If you’ve never been to Phillip Island in Victoria, I would still bet that it’s most well-known attractions would be familiar to most people in Australia.

This was our first time to the island and before arriving we knew of the nightly little penguin parade, the motorcycle grand prix circuit and well, to be honest, not much more. With four days on the island we were kept busy every day with what this wet and wild island has to offer.

It’s a blustery few days in autumn that we are locked in to stay and we feel the full brunt of the weather in our caravan, where we are parked up at the NRMA Beachfront Holiday Park in Cowes. 

We are starting to rethink our request for a beachfront site until an incredible sight comes into view, a submarine cruising past in the bay we overlook.  Apparently this isn’t that rare an occurrence though, as the Royal Australian Navy has trained in these waters before, but it is rare for us to be able to take a photo of our caravan and a submarine in the same photo.

On a military theme we decided to visit the National Vietnam Veterans Museum which we passed on the way and were absolutely blown away by the amount of memorabilia on display, including an extensive display of helicopters and other military vehicles in the indoor gallery.

Your visit starts with an introductory holographic video where the story of the Vietnam war and Australia’s involvement is explained from start to finish. It’s incredibly sobering, shocking and hits quite hard, leaving you a little stunned as you then begin your self-guided tour of the rest of the gallery.

The rest of our time on the Island was a lot more uplifting and there’s nothing better than a dose of nature to feel restored and refreshed, something that Phillip Island has in spades.

Phillip Island is one of Australia’s National Surfing Reserves with four sites along its coastline that are well known for their big swells and consistent surf. Whether you’re a surfer or not, these beaches are pretty spectacular to see and the island does boardwalks well! Access to all the beaches and scenic spots is made easy with boardwalks, and though some of the series of steps at some beaches can look a bit daunting, believe me it’s worth the effort.

The southern and western coasts are full of scenic spots to get into the great outdoors, see amazing rock formations and enjoy walks to reach them. Smiths Beach is one of the popular surf beaches and has an incredible all access ramp down to the beach as well as steps.

Another must do is the Nobbies walk which takes you past some rugged coastline culminating at a blowhole to see in the wild churning waters below.

It was at the Nobbies, that we ran into a local who we’d passed at other scenic spots, and had some humorous interactions with, and he gave us a fantastic tip (as locals do) to try a different road back from this area for even more spectacular views.

We decided to trust the information and were so glad we did as the winding dirt road took us through an unspoilt, nature laden environment. As we drove slowly along, there were Cape Barren Geese waddling along and a huge amount of swamp wallabies grazing and unfazed by our presence. A photographer’s paradise.

The drive culminated at a clifftop overlooking the beach where the penguin parade happens and gave us a view looking down on the tiered seating for this nightly spectacle. Of course you can’t come to Phillip Island without seeing this wonderful  journey of little penguins as they make their way from the sea to their burrows in the sand dunes, passing by the viewing public as they go.

I must admit I didn’t have high hopes of seeing the penguins up close, but I was pleasantly surprised at how terrific it was to witness these beautiful little creatures and their waddling dash up the beach in groups to the safety of their burrows. It was definitely a highlight and an evening not to be missed.

The rangers give great information on the penguins and what their lives in this environment entails and you really can get up close views from the boardwalks as the groups of penguins make their way to safety.

Naturally, to keep the penguins safe, visitors are told not to photograph or film the penguins at night, but sadly there always are some people that don’t believe the rules apply to them.

Even though these people were scalded by many about their continued use of phones to photograph and video the little penguins on their trek, (and this was after the same message had been broadcast to them in their own language), they persisted and caused quite a lot of anger amongst the others obeying the rules.

Unfortunately, I would guess that this is a nightly occurrence too, but I’m not sure what else rangers can do to police this unfortunate lack of respect. For those that do play by the rules, there are professional photos and videos available to download for free and use as you wish.

Our next wildlife encounter was at the koala conservation reserve where you can take another series of boardwalks into the tree tops to see the adorable animals doing as they do, eating, sleeping and generally lounging their days away. You can never tire of these living teddy bear like creatures.

In the park you can also see wallabies and some curlews, which are also represented in some artwork by  Australian artist Jimmy Dvate, which you can see before entering the park.

The last animal encounter we have is to see the daily pelican feeding at the town of San Remo just a short trip back over the bridge to the island. The birds are drawn here to the harbour for the same reason we are, the delicious fresh fish caught and sold here at the Fisherman’s Co-op. Fortunately ours is coated in crispy golden batter and served with chips and tartare sauce and we enjoy them in the comfortable café overlooking the water.

On our way back to Cowes we take a detour to the town of Rhyll to see the yachts moored in a sheltered harbour and find one more unexpected delight, in a carved stump of an old Cypress pine tree. The artist Brandon Kroon created the carvings from the tree which had been damaged in a storm, and the carving depicts a ferry captain as well as marine life and seabirds.

These are just some of the activities you can participate in during a stay on Phillip Island, with even more to discover at your leisure.

Enjoy

Glenys