On a remote stretch of cliff near Streaky Bay, you can look down on the only permanent colony of Australian sea lions on the mainland.
Most of the world's Australian sea lions breed on remote, hard-to-reach islands. At Point Labatt, on the wild coast south of Streaky Bay, they do something almost unique — they haul out and breed on the mainland, the only permanent colony of its kind in the country.
From the clifftop lookout, high above the surf, you watch them sprawled on the rocks below: great bulls, sleek females and pups, barking and lolling and occasionally heaving themselves into the swell. A viewing platform and the considerable height keep you at a respectful distance, which is exactly as it should be.
A precarious wonder
The Australian sea lion is one of the rarest sea lions in the world, and its numbers have not recovered as hoped despite decades of protection. The species breeds on an unusual, drawn-out cycle, and each colony matters enormously. To see them here, doing what they have done for countless generations, is a privilege that comes with responsibility.
The drive in is long and partly unsealed, and there are no facilities to speak of — bring water, take your time, and keep to the lookout. The reward is one of the great wildlife encounters of the South Australian coast, watched in near silence with the Southern Ocean roaring below.
