# An Inaccessible Island Holiday

An episode of [Animal Tales: The Kids' Story Podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1644596989), 26 Jul 2026, 18 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/73126875/at517_aninaccessibleislandholiday_mixdown.mp3

An island, far out in the Atlantic Ocean, receives a small, fluffy visitor. Written especially for this podcast by Alice. If you enjoyed this story, please do leave us a review. And, if you'd like to suggest an animal for a future Animal Tales story, you can do so by emailing podcast@animaltales.uk. We would love to hear from you. Animal Tales Books! Collections of Animal Tales children’s stories are available to buy exclusively at Amazon. Simply search for Animal Tales Short Stories or follow this link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CLJQZ9C9?binding=paperback&ref=dbs_dp_sirpi Become a PREMIUM Subscriber You can now enjoy Animal Tales by becoming a Premium Subscriber. This gets you: • All episodes in our catalogue advert-free • Bonus Premium-only episodes (one per week) which will never be used on the main podcast • We guarantee to use one of your animal suggestions in a story You can sign up through Apple Podcasts or through Supercast and there are both monthly and yearly plans available. Discover a brand new story every Monday, Wednesday and Friday – just for you! You can find more Animal Tales at www.animaltales.uk A Note About The Adverts In order to allow us to make these stories we offer a premium subscription and run adverts. The adverts are not chosen by us, but played automatically depending on the platform you listen through (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc) and the country you live in. The adverts may even be different if you listen to the story twice. We have had a handful of instances where an advert has played that is not suitable for a family audience, despite the podcast clearly being labelled for children. If you’re concerned about an advert you hear, please contact the platform you are listening to directly. Spotify, in particular, has proven problematic in the past, for both inappropriate adverts and the volume at which the adverts play. If you find this happening, please let Spotify know via their Facebook customer care page. As creators, we want your child’s experience to be a pleasurable one. Running adverts is necessary to allow us to operate, but please do consider the premium subscription service as an alternative – it’s advert free.

## Transcript

[0:12] Speaker 1: Hey, yey, hello. My name's Josephine and this is the
[0:17] Speaker 1: Animal Tales podcast, where you suggest the animals featured in
[0:21] Speaker 1: our stories. There are new tales to enjoy every Monday
[0:26] Speaker 1: and Wednesday, with a third story for premium members every Friday.
[0:31] Speaker 1: To learn more about Animal Tales, please visit our new
[0:35] Speaker 1: website at Animaltales dot uk, where you can now find
[0:39] Speaker 1: stories more easily by animal type. Jackson and Meadow are
[0:45] Speaker 1: from Texas in the USA, and they would like a
[0:48] Speaker 1: story featuring a Quaker and an inaccessible island rail. You
[0:54] Speaker 1: can learn more about these creatures in the animal facts
[0:57] Speaker 1: after the story. Okay you ready, that's good, then I'll
[1:02] Speaker 1: begin an inaccessible island holiday. Meadow sat on her rock
[1:11] Speaker 1: on the hill, staring out across the ocean. It was
[1:15] Speaker 1: a day just like any other. The skies were gray,
[1:19] Speaker 1: the wind was strong, and the little flightless bird was
[1:23] Speaker 1: bored as there wasn't much to do, not on this
[1:27] Speaker 1: little island below her, The gray ocean lapped at the
[1:32] Speaker 1: gray beach. The gentle, repetitive sound was making Meadow feel sleepy.
[1:39] Speaker 1: She often had a nap in the afternoon to pass
[1:41] Speaker 1: the time, and she thought that maybe she should have
[1:44] Speaker 1: one now, after all, she had nothing better to do. Hello,
[1:51] Speaker 1: called a joyful voice, startling Meadow. Alert. Along the beach,
[1:56] Speaker 1: there was a small boat drifting away from the shore,
[2:00] Speaker 1: while closer too stood a strange, fluffy brown animal. The
[2:04] Speaker 1: creature was wearing a bright colorful shirt, a pair of sunglasses,
[2:09] Speaker 1: and was dragging a large suitcase up the hill. Hello,
[2:15] Speaker 1: the animal said, again, smiling broadly. Can you direct me
[2:20] Speaker 1: to the resort the what, asked Meadow blankly. The resort,
[2:27] Speaker 1: the animal repeated, You know, the hotel with the pool
[2:32] Speaker 1: and the dining room and a lovely comfy bedroom. I'm sorry,
[2:38] Speaker 1: Meadow answered, I don't know what that is. The animal
[2:44] Speaker 1: began pulling out papers from a compartment of his suitcase.
[2:48] Speaker 1: Here it is, he said, still smiling, the Golden Sands Resort. Ah.
[2:55] Speaker 1: I know what must have happened. I must have got
[2:58] Speaker 1: off on the wrong beach. Is this the South beach
[3:01] Speaker 1: of Hawaii or the North beach? You haven't got the
[3:06] Speaker 1: wrong beach, said Meadow, more the wrong island. This isn't Hawaii.
[3:12] Speaker 1: That's a long, long long way from here, oh, said
[3:18] Speaker 1: the animal, removing his sunglasses for a better look around.
[3:23] Speaker 1: So where is this then this is inaccessible Island, said
[3:29] Speaker 1: Meadow proudly. You're in the Atlantic Ocean, you see, not
[3:34] Speaker 1: the Pacific, Oh dear, said the animal. I seem to
[3:39] Speaker 1: have messed up my destination. What did you say? This
[3:42] Speaker 1: place is called again, inaccessible Island, repeated Meadow as she
[3:49] Speaker 1: hopped down from her rock, the wind ruffling her feathers
[3:52] Speaker 1: as she did. So. It's called that by the humans
[3:56] Speaker 1: because they can't swim or fly here. They can only
[4:00] Speaker 1: come by boat, and boats only come a few times
[4:03] Speaker 1: each year. How extraordinary, said the animal, flicking through his
[4:08] Speaker 1: papers again. Meadow had never seen anything like this fluffy
[4:13] Speaker 1: animal before. Inaccessible Island didn't have fluffy animals, just birds,
[4:20] Speaker 1: fish and fur seals. What are you exactly, she asked,
[4:26] Speaker 1: trying to sound polite. I'm a Quaker, said the animal.
[4:32] Speaker 1: My name's Jackson. I'm from Australia. I've heard of Australia,
[4:38] Speaker 1: she replied. I'm Meadow, and I'm an inaccessible island rail
[4:44] Speaker 1: That's quite a mouthful, said Jackson, before remembering he was
[4:49] Speaker 1: dragging a large suit case. So tell me, Meadow, is
[4:53] Speaker 1: there a buffet around here? A beach you could recommend?
[4:57] Speaker 1: Are the hiking trails, good, Meadow looked, unsure. I don't
[5:03] Speaker 1: know what a buffet is. The beaches are all rocks,
[5:07] Speaker 1: and there are no trails as such. I just sort
[5:11] Speaker 1: of go wherever I want, she said. Then what will
[5:15] Speaker 1: I do during my stay? Jackson asked? The boat isn't
[5:20] Speaker 1: coming back until next week. I need to fill my
[5:23] Speaker 1: time somehow. Could you at least show me to where
[5:27] Speaker 1: I could sleep? Meadow nodded, then pointed towards some shrubs.
[5:33] Speaker 1: It was the best that she could offer. Thank you,
[5:37] Speaker 1: smiled the Quaker as he dragged his suit case towards them.
[5:42] Speaker 1: He seemed positive, she thought, but thought that he'd be
[5:46] Speaker 1: bored by the day's end. Meadow didn't see Jackson again
[5:51] Speaker 1: until the following morning. She found the Quaker doing weird
[5:55] Speaker 1: stretches at the top of the cliff. He smiled when
[5:59] Speaker 1: she approached. T Did you sleep all right, the little
[6:03] Speaker 1: rail asked. It wasn't quite the feather bed I was expecting,
[6:08] Speaker 1: but the dry leaves were good enough, Jackson replied, and
[6:13] Speaker 1: I got to watch the wonderful sunrise. You saw a sunrise,
[6:18] Speaker 1: Meadows said, in surprise. At that moment, there were gray
[6:23] Speaker 1: clouds covering the sky. Well, I caught a glimpse of one,
[6:28] Speaker 1: said Jackson. But close enough. What are you planning to
[6:33] Speaker 1: do now, she wondered. Usually in a resort, i'd be
[6:38] Speaker 1: enjoying a lovely, big breakfast buffet with fruits and pastries
[6:44] Speaker 1: and toast and jams and cereals and eggs and juice
[6:48] Speaker 1: and coffee, said the Quaker. But as you said, you
[6:53] Speaker 1: don't have that here. We do, not, confirmed the bird.
[6:59] Speaker 1: And again, I don't know what most of those things are.
[7:03] Speaker 1: I can't believe you've never had a buffet, Jackson sighed.
[7:08] Speaker 1: They're truly one of the best parts of staying in
[7:11] Speaker 1: a hotel. What tell you what, Why don't you show
[7:15] Speaker 1: me all the tasty things that you can eat here,
[7:18] Speaker 1: and I'll make us a buffet. Okay, said Meadow with
[7:23] Speaker 1: a nod. It might not be much, so no worries,
[7:28] Speaker 1: Jackson replied, Let's just try our best. So Meadow led
[7:33] Speaker 1: the Quaker around, showing him the thing she enjoyed eating.
[7:38] Speaker 1: The Quaker gathered them up, taking great delight in what
[7:42] Speaker 1: they found. Everything was a wonder to him, and Meadow
[7:47] Speaker 1: couldn't help but feel amused. When done. They had several
[7:52] Speaker 1: types of seed, A selection of berries, an arrangement of flowers,
[7:57] Speaker 1: and a handful of crawling insects. The Quaker then arranged
[8:02] Speaker 1: it all on a wide flat rock, displaying them on
[8:05] Speaker 1: large leaves which he called plates, before handing Meadow her
[8:10] Speaker 1: own leaf. Now you get to choose what you want,
[8:14] Speaker 1: the quaker said, happily. Following his lead, the rail followed
[8:20] Speaker 1: Jackson beside the rock, taking a sample of each of
[8:24] Speaker 1: the foods. They then settled down on the cliff edge
[8:28] Speaker 1: overlooking the ocean. Was that fun, Jackson asked, I guess,
[8:35] Speaker 1: smiled Meadow. I wouldn't usually have everything at once like this.
[8:40] Speaker 1: I'd just eat it when I found it. Such are
[8:44] Speaker 1: the joys of a buffet, the quaker smiled. As they
[8:48] Speaker 1: tucked into their meals. Meadow asked, what are you going
[8:52] Speaker 1: to do next? I think I'll sit on the beach,
[8:57] Speaker 1: Jackson replied, soak up some sun while I read my book.
[9:03] Speaker 1: Inaccessible Island beaches are rocky and not very comfortable. It
[9:07] Speaker 1: can get windy too, and lots of the beeches are
[9:11] Speaker 1: well inhabited. It's not somewhere I go very often. Well,
[9:18] Speaker 1: I won't know unless I try it, said Jackson as
[9:21] Speaker 1: he finished his meal got to make the most of it. Remember.
[9:27] Speaker 1: A little later, Meadow found herself following the Quaker across
[9:31] Speaker 1: the pebbly beach to some larger rocks. Jackson was carrying
[9:36] Speaker 1: a selection of sticks and leaves, and on arriving at
[9:40] Speaker 1: a broad flat stone, he unrolled an enormous leaf. The
[9:45] Speaker 1: rest of the sticks became a pole, on top of
[9:48] Speaker 1: which was a dome of more leaves. I've made myself
[9:52] Speaker 1: a beech towel and some umbrella, he declared, proudly. There's
[9:57] Speaker 1: enough room for you too. Meadow sat down, smelling the
[10:02] Speaker 1: salty air. She was just beginning to enjoy it when
[10:06] Speaker 1: one of the larger rocks beside them moved to reveal
[10:10] Speaker 1: itself to be a resting fur seal. This is my spot,
[10:15] Speaker 1: the fur seal cried. Meadow was all ready to run,
[10:20] Speaker 1: terrified of these huge ocean mammals, but the Quacker didn't move,
[10:26] Speaker 1: even when the fur seal loomed over him, say, said Jackson,
[10:32] Speaker 1: you look like a feller who would love a game
[10:35] Speaker 1: of volleyball. The fur seal blinked with confusion. Folly ball,
[10:42] Speaker 1: he repeated, Let me show you, smiled Jackson. The Quaker
[10:48] Speaker 1: gathered more sticks, weaving together a net from seaweed that
[10:52] Speaker 1: he wedged into the stones of the beach. He then
[10:56] Speaker 1: pulled an inflatable beech ball from his bag, and, in
[11:00] Speaker 1: between breaths to blow it up, said I'll be on
[11:07] Speaker 1: this side and you can be on the other. Meadow,
[11:16] Speaker 1: you keep score. With a bap of his quacker fist,
[11:21] Speaker 1: Jackson sent the ball sailing over the seaweed net. The
[11:26] Speaker 1: fur seal lunged for the ball, hitting it right back
[11:29] Speaker 1: with his nose. They went on like this, back and forth,
[11:35] Speaker 1: occasionally celebrating or groaning as points were scored. The winner
[11:41] Speaker 1: is announced, Meadow, the fur seal six points to five.
[11:48] Speaker 1: Good game, friend, said Jackson, shaking the fur seal's flipper. Here,
[11:54] Speaker 1: you can keep the ball. The fur seal waddled away happily,
[11:59] Speaker 1: the ball balanced on his nose. Meadow couldn't quite believe it.
[12:04] Speaker 1: Fur Seals were usually loud and rude, but the Quaker
[12:08] Speaker 1: had become friends with one instantly. It's nice to make
[12:13] Speaker 1: friends wherever you're staying, the quaker explained, makes the experience
[12:18] Speaker 1: more fun for every one. Meadow could only nod. So
[12:24] Speaker 1: what now, she asked, I think it's time for a
[12:28] Speaker 1: nice long afternoon hike. Jackson grinned. Not only weren't there
[12:35] Speaker 1: any trails, but inaccessible island wasn't particularly big. Because of this,
[12:42] Speaker 1: the rail knew the whole place by heart. Even so,
[12:46] Speaker 1: she let the Quaker lead the way. Jackson often stopped
[12:51] Speaker 1: to admire the flowers, inspect the bugs, or study the clouds.
[12:57] Speaker 1: She found his behavior strange. She didn't think they were
[13:01] Speaker 1: all that interesting. Eventually they stopped at the top of
[13:07] Speaker 1: a very large hill. From there they could see the
[13:11] Speaker 1: bog fern heath on one side of the island and
[13:14] Speaker 1: the woodland on the other, as well as the circle
[13:17] Speaker 1: of grass land that went around it. All. To Meadow's eyes,
[13:22] Speaker 1: it was nothing special, just bare and pale and uninteresting.
[13:29] Speaker 1: It's beautiful, said the Quaker. Is it, frowned Meadow. I'm
[13:36] Speaker 1: quite sure Hawaii and Australia are much better. I think
[13:40] Speaker 1: it's all quite dull and boring. Nothing interesting ever happens here.
[13:46] Speaker 1: The Quaker chuckled. I disagree, he said, with a smile.
[13:51] Speaker 1: I quite like it here. You can't be serious, Meadow laughed.
[13:58] Speaker 1: I am serious, insisted Jackson. Staying in a resort is
[14:03] Speaker 1: all well and good, but once you've stayed in one.
[14:06] Speaker 1: They're all much alike. This, though, is very different. Here.
[14:12] Speaker 1: I've done and seen so many new things. It's so
[14:16] Speaker 1: peaceful and quiet, nothing like a resort. I've actually been
[14:20] Speaker 1: able to relax since i arrived here. But it's always
[14:25] Speaker 1: so cloudy and gray, complained the Little Rail. True, but
[14:31] Speaker 1: that's not a problem. It just means it's different, explained Jackson.
[14:37] Speaker 1: As he spoke, a small ray of sunshine broke through
[14:40] Speaker 1: the clouds to light up the island, highlighting greens and golds.
[14:46] Speaker 1: Meadow gasped in its own way. Her Inaccessible Island was beautiful.
[14:54] Speaker 1: Meadow and the Quaker became inseparable, exploring the island together.
[15:00] Speaker 1: Even though Meadow knew it well, she was learning more
[15:04] Speaker 1: and more about where she lived every day. And then,
[15:08] Speaker 1: just like that, the boat returned. It's time for me
[15:13] Speaker 1: to go, Jackson sighed. He had his suit case packed
[15:17] Speaker 1: and ready. Thank you for making my stay such an
[15:21] Speaker 1: enjoyable one, and thank you for helping me rediscover Inaccessible Island,
[15:28] Speaker 1: said the Little Rail. You may have even inspired me
[15:32] Speaker 1: to take a trip myself, now, asked Jackson excitedly, are
[15:38] Speaker 1: you coming with me? No, not yet, laughed Meadow. But
[15:43] Speaker 1: one day. Right now, I still have a lot of
[15:47] Speaker 1: things to look at and enjoy here, I understand, nodded
[15:53] Speaker 1: Jackson as he stepped on to the boat. But when
[15:56] Speaker 1: I do take a trip, called Meadow after him, my
[16:01] Speaker 1: first stop will be Australia, and I'd like you to
[16:04] Speaker 1: take me for a proper buffet. The Quaker smiled. I
[16:10] Speaker 1: can do that, he said. With their good byes done,
[16:15] Speaker 1: Meadow returned to her rock upon the hill, and from
[16:18] Speaker 1: there she watched Jackson's sail away, and that Inaccessible Island
[16:24] Speaker 1: Rail was never bored again. Animal fact Quakers are a
[16:35] Speaker 1: kind of marsupial called a macropod. Like kangaroos and wallabies.
[16:40] Speaker 1: They're about the size of a cat and eat grass,
[16:44] Speaker 1: sedge and leaves. There are thought to be around four
[16:48] Speaker 1: thousand Quakers living in a remote corner of mainland Western Australia,
[16:53] Speaker 1: with a further ten thousand quackers living across Bald and
[16:57] Speaker 1: rot Nest Islands. The Inaccessible Island Rail sounds made up,
[17:03] Speaker 1: but it is completely real. It is the smallest flightless
[17:08] Speaker 1: bird on the planet, reaching up to fifteen centimeters long
[17:12] Speaker 1: that's about six inches. Like many flightless birds, their feathers
[17:17] Speaker 1: have altered to become hair like, giving them a shaggy appearance.
[17:23] Speaker 1: Thank you for your great suggestions, Jackson and Meadow. We
[17:26] Speaker 1: hope you enjoyed the story, and thank you to all
[17:29] Speaker 1: of you across the world for listening to it. In
[17:33] Speaker 1: addition to the five hundred free to listen stories, there
[17:37] Speaker 1: are over one hundred extra stories for our Premium members,
[17:41] Speaker 1: only available through Apple or Supercast. Find out more at
[17:46] Speaker 1: animaltales dot uk and remember, for a tiny fee, all
[17:51] Speaker 1: the stories are advert free. Join us next time for
[17:56] Speaker 1: another great animal tale. Good Bye,

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