Heading out of Melbourne after a terrorist attack (luckily we were seeing Annie); getting into a traffic jam on the M1, we are now hoping re-find Australia on the Great Ocean Road.
Obviously the first thing we did when we saw the sea was to eat fish and chips and walk on the beach – I was brave enough to paddle – tad colder than Port Douglas but no crocodiles. There were a few surfers waiting patiently for the wave.
We then stopped along the way at Split Point lighthouse which was obviously on everyone else’s itinerary too!
It was built in 1891 and opened with John Halfrenny, a trade-unionist and founder of the 8 hour day. Lighthouses were essential along this ‘shipwreck coast’ with over 200 wrecks from 1830 to 1930. For a lot of those coming from England to make a new life (forced or otherwise) their hopes were dashed literally on the ‘home straight’.
Next was Erskine Falls – 230 steps down – a scramble downstream (David spotted our first crimson rosellas) to the lower fall & back up again.
The eucalyptus trees here are enormous – at least 140 ft tall and elegant and beautiful.
Beneath them are tree ferns and jungle
Then we headed up Grey River Road in search of koalas
We saw 8 and, how can I put it?, one pair having loud energetic sex! – very high up in the canopy leaping from branch to branch – fortunately they were both holding on tight to the tree! So much for sleepy koalas!! Photos have been censored. (Too high!)
I also saw sulphur-crested cockatoos, crimson rosellas and king parrots being fed by tourists next to a sign saying ‘please don’t feed the cockatoos’
We drove onwards down the beautiful twisting road; views of crashing rollers and deep blue ocean on the left and green rolling hills on the right – sort of like Devon but with less traffic and wider roads.
We arrived at Apollo Bay in time for dinner & a visit to a craft ale bar where a guitarist played, Buddy Holly, Don Maclean and even ‘rock around the clock!’ And some Aussie country songs – everyone else knew all the words. Of course we danced with the biker Aussies and David’s hat was much admired and borrowed – they seem to have forgotten about hats here (but secretly love them!)
Exhausted we fell asleep to the crashing rollers of the Southern Ocean (this is the view from our room – the rollers are out there beyond the sand bar).
