What are Australia’s most dangerous islands?
It depends how you define most dangerous, but there are certainly some Australian islands you want to be very careful on. Australia’s most dangerous islands include shipwreck-strewn Wardang Island, tiger snake-riddled Carnac Island, the great white sharks of the Neptune Islands.
Wardang Island, South Australia
Wardang Island might not strike fear in most of us, but ship captains rightly fear it. This low-lying island off South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula has accumulated nine shipwrecks. Given Wardang Island is only around 20 square kilometres in area, that’s quite the achievement. It may be one of Australia’s most dangerous islands, but it is now popular with wreck divers. The Wardang Island Maritime Heritage Trail has more information on the wrecks.
The Houtman-Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia
The Houtman-Abrolhos archipelago off the coast of Geraldton in Western Australia is also something of a shipwreck magnet. It also contains Australia’s most notorious shipwreck – the Batavia. This Dutch ship crashed into the reef off Beacon Island in 1629. The ensuing tale of mass slaughter and daring rescue on the Houtman-Abrolhos Islands is crying out to be made into a film. Geraldton Air Charter runs tours that fly over Beacon Island and land on nearby East Wallabi Island. The drive from Perth to Geraldton takes around four-and-a-half hours.
Quail Island, Northern Territory
On the opposite side of the Cox Peninsula from Darwin, Quail Island has an exclusion zone around it. For decades since 1910, the military has used Quail and the nearby Northern Territory islands for weapons testing. Quail Island is covered in unexploded ordnance, and the strong possibility of being blown to pieces makes it one of the most dangerous islands in Australia.
A clean-up operation is underway, and has been since 2011. Don’t expect Quail Island to feature in holiday brochures any time soon, though.
Carnac Island, Western Australia
Several islands south-west of Perth in Western Australia are ideal for animal lovers. Tours head out to Penguin Island and Seal Island, for example. The names give away what these islands are famous for.
Carnac Island, however, is much less appealing. It is absolutely teeming with very deadly tiger snakes – some of the most dangerous snakes in Australia. No-one quite knows how they got there. One theory is that a local showman released his collection after they killed both his wife and his partner.
The Neptune Islands, South Australia
Off the coast of Port Lincoln on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula, the Neptune Islands are covered in hundreds of seals. This is lovely if you want to look at seals, but absolutely deadly if you fancy a swim. For great white sharks, this is basically an all-you-can-eat buffet.
The Neptune Islands are, however, the only place in Australia where it’s possible to do a shark cage dive.
The Governor Islands, Western Australia
Saltwater crocodiles are found in many coastal parts of northern Australia. The Governor Islands in the far north of the Kimberley region are no exception. In 2013, New Zealander Ryan Blair had his kayaking trip rudely interrupted by a six metre crocodile.
He spent over two weeks stranded on these tiny islands in the Timor Sea, hemmed in by an aggressive six metre croc. The menacing crocodile moved to pounce every time Blair attempted an escape. A boat eventually rescued the Kiwi kayaker, but he had to leave all his possessions on the island.
Fraser Island, Queensland
Fraser Island in Queensland is famed for its wild dingoes. But Australia’s golden dogs aren’t all that scary or dangerous as long as you keep a respectful distance. Don’t feed or antagonise the Fraser Island dingoes, and they’ll more than likely leave you alone. The sea off the eastern coast? That’s best avoided too. There are plenty of sharks out there, and the swell can get fierce, as the SS Maheno when it famously got shipwrecked on 75 Mile Beach.
The real fear factor, however, comes in driving round Fraser Island. That’s especially the case for visitors who have conned themselves into thinking they have more 4WD experience than they actually have. Bogged-down 4WD vehicles are a common sight, while many get caught out by the tides. For inexperienced drivers, a tag-along tour is probably the best middle ground between safety and adventure. If that sounds a bit too much like hard work, try organised tours or guided bush food walks instead.