THIS ISLAND’S LIFE

KANGAROO ISLAND

Almost half of Kangaroo Island – 211,255ha, mostly in the west – has been razed by bushfires this summer. Two people died, 65 homes and hundreds of other buildings have been destroyed. Among the endangered wildlife species further imperilled are the KI glossy black-cockatoo and KI dunnart, a small marsupial endemic to the island.

VANTAGE POINTS were rare in Flinders Chase. The densely wooded tracks through Kangaroo Island’s beloved national park gave little away. Drive south, however, and the road curves to a lookout atop Bunker Hill. This ancient dune crest was once a favourite spot to pull over at. Here, locals could recount a miracle of rebirth, the resurgence of an entire woodland realm following the December 2007 bushfires that tore through 85 per cent of the park.

On the last day of last year I stopped here with a German couple I was guiding around my island home. Under crisp blue skies we gazed across an undulating expanse of close-packed mallee scrub. This lavish sea of green growth dipped and rolled all the way to the