Where We Be
Koalas sleep roughly 20 hours a day so we were really glad to
see them awake during our visit to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary
Noosa & Koala Sanctuary, Australia
We drove 2½ hours from Hervey Bay to Noosa
Heads to explore a little more of Queensland's
Sunshine Coast. Noosa Heads is a popular
coastal town that's super-easy to like with its
beautiful beaches, coastal hiking trails, and
pedestrian-friendly Hastings Street. Our one
notable activity here was hiking Noosa Heads
Coastal Walk, a 3½ mile (6 km) hike one way.  
We enjoyed great scenery -- and, to top it off,
lucked out and saw our first koala in the wild.
He was fast asleep in the nook of a eucalyptus
tree. We couldn't have been more excited.

Next morning we got the chance to see dozens
of koalas up close (and awake) at Lone Pine
Koala Sanctuary. Located on the outskirts of
Brisbane, this is a must-do if you love animals.
(Either this or the equally popular Australia Zoo
north of Brisbane with its ties to Steve Irwin.)
Besides getting to pet a koala, we were able to
observe dozens of them at feeding time, which
meant they were practically hyperactive by
koala standards. Equally fun (and unexpected)
was getting to hand-feed kangaroos. There
was also a raptor free flight show and a sheep
dog demo to enjoy. Plan on at least half a day.
We actually tried to start the hike at the other end but the parking lot was
full, so we drove to Seaview Terrace car park and easily found parking
This is Sunshine Beach, the starting point for our
Noosa Heads Coastal Walk (see map below)
At this point the trail started to climb so we put on our tevas and began to hike
The views of Sunshine Beach got better and better the higher we climbed
Wow! We're so glad we started from the "wrong" end of this hike!
We walked past a craggy headlands known as the Devil’s Kitchen (left),
then eventually back down the other side to Alexandria Beach (right)
Alexandria Beach was another beautiful beach and we had it almost all to ourselves
We crested another hill and eventually made it to Hell’s Gates.
The views of Alexandria Beach from here were outstanding.
We continued a bit further and took this photo looking towards
Dolphin Point, then turned around and retraced our steps
Early on we came across these Aussie surfers enjoying their morning
We hiked up to Boiling Pot overlook before turning around. Our real hope
was to see a koala in one of the eucalyptus groves surrounding the trail.
Happily we came across a family on the trail looking up and pointing
and sure enough there was a cute koala sleeping in the branches above
Seeing a koala in the wild really made our day!
There are about 130 koalas here. That's a lot of koala mouths to feed!
Koalas love eucalyptus leaves. Each day the staff bring in bushels of fresh leaves at feeding time.
This is when koalas are most active -- and in fact climb over each other to get at the best leaves.
Koalas have three fingers and two opposable thumbs -- and long sharp claws -- for good gripping
A highlight of any visit here is getting your picture taken for free with a koala
and getting to feel how soft their fur is. It costs a bit extra to hold one yourself.
A good overview of the relative sizes of the larger marsupials
A pleasant surprise was the free-range kangaroo paddock where you could hand-feed kangaroos.
(Note the young child in the background apparently having a staring contest with one of the roos!)
Favorite moment: When the kangaroo at back put her forepaws ever so gently
on Robin's hand, as if to say, "Don't forget about me, I'd like some more too."
We bought grain at the general store for 2 AUD (~$1.50)
per bag and it was quite popular with the roos
We loved that the kangaroos had a large roped-off area that they could go to for undisturbed rest.
If they wanted to interact with people they would hop out of the roped area and come over for a visit.
They seem to enjoy getting
pets and massages from people
The sanctuary is also home to dingos, wombats,
Tasmanian devils, and other Australian animals
We saw flocks of these sulphur crested cockatoos flying free all over
Australia. Parrots, parakeets, and cockatoos are quite common here.
Of course everyone knows how deadly Australian animals can be, but the
closest we got to any dangerous snakes was here at the koala sanctuary
We finished off our visit with a sheep dog demo. But these sheep had obviously
been through the routine so many times they practically herded themselves!
Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary
Of course the koalas are the main attraction
Located only 7 miles (12 km) from downtown Brisbane, this is the world's first and
largest koala sanctuary. As of 2019 an adult daily pass is 42 AUD (~$30 US) each.
Noosa Heads
We walked with our feet in the water until we
reached the northern end of the beach (up ahead)
Next morning, bright and early, we started the same
hike from the other end now that parking was available
There's a lot to see and do here, especially with all the daily shows and activities available
(lorikeet feeding, free flight raptor show, sheep dog show, meet a koala, platypus keeper talk, etc.)
I'm as tall as a wallaroo at 6 feet but the tallest
red kangaroos have me beat at nearly 7 feet!
The free flight raptor show was definitely worthwhile,
with owls and hawks zooming just inches over our heads
And we'll never forget the crazy morning wakeup call of the kookaburra.
They make the same sound at dusk. Click here for a sound bite.
Noosa Heads is on the Sunshine Coast, roughly equidistant between Brisbane and Hervey Bay, so it made for a good
overnight stop on our way back to Brisbane. Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary is only a 20-minute drive from Brisbane city center.