Page 26 - Boca ViewPointe - April '21

Page 26, Viewpointe April 2021

Kangaroo Island: A Place Like No Other

By Don Kiselewski, MCC, Penneshaw. Needless
D.S., Palm Beach Gardens to say, very few locals
Travel Leaders are caught by the state
troopers.
As soon as you step off Kingscote is the
the ferry from the mainland largest town on the
of Australia, you know that island, where about
you’re in a special place. one-third of the island
Kangaroo Island is located residents live. The
in the South Indian Ocean, others are spread
some 12 miles southwest of i n sm a l l ha m l e t s
Cape Jervis on the Fleurieu throughout the island.
Peninsula of South Australia. Around 9,000 years ago, the Parndana, a small town
island was cut and separated from the peninsula. What in the center of the
remained is an island that is 100 miles long (east to west) island, was started
and approximately 30 miles wide. It boasts a population as the hub of the
of almost 5,000 (Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics). settlement program that
Today, the island is so tight-knit that when the state began at the end of
of Southern Australia sends more state patrol officers to WWII. Servicemen returning from the war were given a Because of the rugged coast on Kangaroo Island and
the island on the ferry, the word that the “law is coming” chance to obtain land by homesteading. This became the most of South Australia, lighthouses to aid in navigation
spreads over the entire island before the ferry docks at heart of today’s agricultural economy on the island. became a necessity. “Shipwreck coast” is the name
As with most of Australia, the original inhabitants given to this part of the world. An average of one wreck
of Kangaroo Island were Aborigines. However, their per mile of shoreline of South Australia and Victoria
occupation of the island is somewhat of a mystery. When emphasized the magnitude of the navigation problems
Europeans first discovered the island, it was clear of any involved. Cape du Couedic, the rugged southwestern
Aborigines. Based upon evidence and later studies, it is part of the island, was named in honor of distinguished
believed that the island was abandoned by the Aboriginal French sea captain Charles Louis, Chevalier du Couedic
people 11,000 years before. de Kergoualer. Shipwrecks at this location included the
Perhaps the best reason for the absence of Aboriginals Mars (1875), Emily Smith (1877) and Loch Sloy (1899),
is the belief that the island is inhabited by the dead. The which prompted the construction of a kerosene-powered
Ngarrindjeri and Kuma Aboriginal mainland tell stories in light in the picturesque lighthouse structure in 1909. Built
their “dream time” of spirits on the island. In their beliefs
today, the island is known as the “Land of the Dead.” Kangaroo Island on page 27

Cape du Couedic Lighthouse

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