Koala in Canoe: Adventurous Koala Swims to Boat, Tries to Hitch a Ride

Koalas aren’t exactly known for their swimming prowess considering that the majority of their lives are spent doing a whole lot of nothing in trees, but one adventurous koala decided to take a break from, well, taking a break, to hop into a creek and surprise a few canoers.

Julie Elliott and her friends were canoeing in a creek along the Gold Coast when they spotted a koala testing the waters of the creek. Before long, the curious koala walked into the creek, and proceeded to swim towards the surprised onlookers.

The koala actually tried to climb into the canoe and, with a little help, he managed to do just that–and, by the looks of the video, he loved it. Of course, the canoers didn’t sail off with the koala on-board–after everyone had had their fill of the bizarre sight, the koala was ushered back to land.

“Of course we couldn’t sail away down the creek with him because we’d be taking him out of its environment,” Elliott told the Daily Mail. “So after a short time during which we just sat and stared at our unexpected crew member, we paddled back to the embankment and lifted him back onto solid ground. I’ve been paddling along that particular creek for the best part of 10 years and never seen anything like a swimming koala before.”

You can check out several videos of the koala catching a ride in the canoe for yourself directly below.