He did it! I'm not sure how, but the Beave' was up and waiting by the car at 8.30am this morning. Admittedly, he didn't have a shower or any breakfast (well, only the cuppa Nikki had made him) - but at least he was ready. It was a bit of a shame though - I was quite looking forward to throwing water over him. With us all in the car on time we set off West, to explore the rest of the Great Ocean Road.
Ok, i'm gonna be honest... I was a little disappointed with the Great Ocean Road at first today - and it was because we were what seemed to be miles from the ocean! No sooner had we left our cool hostel in Apollo Bay, we were driving inland. We did wonder if perhaps we'd taken a wrong turning or something but, according to the map, we were still on course. We did stop in a place called Melba Gully, where we went for a walk through the rainforest, and seen some pretty impressive trees - they were ABSOLUTELY HUGE. One in particular had fallen and had hollowed out through the middle, and it was so big, it looked like a giant slide... Nikki wouldn't let me try it though!
When the road did eventually lead back to the ocean, it was absolutely stunning - just as i'd imagined it would look, with huge rock cliffs - that have been weathered by rain and the crashing sea. Our first stop was at a place called Gibson Steps, which led right down to the beach. The sea was crazy today - it was really rough and looked like it was giving the rocks a right pounding. The sun was just breaking through the clouds and it made it all seem even more dramatic! Nikki and Steve sat on the beach, while I went off exploring and then when I got back we climbed back up to the road.
The scenic lookouts were coming thick and fast now - and then next was the famous Twelve Apostles. There are only six standing now, but you can still see where some of the other stood and they're pretty cool. They're really high and have been made into really odd shapes by the years of erosion! Just along the road a little further is the Loch Ard Gorge, which was the scene of a number of famous shipwrecks (the most famous being the Loch Ard) - and you could see why... there's no way i'd fancy anyone's chances in a boat - the tide was lethal! Loch Ard is where the rocks have been shaped into a huge arch.
Next, we stopped in a small town called Port Campbell for some lunch and then got back on the Great Ocean Road. The next lookout was called The Arch which, as the name suggests, is a huge arch. It's quite impressive - and you wonder how long it'll last before the ceiling caves in? The next lookout has done exactly that - it's called London Bridge, and apparently it used to be a double-arched rock platform - but part has given way into the sea and now its just a rock coming out of the land - the a gap and a smaller (but still massive) rock out in the sea.
Our final lookout on the Great Ocean Road was called the Bay of Islands, which is loads of rocks dotted around in the ocean - that have all been separated from the land. There are a lot more of them here than at the site of the Twelve Apostles, but they're not nearly as tall here. When we got back in the car, Nikki and Steve were obviously exhausted from all the walking and fell asleep while I drove us to a place called Port Fairy.
When we arrived, we popped into the shops and then into Tourist Information to ask what we could do? They told us of this little island that you can walk around, that's just on the edge of town. The lady said it was quite a pleasant walk - so we thought we'd check it out. I don't know how, but we got totally lost! One minute we were walking along a track - admiring the scenery and wildlife, and the next we were on top of a huge hill surrounded by long grass. We could see where we wanted to go, but it involved walking through the grass - and we were warned against that because of spiders and snakes - so we had to turn round and re-trace our steps. Instead of taking us 40 minutes, it ended up taking us well over an hour to get back to the car. By now I was exhausted and couldn't be bothered to drive anymore, so we found a really nice YHA and checked in for the night.
The Great Ocean Road turned out pretty great after all!
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