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Image: Bungle Bungle Range, Western Australia | CREDIT: Western Australia

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Click here to read our Natural Wonders article part 2

Natural wonders

Header image: Murchison, Western Australia | CREDIT: Tourism Australia

to be discovered Down Under

In this deep dive into Australia’s incredible offerings, David Whitley picks out places to go – as diverse as they are dazzling – that make the country’s great outdoors irresistible

Forester kangaroo at Springlawn Tasmania CREDIT: Samuel Shelley

On Tasmania’s north coast, the Springlawn section of Narawntapu National Park is home to abundant wildlife – particularly the smaller marsupials that don’t tend to grab the headlines. Come at dusk, and they all emerge from the bush – Forester kangaroos (pictured) here, pademelons there, Bennetts wallabies a little further along the Springlawn Nature Walk, which is an easy three-mile, two-hour circuit around the lagoon.

Meet the mini-marsupial crowd

Lake Reeve, Victoria | CREDIT: Alamy

In Victoria’s peaceful Lakes National Park, the wetlands around Lake Reeve are a prime location for migratory birds. Put the binoculars down for a while, though, and you can see rare orchids on the park’s walking trails, and stop for a swim in the lakes. Stay at the Emu Bight Campground, and you’ll have a good chance of seeing koalas, wombats and echidnas.

Watch birds at Lake Reeve

Crocodile at Yellow Waters, Northern Territory CREDIT: Tourism NT, Sean Scott

Yellow Water is a serene spot where lily pads bob and bare-trunked paperbark trees rise. No-one’s jumping off the boat for a swim though. A big croc is watching from the banks of Kakadu National Park’s most beloved billabong. The Aboriginal-run Yellow Water Cruises come packed with knowledgeable commentary, and the guide’s respect for the billabong’s massive saltwater crocodiles is evident throughout.

Cruise with crocodiles

Kangaroos at Pebbly Beach, New South Wales | CREDIT: Tourism Australia

The winding road to Pebbly Beach slithers through the thickly-forested Murramarang National Park, then emerges at the campground. On the dunes behind this seductively curving NSW South Coast beach are not just a few kangaroos, but dozens of them. They graze a while, then provide the perfect Australian photo moment, bounding off over the sand.

… Or kangaroos

Emu at Coffin Bay, South Australia | CREDIT: Tourism Australia

The surf and white sand of Almonta Beach on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula are tempting, but don’t expect to have it to yourself. Coffin Bay National Park is home to thousands of strutting, boldly confident emus, and they happily amble across the sand. After emu-enhanced beach time, head for the tiny town of Coffin Bay – here, the oyster farms provide world-class freshly shucked oysters.

See emus on the beach…

Possum at Byron Bay, New South Wales | CREDIT: Tourism Australia

It’s after dark in the Nightcap National Park, in the north east of New South Wales, but not much seems to be sleeping. The frogs are out, as are the possums (pictured), tawny frogmouths, bandicoots and microbats. Usually, this activity in the Gondwana Rainforests World Heritage Area goes unseen by humans, but Vision Walks of Byron Bay, NSW, provides military-grade night-vision goggles. Guests can see the rainforest action without using torches that would spook the wildlife.

Spot nocturnal wildlife with night-vision goggles

Wilsons Promontory National Park, Victoria CREDIT: Visit Victoria, Mark Watson

As the sun sets over Wilsons Promontory National Park in Victoria, something scuttles across in front of the decking of the Tidal River Cabins. It’s furry, it’s sturdy and it’s faintly comical – and the wombat sighting completes a day of frequent wildlife encounters, from roos on the walking trails to chirruping crimson rosellas in the trees.

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