“The happiest times of my life were all spent at Hanson Bay. The reason it was so happy was because it felt like it was my spiritual place, the place where I belonged. In the nature of it—the nature of the sea; the beach; the walking; the swimming; the canoeing. Just being on the beach or in the shack. It was home.
I used to dream of flying along a beach, first one beach, then a second beach and a third beach. One day we went to Hanson Bay and I said ‘Oh my God, this is my beach.’ I had dreamt it for years even though I had never been to Kangaroo Island. It really was special; it was coming to me all those years.
1991 was the first time we went and stayed at Hanson Bay and we returned there every summer for five or six weeks from then on. When we bought our home on Kangaroo Island and moved here twelve years ago, we became the custodians of one of the shacks at Hanson Bay and lived there a quarter of the year if not more. In some ways we could’ve lived there all the time, we loved it so much.” Wendy
“I have to agree with Wendy—my happiest times have always been there. Just bushwalking, fishing, being on the beach, swimming and thoroughly enjoying it all. When I am there, I understand what Aboriginal culture says about Dreamtime. There is an ageless quality about it as if it’s always been there and as if I have always been there as well. I can just slot into that timelessness and of course the beautiful wildlife, sea birds, sea eagles, ospreys, dolphins, penguins—it is just utterly gorgeous.” Paul
“When we lost the shack and went back the first time, my daughter said to me, ‘Mum, just keep your back to the land, because Hanson Bay is still the same. Look at the sea and the sand and don’t look behind and you will feel it is still all there.’ And it’s true, the beach is still the same. The vegetation hasn’t grown back enough, it’s still so bare and I don’t really feel drawn to going back at the moment. One day. Hanson Bay is still there but it’s just not the same without the shack. The truth is though, that other than the fact we lost the shack, everything about Hanson Bay that we loved is still there and available, except for the plants. But they will come back.” Wendy
