WALKING

Rhyll is a walker's paradise. Step out our front gate and within 10 minutes you are high on a cliff overlooking the Rhyll Inlet, a huge tidal swathe of golden sandbars and tributaries winding deep into dense mangroves. These world-class wetlands are home to hundreds of black swans, pelicans, oyster-catchers and migratory wading birds.

Turn right and it's an easy 30 minute stroll around the headland to the creature comforts of Rhyll village.

The more adventurous should turn left and follow the walking track along the ridge line past grazing sheep and fabulous views of the inlet and beyond to French Island and Mornington Peninsula. After winding down to sea level, the track gives way to a boardwalk enabling a close up view of the mangroves and the delicate tidal understory, before arriving at Conservation Hill car park.

Continue on through paperbark and banksia forest to the Koala Conservation Centre at Cowes. Allow about 2 hours for the one-way journey. Enjoy the koalas, then head back to Rhyll via a number of deviations offering a variety of experiences. The later you walk, the more wallabies you'll encounter along the trail.