Since we’re stuck in Townsville without an engine or charging system, we decided to rent a car and explore. Just outside town is a place called Billabong Sanctuary. It’s a big petting zoo with Australian animals. It was excellent! We were allowed to feed kangaroos, wallabees and hold a koala bear and pet other koalas. I’ve always wanted to do that. The koalas are as soft and adorable as you imagine. The female we held put up with having person after person hold her. She got a little tired of it by the time Susan got her turn, but still she was good natured about it.

The pademelon wallabees were adorable. They held onto your fingers as they ate. They’re small and redish. We could see one had a joey in her pouch that was jumping around in there.

There were ENORMOUS crockadiles there. The salt water ones are fierce. We certainly don’t want to see these guys in the wild. They warm yachties not to hang their legs over the sides of their dinghys if they’re in croc areas. Mostly they like river outlets in murky water. So, it’s not someplace we’d be in the water anyway.