Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaleditions.com/i/142338
regionalstopover Nature loving Magnetic Island is 52 square kilometres and has around 2,500 residents. As it's only a half-hour, eight-kilometre ride across on the ferry from the mainland, it's become like a suburb of Townsville, with many of Maggie's residents commuting across the sea to work. As soon as I become immersed in the island, it's as if a weight drops off me. Cruising along the winding roads with a thousand palm trees in sight, I feel as though I'm a million miles from city life, and yet I can see Townsville on the horizon from some of the many lookouts. There are plenty of bushwalks on Maggie but recently, $4.85 million dollars was invested in Gabul Way, a 710-metre-long, elevated steel pathway that hugs the side of the island from Nelly Bay to Arcadia. It's Maggie's little answer to Victoria's Great Ocean Road, and pedestrians and cyclists are loving it. Wildlife on the island is also plentiful, with 54 per cent of the terrain designated as national parkland. It's a twitchers' paradise, too, with around 186 species of birds. And at Arcadia barge landing on Geoffrey Bay, there is a large colony of quite tame rock wallabies. There's an ongoing debate about whether the wallabies should or shouldn't be fed; some foods can damage their digestive systems and many think it's better that they forage for themselves. If you're still keen to get up close, the correct wallaby feeding pellet packs can be purchased from the Nelly Bay Fish & Fuel shop on Mandalay Avenue, Nelly Bay. After a leisurely airborne walk, I head to Horseshoe Bay, where a cluster of buzzing cafés, restaurants and galleries, and a pub called the Marlin Bar are idyllically positioned beside the beach, palm trees and glistening waters beckoning to those who stop for lunch. With hearty portions of beachside-inspired pub grub (chicken Caesar salads, calamari and chips), a great wine cellar, a bottle shop and live music sessions on Sundays, it's a popular hangout all year 'round. View of the 'Ville' Handing over Barbie's car keys, I stroll to the jetty and join other commuters for the afternoon ferry back to Townsville. I promise myself I will return one day soon to the lovely, laidback community of Maggie – but for now, the big smoke beckons. When I disembark, I plan to take a walk to the top of Townsville's natural icon: Castle Hill.