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Published: March 14th 2014
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Monday 24th February 2014. The Great Ocean Road - Melbourne to Lorne, Victoria, Australia
We met up with Chris (the guy we met in Pittwater) as arranged in Glen's cafe for breakfast. After we all checked out we caught the tram down to Southern Cross Station where the Hertz Office was located. After completing all the paperwork we collected the keys and found the car in the car park. Then off we went.
We negotiated our way out of the city fairly easily. The first part of the journey was a bit dull, through endless suburbs on a freeway. After about 2 hours we found ourselves in Torquay - the start of the Great Ocean Road (GOR) drive. Torquay is a township with a population of about 7,000 in Victoria which faces Bass Strait. It is 21 km. south of Geelong and is the gateway to the Great Ocean Road. It is bordered on the west by Spring Creek and its coastal features include Point Danger and Zeally Bay. We parked the car and went to take a look at the beach. It was gorgeous. The weather was lovely and the sea breeze really refreshing. We watched the surfers
and bather for a while before going back to the car to commence the drive of the GOR.
The Great Ocean Road is an Australian National Heritage listed 243 kilometres (151 mi) stretch of road along the south-eastern coast of Australia between the Victorian cities of Torquay and Allansford. Built by returned soldiers between 1919 and 1932 and dedicated to soldiers killed during World War I, the road is the world's largest war memorial. Winding through varying terrain along the coast and providing access to several prominent landmarks the road is an important tourist attraction in the region.
Construction on the road began on 19 September 1919, built by approximately 3,000 returned servicemen as a war memorial for fellow servicemen who had been killed in World War I. An advance survey team progressed through dense wilderness at approximately 3 kilometres a month. Construction was done by hand; using explosives, pick and shovel, wheel barrows, and some small machinery,and was at times perilous, with several workers killed on the job; the final sections along steep coastal mountains being the most difficult to work on. Anecdotal evidence from ABC archives in 1982 suggested workers would rest detonators on their knees
during travel, as it was the softest ride for them!! The soldiers were paid 10 shillings and sixpence for eight hours per day, also working a half-day on Saturdays. They used tents for accommodation throughout, and made use of a communal dining marquee and kitchen; food costing up to 10 shillings a week. Despite the difficulty involved in constructing the road, the workers had access to a piano, gramophone, games, newspapers and magazines at the camps. Additionally, in 1924, the steamboat Casino became stranded near Cape Patton after hitting a reef, forcing it to jettison 500
barrels of beer and 120 cases of spirits. The workers obtained the cargo, resulting in an unscheduled two-week-long drinking break. Who can blame them!?
The first section of the drive hugs the coastline which is affectionately known as the "Surf Coast". We drove past Bells Beach until we arrived at Point Addis Lookout. From here we could look back to Bells Beach. It is named after John Cavert Bell of the family that first took up a pastoral run there in the 1840. Bells Beach is the home of the world's longest-running surfing competition – the Rip Curl Pro Surf & Music Festival.
The event was formerly known as the Bells Beach Surf Classic. Watching the waves break from Point Adis it was easy to see why such a competition is held here. The lookout looks out over the ocean which makes up Point Addis Marine National Park. The park extens 10 kilometres along the coasline east of the town of Anglesea, around Point Addis (where we were standing) and back to Bells Beach. It extends into the ocean for 3 nautical miles (the limit of Victorian waters).
We continued on to Anglesea. The town's golf-course is renowned for its resident population of eastern grey kangaroos which graze on the fairways. We were told they would probably be resting in the shade of the trees. We parked the car in the golf club car park and went 'roo hunting. M was pregnant with anticipation. There were lots of signs warning of snakes which got Chris really excited - he really wanted to see one. M didn't - she just wanted to see the kangaroos. M and Chris were both thwarted however - not a single 'roo or snake was seen.
We gave up and continued on the GOR. We stopped for
some lunch at a roadside cafe and continued to drive along the surf coast. We stopped several times for some photos at various lookouts and stopped for a walk along a fantastic beach which was home to a colony of sheerwaters (didn't see any). The rock formations along the beach were stunning and Chris took great delight in climbing up to the top of one of them. THe weather continued to stay gorgeous. Eventuually we arrived at Aireys Inlet. There is a nice walk along the coast here so D dropped M and Chris off and then met up with them further down the coast.
Aireys Inlet is a small coastal inlet and town on the GOR. The towns main attraction is the Split Point Lighthouse. Originally called Eagles Nest Point, the lighthouse was constructed in 1891. It was converted to automatic operation in 1919. We walked up to Loutit Bay Lookout where we had fantastic views of the coast. We continued up to the lighthouse and took lots of photos. We returned to the car and continued on to Lorne which was our destination for this first day on the GOR.
Unfortunately we hadn't been able to
find any accommodation so we headed straight for the tournist office to see if they could sort us out. It was a bit more difficult with 3 of us. We ended up in the Best Western all sharing one room (which was fine). It was a great room with a double bed, sofa bed, kitchenette and en suite bathroom. The owner, Terry, was great. He showed us the BBQ area which was next door to our room. We went to the supermarket (2 mins walk) and Chris treated us to a BBQ dinner which he not only purchased but cooked too!
It was lovely. We were joined by a whole hoard of Sulphur Crested Cockatoos who became a bit of a nuisance. In the end Terry (who could see our plight) called us on the hotel phone to say that he would distract them with some cockatoo food while we ate our dinner!
We all slept well and are looking forward to the next stage of the GOR tomorrow.
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