Gold Coast Day 3 - Visit to Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary

I was undecided if this place would be worth my time as the reviews online were mixed. Some said it was old and rundown or small while others had a good time. So I think the only way to find out was to visit and judge for myself.

I checked out the story behind this Sanctuary and it has quite an impressive record of helping and caring for native animals in Australia. Even though the place is rather old, as long as you adjust your expectations, it can be a pleasant ramble-in-the-park kind of day.

Quoted off their website:

Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary founder Alex Griffiths started caring for sick and injured wildlife 63 years ago. As the need for specialist care became obvious, the first veterinarian started work in 1989 and the Currumbin Sanctuary Wildlife Hospital was born. Since that day, the Wildlife Hospital has now grown to admitting over 7000 patients every year and is one of the busiest Wildlife Hospitals in the world.

To date, over 40,000 native animals have been release back into the wild!

Just as a tip: If you are intending to visit this zoo, do check out the various promotions online that may get you up to a whopping 40% off the entrance. Incidentally, there are also Segway tours available for the fun seekers / lazy walkers.

The nice oft-overlooked part of this park are the friendly staff, many of whom have worked for decades in the Sanctuary. Like this senior train operator...

He tirelessly drives the mini-train around the park, making a full round every 20 minutes. I was astounded to learn that he has been working here for 40 years already. He has a stern demeanor but warmed up when we went to speak with him.

And so, this little train took us to see these mammals who were absolutely at home with hoards of visitors treading amongst them. This one had no qualms lying in this obscene position, exposing his underside to amused tourists like me. I almost feel like I need to pixelate his man-parts for decency's sake.

The park wardens explained the differences between kangaroos and wallabies to bewildered noobs like us. Usually the wallabies are smaller in size. (But then again, so are baby kangaroos). This one below is an oversized joey wanting to get into his mommy's pouch.

And here we are, with the entire 'family'. The warden informs us that they respond by names. I really wonder how they can tell the 50(?) members apart.

It is also good to know that animal feed is available FOC or if you want more, a small donation can be made at the cost of $2 at a vending machine.

Jason looks visibly tickled as this wallaby nibbled off his hand.

There is also a trough where the animals get to feed all day so if you went over to the area where these were, you would probably get the cold shoulder from them.

These emu's eat the same stuff but they are really proud and didn't seem up for any physical interaction. Besides, I wouldn't want to be at the receiving end of that sharp beak.

Some other animals in this park:

Some animal related to the porcupine. Very shy, it preferred to stay hidden among the bushes in its enclosure.

Some wild random gecko.

The elusive Tasmanian Devil. Unfortunately, it moves rather fast so a clear shot isn't available.

The last time I posed with a snake was ages ago when I was eleven. Memories ah!

Fortunately, none were trying to eat me like this wooden one here.

And not to mention the koalas. This is a really bad picture of one, but trust me,
there is actually a whole koala behind my head. No marks for a lousy selfie.

Other fun activities you can do here:

Pretend to be crocodile dundee. Or....

Take a walk in the cool evening breeze and pose with huge buttress roots....Or...

Invade the kids' playground...Or...

Crawl into tiny kid-sized caves...Or...

Take silly pictures with even sillier hats. The staff are cool;
they generally leave you alone as you fiddle with their merchandise.

So, is it worth a visit to this park?

I would say, go for it! Schedule 3 or 4 hours in the morning and you will be done by lunch time. There are a few restaurants located in the park itself in the area where they have a wonderful bird-feeding session with pretty, techni-colored wild parakeets. The friendly wardens make it such an enjoyable experience and I felt right at home even though the park has seen better days (and so have the wardens).

Gold Coast Day 1

It's been some time since I last blogged, so to get the rusty old engine cranking again, I decided to do a short piece on my short but enjoyable trip Down Under. The first day was a bummer because I arrived in the morning sans my traveling companion (but we shall not go into that). 

So left alone to my devices, I went on a Curtis Falls Creek Glow Worm tour. It wasn't cheap, but the experience was totally worth the price and the trek into the woods. The driver cum tour guide comes to pick us up  about 6pm and takes us up the Tambourine Mountains. We stop for a short session of light pastries and drinks at a quaint little rustic cafe along the way and for views of the city skyline before ascending higher to the tracks. It was rather chilly at night, so if you are thinking of a forest tour at night, do bring some warm clothes, especially after a rain. 

What I really loved about going up to the mountain were the stars! Being a city dweller means I don't get to see stars that really look like diamonds in the sky. The 3 other Singaporean ladies and I were like 'mountain tortoises' (very apt for this location) as we gaped into the sky and marveled at how sparkly and glittery they were.

The guide was a bag of laughs and very educational at the same time. Along the way, he pointed out some creatures of the night, mainly insects as well as provided first hand insight into why some trunks (as pictured) are hollowed out.

The following picture shows the entrance to the den of the Trap Door Spider. We peeked in, and true enough, a shy but ferocious spider burrows deeper into the tunnel. They can be quite lethal, so we were happy to just take a peek.

One tip for the adventurous: I would recommend bringing some salt along if you are brave enough to do the trekking without a guide. Due to the recent rainfall, leeches were a problem and we were careful to avoid the grass. One Kiwi lady did lose some blood to a small leech. What the salt does as you sprinkle it on the leech, is to cause it to drop off magically! Spot the leech below. Hint: it has a stripe of yellow along its body.

Anyhow, about 20 minutes into the trek, when we reached the end of the route where there was a waterfall and a creek, our guide instructed us to switch off all the small torches we were given and let our eyes adjust to the darkness. After about 3 mins, we were all awe-struck. Into the darkness where were all stared, were greenish specks that were at first very faint, which then grew increasing brighter. It was like a wall of stars and the feeling was really surreal. The glow worms gave off a pulsating gentle light that felt almost dreamlike. It is incomparable to anything I had experienced before. In my ignorance, I decided to take a few pictures so that I can share the magic with my friends. This was supposed to be the spot with the densest colony of glow worms. So, here goes.....nothing.

I pointed my camera and snapped away. Nothing. I used the video camera. Also nothing. 

Unfortunately, there is nothing I can use that can capture that moment and take it home with me. Later I found out that camera flashes were detrimental to the worms. It causes a decline in their population. So, if you wish to experience these rare insects, just enjoy the moment. The other alternative is to go for the man-made cave where glow worms are bred, which i shall blog about subsequently.

The trek up was a lot faster and I found myself lagging behind at the back of the queue. It was a scary experience walking alone in the dark. So, do not attempt this trail alone! The forest is a strange place at night.

Stay tuned for day 2!