Thompson Trail on Hinchinbrook Island and other Australia Off The Beaten Path Tips

The idea of doing this trek became a reality two months before it actually happened. I was staying in Brisbane, when I went into the Qld Park and National Park office. I managed to get a 7 nights camping permit to Hinchinbrook Island, where I got to hike through one of the best trails on Earth. The whole island is a national park. It is located off the QLD coast up north. There are only 40 hikers allowed in the trail per day, so it still remains untouched.

My first glimpse of Hinchinbrook Is was from the lookout near Cardwell. The view from the lookout was amazing. You could truly appreciate the beauty of the island from this vantage point. I studied it for in the next few days I would be trekking the infamous Thorsborne Trail. It is separated from the mainland by the narrow Hinchinbrook Channel.

The journey began aboard a large ferry that took me to Ramsay Bay, the northern part of the trail. Over the course of the next 6 days I will have walked all the way down to the southern pickup point at George point. This trek takes you through a tropical forest, heather land, high peaks, beaches, and more. You will find yourself testing your limits as you swim/walk through creeks, as you walk right by croc infested lands, as you avoid getting attacked by the infamous island rats, and more.

Who am I kidding though? I have over 18,000 characters of useful information on this trek so I’ll have to build an individual page on it. Please check it out when it’s done.

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A platypus is a rather unique creature that is native to Australia. It has the body of a beaver, the bill of a duck, and also has webbed hands/feet that allow it to be an expert swimmer. As its appearance wasn't interesting alone, the platypus is an egg-laying mammal. Yes, this creature lays eggs the size of your thumb that hatches within weeks. After hatching, the little platypodes (the proper plural for platypus) are fed milk given off as sweat by the mother, which lacks a mammary gland. The platypodes can't see under water. Instead, they rely on tiny sensors located on his bill. As if that wasn't enough, male platypodes give off a poison when handled. Don't worry; it's really hard to get up close to one as they're rather shy animals.

Now, before we get into an argument on the proper plural of platypus, I should point out what I discovered about the root for that word. Platypus is actually a Greek word. In proper Greek, the plural for words ending with "-pus" is "-podes" (not the Latin "-pi" as many believe to be). Therefore, the proper plural for platypus is platypodes. However, you are more likely to see it as platypuses or platypi.

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Platypodes abound in the Broken River, which is located in Eungella National Park, for two reasons. First, the river is fed tons of waste by many of the local dairy farms. This waste (cow ***) is in turn used as food by worms, insects, and tiny crustaceans. The platypus eats these three creatures. So, you put the two together and you have an ideal platypus ecosystem. Scientists believe that in normal conditions one platypus will inhabit about 200 meters of river. In Broken River there are about 5 platypodes per 200 meters though so your odds of seeing them are that much greater. Now, I did tell you these are shy animals, which bring me to the second reason why they're common sightings of them in the area: the bridge. In the early to mid 1900's, the bridge across Broken River was erected to join the roads up the mountain. After many years of living near this bridge, the platypodes have actually gotten used to the humans. Therefore, you can now enjoy seeing them freely in the wild. The platypodes are nocturnal animals, so the best times to spot a platypus are right after sunset and right before sunrise. During the day, the platypus lives inside its den, which is a borrow or hole it makes off the walls of the river.

The platypodes are fun shy creatures. They can't eat their food underwater, so they just store it in their mouths. Every minute or so, they surface for 10 seconds to digest their food and to breath some fresh air. Then, they're off at it again. I truly believe that with a bit of patience, you can see at least a half a dozen platypus a day in Broken River alone. I enjoyed seeing them in the wild several times throughout my stay coming up to the surface and then going back down the water. To spot them, just look at their bubbles coming up to the surface like a scuba diver's air bubble would.

I also lucked out as I spotted three platypodes in a pond in the Giants' Table and Cottages at Maydena, Tasmania.

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You can spot a kangaroo throughout most of Australia. For me, the fondest moment was at Halls Gap, which is one of the hubs of the Grampians in Victoria. I went out for a walk with Rene, Maria (both from Denmark), and a girl from Germany across the road, past the visitor center, across the bridge, and into a vast grass field. It was here that we came across hundreds of grey kangaroos. After months of traveling down under, I hadn't seen a sight like this. It was amazing. I could count 5 distinctive groups of kangaroos. Although I didn't count them all, I’m sure there were over 200 of them. The large males were easily over 2 meters in height. Nevertheless, Rene and I stayed for a while and got to approach many of them. I remember getting as close as a meter or two from several of them. It's nice to see the animals in the wild and this close. The reason they don't ran from you is that they now better. They are way faster then we are and so if they felt threaten in any way they would skip their way out of trouble. Being so close allowed us to see many of their habits. We saw mothers carrying their young in their pouch. Some of the baby kangaroos were poking their heads out, while others had their feet hanging from the pouch (wonder how they can breathe with their heads in there...hehehe). I even came across one of the finest and most sentimental actions I’ve seen from an animal as a young kangaroo approached its mother and gave her a hug. I know it sounds strange, but it really happened. It was a nice site. As it was getting dark and the Antarctic wind was getting colder by the minute, Rene and I headed back to the hostel.

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You can spot wallabies throughout most of Australia. My fondest memory of them was at the Nitmiluk (Katherine Gorge) National Park where I relaxed and read a book right next to a group of Wallabies. They are similar to the Kangaroos, but are smaller in size and have a rounder head. I got to see a female with a little baby in her pouch. As I was reading the book, one wallaby came within a meter of me. I felt like petting it, but new better. The wallabies are wild animals and feed off the grass.

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Black Wallaroos are quite rare and endangered. They inhabit the Kakadu National Park. I was lucky enough to see three of them from the highest point on top of Jim Jim falls (over 220 meters above sea level). As I was standing on one of the cliffs, I looked at the first pool below and saw three black wallaroos jumping through the rocks. The wallaroos look like a combination between a Kangaroo and a Wallaby

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Walking at Magnetic Island, I sighted my first clear view of a wild Koala. It was a cute little one resting on the intersection of two branches in a Eucalyptus tree. It was an amazing thing let me tell you. I just sat there for several minutes looking at the delightful Koala. It made my visit to Magnetic Island worthwhile.

Interestingly enough, the Koalas that inhabit the East Coast of Australia are smaller then those that inhabit the Southern Coast of Australia. This is mainly due to the severe winter their southern counterparts must endure.

Koalas can be spotted at the Noosa National Park, at Magnetic Island, and on hundreds of others spots on the East Coast of Australia. For Southern Koalas, please check out my other tip above.

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The Tower Hill Game Reserve in Victoria is set at an interesting volcanic crater. The reserve serves as a home of many Australian animals, including Koalas and Emus. We spent some time exploring this area. We got to see so many Koalas. I had seen them in Queensland, where they are smaller. The southern Koalas are larger then their counterparts up the East Coast. This is mainly due to the severe winter they must endure. As it was spring, we got to see many babies and their mothers. It was all a cute site. We also saw some Emus that were strolling through the grounds desperate for attention. As you can imagine, the cute little Koalas were the star attraction!

Southern Koalas can be spotted at the Tower Hill Game Reserve, at Kangaroo Island, and on hundreds of others spots on the South Coast of Australia. For eastern Koalas, please check out my other tip above.

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The little penguins, sometimes referred to as fairy penguins, are the smallest penguins in the world. They inhabit many of the southern coast and islands in Australia. The little penguins leave right near the coast, often as far inland as one or more miles. They leave there home each morning around sunrise. They spend most of their days fishing in the seas. They usually return that same night right after sunset. However, the young penguins can go out to the sea for weeks at end traveling for thousands of miles at a time. I'm telling you, seeing them in the wild was a treat. The best place to see them is in Bicheno beach in Tasmania. However, you can also join the masses at Phillip Island to see the infamous Penguin parade.

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A dingo is a wild dog of Australia, having a reddish-brown or yellowish-brown coat. Contrary to popular belief, the dingo is not a native animal. They were introduced by the Aboriginals thousands of years ago. They were used for hunting purposes. Some of them eventually left their owners and went out into the wild. Pure modern dingos are rare as many have mix blood with the domesticated dog. The best place to see them in their purest form is at Frasier Island. You can also spot them in Kakadu National Park. Words of warning though, do not leave food unattended while in a region inhabited by dingoes. They are scavengers and will eat anything left in the open. Make sure you either put them in metal containers or luck your food inside your car.

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