Kangaroos in Cape Hillsborough | Mackay Region

February 6, 2021 Australia, Beach, Oceania

Kangaroos in Cape Hillsborough | Mackay Region

By Roberto – (Updated Jan 23)

⏱ 4 min

In our 5-week epic road trip in East Australia, we moved gradually to the north from NSW to Queensland. One of the must-stop places on our journey had to be the Mackay Region because it is the home of the platypus and some tropical hikes, but also for the kangaroos in Cape Hillsborough.

Cape Hillsborough National Park is located on a peninsula in the north of Mackay. Getting there is a 90-minute drive from Eungella National Park and we absolutely recommend spending one night and one morning there! The experience is unique.

Eungella National Park Finch hatton gorge hike

Finch Hatton Gorge at Eungella National Park

After our disappointing “encounter” with the platypus in Broken River, we decided to visit this little area. Cape Hillsborough, also in the Mackay Region, offers one of the best experiences in the world with the kangaroos, where they visit the main beach every morning to eat. But… to eat what?

Why do kangaroos visit Cape Hillsborough?

The natural habitat of the kangaroos is not the beach, that’s clear. When I was doing research about why you can find kangaroos and wallabies on the beach, there were two theories. One says that locals used to feed them regularly in the morning at the beach at sunrise, and because of that, they go there every morning to see if there is food for them.

The other alternative, more natural, is that they go there to eat seagrass that the sea leaves when the tide goes down, which makes sense. We didn’t see any left food on the sand or seagrass either, so we can’t confirm either of these theories. What is true, is that they go to the beach every day in the early morning.

How to have the best experience in a sunrise with kangaroos?

The good thing is that the encounter with the kangaroos and wallabies (smaller and with thinner legs) is almost guaranteed. The bad news is that you’re going to wake up really early and you won’t be alone. First, you have to check what time the sun rises. This is of vital importance, because the animals only go and stay there for around 20 minutes.

_{The views of the sunrise with the kangaroos at the background is SO unique}

Imagine you drove all the way here and went to the beach at 8 am asking where the kangaroos are… and people tell you that was hours ago. If you go there late, you won’t see any! So, once you know when the sunrise is, wake up 10 minutes before and go to the beach. We woke up at 4:40 when it was still dark outside.

taking photos of kangaroos at Cape Hillsborough

Kangaroos at the beach in Cape Hillsborough

The beach is literally ten meters from the camping grounds of Cape Hillsborough Nature Park where you should stay. But that means it is also only ten meters for the other tourists to join you. Don’t expect to be alone at the beach, surrounded by the animals. We found more people than animals in a midweek day, with the COVID pandemic over there. Imagine how far from unique it can be on a busy weekend.

Another rule is: not to feed the animals. They are not there to eat your cookies or salami. You can affect their digestive system by doing that. Observe them, respect them and don’t touch them. You can get close to them – they are not afraid of humans – but they can attack, biting or slashing your clothes.

For taking photos, the best tool is going to be a tele lens. Something beyond 50 mm may work, but if you have a 70-200 mm, that would be great. I got mine at 75 mm with the Tamron lens.

My travel photography gear 📷

^{To make decent portraits, use your longest and most luminous lens, and move up the ISO to freeze the movement of the animals.}

In addition to the animals, that basically move around there while visitors try to take photos, you will experience an amazing sunrise. Cape Hillsborough beach is fabulous and the location is excellent for colorful sunrises. Enjoy this experience!

Other plans in the area

Cape Hillsborough’s best experience is the sunrise with kangaroos, but there are other options if you want to relax in the area. People stay just one night – to see the kangaroos in the morning – and pass the time doing other activities. The best walk one can do is the Wedge Island Trail. Basically it goes along all the beach and connects two lookouts.

If you are lucky enough, there is even the possibility – only in low tides – to go to Wedge Island. In Australia, the sea level goes up and down really fast, compared to other parts of the world. There are multiple apps and websites which will show you the information about the tides.

In our case, after the sunrise, we slept again for two hours 😴 and went to the next destination: Airlie Beach. We wanted to go to the Whitsundays at the end of our epic road trip, but we really needed a break from the van.

That’s why Ellen decided that we would spend 3 days on Hayman Island. In this post, we detail you ALL the information you need about this fantastic island and its 5-star resort.