Ugly dogs to KI
Trip Start
Dec 22, 2011
1
49
129
Trip End
Apr 18, 2012
American River Kangaroo Island, South Australia, Australia
Thursday, February 2, 2012
It soon became obvious that this was a bus station for very short people. Never mind Nick, even I felt tall here! We were sitting opposite an Aboriginal man, who had a rather set expression and a deeply furrowed brow. It was only when Nick went off to check us in that he tried to pick me up. Well that was a first!
Our bus was announced, Peter the driver called us to order and we were off.
Adelaide is not a huge place. The area around the bus station seemed to have lots of backpackers hostels and look pretty much like parts of the US, after which there was a lengthy haul through the outskirts which, as so often, is mostly large boring industrial estates and factories.
As we got away from the sprawl, the countryside opened out to reveal hills! Valleys! Creeks and farmsteads... beautiful trees sheltering flocks of long legged sheep, newly shorn; varied herds of cattle, goats, horses... it is a very attractive area and unlike anything we had seen so far.
There were not many villages, let alone small towns. The bus stopped about three times to let people on or off, mostly at a bus stop by a small general store cum gas station which probably sold everything from fleeces and fishing hooks to chewing gum, buckets and cheese...
At one of these stops, a young man got on and made his way to the back of the bus.
I don't know what he was on, but it was not long before he was on the phone and we were all included in his conversation which became more and more agitated as the person on the other end kept losing the signal and breaking up. "I CAN'T HEAR YOU. I LOVE YOU. WHERE ARE YOU??"
The conversation became even more strained and embarrassing.
As we rounded the corner and Cape Jervis came into view, he shouted out, "Shit that is ****ing beautiful! Isn't that beautiful?"
... and by the time we arrived, he had spilled a large amount of booze all over the bus and was sitting on the floor, still semi shouting.
Peter the bus driver attacked the spillage with a mop and bucket... the drunk lolloped onto the ferry.. but his card had been marked, as Peter had found his wallet still on the bus and he would be apprehended as he arrived on Kangaroo Island.
We on the other hand had to wait for the next ferry as we were booked on the twilight ferry, at a saving of $48. Meanwhile, we spotted seals in the harbour and I put a few more layers on as it was windy and colder than we had felt it since we left the UK.
Only one dolphin crossed in front of our ferry, but every single crest of a wave looked like a dolphin dancing to me...
Arriving off the ferry we were met by Louisa Motormouth. She talked us through the hire car contract and where we should and shouldn't go, roads to avoid, not to drive after sundown as it would be uninsured (ie in 5 mins, get a move on) and the hazards of wallabies and roos on the road. "You WILL see one."
Not the best start to driving in Australia. At night, uninsured, with wallabies about to pop out into the road in front of you. She was right. We did see one. More than one... but loads of dead ones in various states of decay.
Not the easiest 40 minutes drive we have ever had and it was with relief we eventually drove into American River and found our hotel for the night. The kitchen might have been shut, but the chef was persuaded to make us a plate of assorted antipasti which we downed with a bottle of Kangaroo Island red.
It seems that the little life there is here stops after 9.30pm starting again early. Not exactly our normal modus operandi, but while in Rome and all that...
