!! They hop out in front of you (while you're driving) without any prior warnings. Why do they call this island KANGAROO ISLAND?! (I've no clue either)

KILL IT - you'll have kangaroo meat for dinner (just kidding!) Anyway, you'll still need to pay for the damage to your vehicle

Do watch out for other "locals" too apart from the kangaroos.

KEEP WILDLIFE WILD!! Feeding is strictly prohibited in the National Parks - they'll die in hunger in the wilderness if visitors keep spoon-feeding them!!

DO NOT FEED THE KANGAROOS (of course others too)!! They'll be back for MORE. And if you refuse, they will ATTACK!! They are NOT as GENTLE as you think!!

These bandits raid the trash outside your campsite.

This is a bushy-tailed possum. Notice how he has his tail wound around the latch of the trailer, and how he has torn the bag open with one of his little sharp-clawed paws. (You may have to click the photo to see this last detail--we caught him in the nick of time!)

Keep your garbage bag inside something the possum can't get at or else you'll just have to pick it all up from the ground in the morning.

The rugged storm-swept coast of Kangaroo Island has claimed several ships and dozens of lives
At Windmill cove there are graves of some people who didn't survive a ship wreck there.

The original colonies of honeybees brought onto K.I. have given rise to large colonies of feral bees. They may be anywhere, as you can see from this photo of the sign near one picnic area.