Another day, another down un-dah adventure. After spending a weekend swimming above the Great Barrier Reef (WHAT A DREAM!), I waved goodbye to Whitsunday Island and took a Greyhound bus for three hours to Townsville. I got there relatively late and didn’t know how to get into my hostel (it was locked..) so I did a lot of standing around, avoiding drunk young 20-somethings until a security guard saw me outside with my luggage. When I got into my room at Rambutan I wanted to take a quick shower but when I opened the door, a RED cockroach ran across the tiles. ‘Guess I’m not showering tonight’ I thought, and calmly closed the shower door and slid straight into bed.

The next morning I got out of my cockroach infested room (oh ‘Straya!) and hopped on a ferry to the magnificent Magnetic Island! There’s a 99.9% chance if you’re not from Australia, you’ve never heard of this mountainous, magical place. It’s right off the shore from Townsville and essentially one giant national park, with wallabies and echidnas running astray.

My friend Delainha (whom I met in London, England!) works at Bungalow Bay, a hostel and koala park on the island. She was generous enough to let me stay at her place for the four days, three nights I spent on Maggie.

The first morning I woke up early to enjoy an avocado toast and smoothie at The Early Bird. It was a tad pricey (I think the total was around $20?), but a nice treat to kick-off my island adventure.

The beaches on Maggie were unbelievable and there’s plenty to choose from such as Picnic Bay, Nelly Bay, Horseshoe Bay, and my favourite.. RADICAL BAY! Think coconuts, warm waters, soft sand, and even a rustic piano along the shoreline because, why not?

Next on the itinerary was the Forts Walk, a 4km hike I did with a couple new friends, and it was one of my favourite activities on the island. Not only because it lead to WWII forts and breathtaking views, but simply because I saw my first WILD koala! Doing WILD koala things! Aka, sleeping. BUT LOOK AT HOW CUTE!

On my last day on Maggie, Delainha recommended I go horseback riding at Horseshoe Bay Ranch, and was told to bring a bathing suit. “Why are we going into the water?” I giggled to her. “UMM, YES!” She responded excitedly. I’ve galloped on a horse a couple times in my life but never have I SWAM WITH ONE!

The next morning I was assigned a horse named Crikey, who was sweet but TBH, was half asleep the entire trek. After an hour of trotting through bushland, the instructors unsaddled our horses and we rode bareback into the ocean. We were told to hold onto the horses mane to stay on and we splashed our way until the water was waist deep on us – it was a wild experience!

OH YES! IT’S VLOG TIME! Delainha and I rent motorbikes (and have an unfortunate accident), I witness the most beautiful sunset I’ve ever seen, and make-out with a blue tonged lizard. You know, the usual. ENJOY!