The Ferry to Koala Land

Paynesville is a boating and sailing centre in the lakes regions, situated between Lake King and Lake Victoria—two huge bodies of water.  It has a ferry to an island called Raymond Island, which is all of 200 yards away. 

    The ferry plies to and fro across this narrow strip of water throughout the day, making the 3 minute trip every quarter of an hour. It carries pedestrians and cyclists free and charges for cars—and the car traffic is quite brisk.

This is the waiting room on the Paynesville side.

This lady with her tricycle was taking her shopping home when we went on the ferry. Difficult to see, but she has a bumper sticker on her trike that says “I (heart) the R.I. Ferry.” For a moment we thought it meant Rhode Island. Note the six-pack of beer in with the groceries.

And this is her cycling off the ferry on the other side.

But unless you live there, the most important reason for anyone to make the trip is to see the koalas, which are apparently concentrated there for unexplained reasons. Although the island is quite small, it features a sign-posted Koala Walk, which wanders through parks and quiet residential streets. It is claimed to be the best place in Victoria to see koalas. And we did see them in the eucalyptus trees, their arms wrapped about a branch while they appear to be napping. They sleep about 18 hours a day, as their diet consists exclusively of eucalyptus leaves, which provide them with a very low level of energy, and they always appear sleepy and lethargic. Difficult to get them to pose.  Difficult even to encourage them to move. But narcolepsy has its charms, as per the following.

No wonder Qantas has appropriated them as a mascot!