Rottnest

Rottnest Island is small island just 17 km from Perth (for more info, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rottnest_Island). We planned to stay two nights, but after seeing the beaches, we extended our stay to three nights.



One of the best aspects of Rottnest is that no cars are allowed -- so you either hoof it or ride bikes. Thanks to Norman and his endless shed, we all had wheels.



Rottnest has the most incredible beaches -- from rocky coves to soft, white sand expanses. Each day we would ride bikes to a different spot on the island. Most of the time, we were the only ones there. The water was crystal clear and beautiful shades of turquoise, blue and green.



But for the kids, the quokkas were the highlight of the trip. What is a quokka? A quokka is a marsupial -- like a small, round kangaroo. The earliest Dutch explorers mistook them for rats (hence the name "rat nest" Island). Rottnest is one of the only places where quokkas are still found. For more info, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quokka

In one of Sode's "quick writes" she said: I love Rottnest Island. We got to pet a quokka. I kept saying that they are so cute. If you saw one, you would say they are so cute. Oh, what are quokkas? They look like rats. Big rats. They are also nocturnal. But you still see them in the day.

Every morning and evening, Daley and Sode shot picture after picture of the quokkas. These are but a few samples. Thank goodness for digital cameras.



In addition to multitude of quokkas, we saw huge sting rays steps from the beach and a black snake that we almost ran over with our bikes. If there weren't dangerous critters, it wouldn't be Australia!