Retirement in Kiama suits Karen Gili, but there is still plenty she wants to see beyond home. At 64, she joins an annual hiking holiday with women from Punch Love, the women’s boxing gym in Annangrove and Windsor where she was a member for years.

Their latest adventure took them to Kangaroo Island, and Karen has plenty of reasons to return.

There were koalas outside her accommodation and coastal walks with seals in view. The experience she remembers most, though, involved pulling on a wetsuit and getting into 12-degree water.

“Swimming with the seals was something very special,” Karen says. “We were blessed to have guides who were as excited as we were, and they really made it fun.”

For Karen, the company is a big part of these annual holidays. She was a member of Punch Love, a women’s boxing gym in Annangrove and Windsor, for years.

Although she has since retired to Kiama, she remains part of the group and joins owner Karina’s trips away.

Karen credits Karina and her coaches with helping women build confidence and friendships that extend well beyond the gym. Those friendships have already taken the group to Tasmania and Bali, where a women-only retreat offered a more leisurely holiday with yoga and massages.

Previous adventures have included Flinders Island and mainland Tasmania, with some memorable wildlife encounters along the way. The women have climbed mountains and nursed and fed wombats. Their Bali retreat also made room for shopping, with meals included and plenty of opportunities to unwind between activities.
Karen speaks warmly of the work Karina does for women’s health and fitness. Having moved away, she still has a place among the Punch Love ladies, and their annual holiday gives her a way to keep those connections going.

This year, Kangaroo Island was the destination, with the conversation and laughter starting at Sydney Airport as the women speculated about the week ahead.
A night in Adelaide came first. Having found the city more sedate on previous visits, Karen was pleasantly surprised by its busy dining and bar scene. After dinner and drinks, the women headed to bed ahead of their journey to the island.

Their guides collected them by bus for the drive to the ferry, which carried them across to Penneshaw in fine weather. The bus would be their transport for the week, and Karen soon appreciated how much ground there was to cover.

“One thing that completely stumped me was the size of the island,” she says. “So much bigger than I imagined.”

At their holiday park, the group stayed in cabins Karen says had been rebuilt following the island’s devastating bushfires. A mother koala and her baby were regular visitors, wandering through the grounds and climbing trees while the women settled into their island stay.

Their outings included Admirals Arch, where they watched fur seals, and the underground caves at Kelly Hill. At Seal Bay Conservation Park, they saw sea lions in their natural habitat, while Remarkable Rocks offered a close look at the enormous granite formations.

Stokes Bay was another favourite. Reaching the beach meant squeezing through a passage between boulders before emerging onto soft sand beside beautifully coloured water and rock pools.

The group also walked a section of the Kangaroo Island Wilderness Trail. Karen found their hike manageable, with coastal views and opportunities to watch seals playing and sunning themselves along the way.

Getting into the water with seals was the highlight. Despite the cold, Karen loved the encounter and felt some of the animals were playing with the swimmers.

“It was my most memorable time, and I would recommend it,” she says.

She would happily return for a week or longer. Her advice is to collect the free Kangaroo Island magazine on the ferry for ideas. She also recommends leaving time for the cellar doors, where the food and wine were a drawcard. Visitors should pack for cool nights even when sunny days are forecast. The honey farms and gin distilleries are also on her list of places worth visiting.

There is already plenty planned for 2027. Karen and her husband intend to walk the Camino del Norte in Spain after completing the Camino Francés this year. She will also join the Punch Love women for camping and hiking in the Red Centre, including exploring Uluru.

A family holiday to Fiji with their sons, daughters-in-law and grandchildren will offer a different sort of adventure.

While her group holidays come with organised activities, Karen prefers to leave room for spontaneity when planning her own travels.

“I am open to everything and willing to give most things a try,” she says. “I am confident in saying that I have never had a bad holiday, as I look at it all as part of the experience of trying something new.”