The Great Ocean Road

Robyn and I have just come back from a superb trip along the Great Ocean Road.

Wed 10th May
We hired a reasonable car from Budget at an amazingly low price - a Hyundai Getz.

Set off on Wednesday to Geelong. I did some of the driving and found Australian roads etc OK - the only thing was I wasn't used to an automatic - everyone drives an automatic over here - but I was OK. Robyn however does most of the driving so that I can do plenty of 'looking.' Robyn of course knew this area from previous trips especially from her childhood. (She was living in England some 30 years. Then Ireland of course!)

We find a wonderful Aboriginal Cultural centre complete with shop on the way and I do my 'souvenir' shopping here - called Narana Creations. A great place for school parties as it is an educational centre as well. All sorts of didgeridoos and where you can learn all about different boomerangs and how to use them.

We hit the Great Ocean Road - built in the 1920's as something to keep ex-servicemen occupied after the First World War. The road connects the different coastal settlements and was made under difficult circumstances through wild territory.

We get to Torquay and on to Anglesea for lunch. (Australia full of British name places.) We pass spectacular scenery - great ocean waves crashing onto rocks on one side and temperate rain forest on the other.

Reach Lorne for the evening and book ourselves into a very clean and well appointed motel for the night. We then visit Erskine Falls (huge waterfalls deep in the forest) and Teddy's Lookout (more spectacular scenery over ocean and forest.) Go for a Chinese meal.

Thurs 11th May
After a good night's rest we continue along the Great Ocean Road to Skene's Creek. We follow this Creek up hill to Tanybryn through Turton's Pass along a 'C' road. This sort of road is known as an unsealed road (ie no tarmac) and would best be described as a dirt road. The surface is OK for the car however and we avoid potholes for 17km. (A bit like parts of Ireland again!)

We then go to Beech Forest to walk the Otway Fly - a forest walk taken at tree top level on a series of metal walkways. Fantastic views of the rainforest and looking down on myriads of tree ferns- that grow naturally here.

Drive onto Lavers Hill back down to the coast.

The coast here is under remarkable erosion - great stacks (known as the Twelve Apostles) of sandstone formed from eroding coastline, blowholes, gorges and caves. I have good footage on my camcorder. Lots of Chinese tourists here.

Drive to Port Campbell for the night - another spotlessly clean motel apartment. Port Campbell is a foreigners' ideal Aussie outback small time town. All the buildings are wooden and low. That evening we saw a little group of penguins come out of the sea on the beach near 'London Bridge' (another spectacular of rock carved by the sea.)

Friday 12th May
Return along the Great Ocean Road via Lavers Hill and Apollo Bay (where we saw a huge seal resting in the dunes - she is under observation.) Robyn remembers Apollo Bay from childhood days and is struck by its development.
Back to the Mornington Peninsula via Melbourne.

Weather - cool and sometime threatening with dark clouds but we have been lucky in avoiding rain and have enjoyed quite a lot of sunshine.

Polly the dog - the results of her biopsy prove she has a return of the cancer ....however the vet is optomistic and she is on treatment - chemotherapy tablets after a hefty injection into her lump.