Great Ocean Road

We picked up the car yesterday morning at 9am. We thought we were getting a Yaris but they upgraded us to a Nissan Tiida. It was automatic so took a little bit of getting used to. It was pouring with rain so we were a bit disheartened but the weather was forecasted to improve so we kept our fingers crossed. Sure enough as soon as we got to Torquay the rain let up and it started to dry out.

Our first stop was Jan Juc beach. It was nice and gave us a good idea of what to expect as we drove the great ocean road. It wasn't beach weather so we got back in the car and drove to Airleys Inlet to see the lighthouse. We took some photos and walked about a bit. We saw where the sea came inland. The clouds were starting to break and it was warming up slightly.

It was my turn to drive so we carried on and saw a sign for the memorial arch so we pulled in and were pleased we did. Again we took some photos and read about why the road was built. Soldiers returning back after the first world war needed jobs so they used them to build the road. Dan took over the driving as he wasn't feeling well as a passenger on the windy roads. Plus he liked driving a nice car! We stopped at St George's river as it looked really beautiful.

We carried on driving and came across a koala on the road side. We pulled into a layby and got out to take more photos! It was amazing to see a koala in it's natural habitat and even better that it was awake. We carried on on the twisty windy road with breath taking views. There were loads of look outs along the way and we stopped at Cape Patton. The sea was dazzling now as the sun had come out from the clouds.

We drove through some nice places like Lorne but didn't stop until Apollo bay where we had lunch. We found a local bakery and had some pies. We bought some postcards and had a look at the beach. Some people were surfing even though it was still quite cold. We didn't really know where to head to next. I drove and we decided at the very last minute to detour to Cape Otway. We were both glad we did though. We have come to realise that if loads of cars are parked up and people are pointing then it usually means there's something to see so I pulled into a layby and we looked up to see about 20 koalas, some with their babies. Most of them were asleep but it was still good to see. We passed plenty more places where koalas were in the trees and people were taking photos. We got to where we were driving to and tried to get to the lighthouse but the path just took us round in a circle and we ended up back at the car park. We were not all that bothered though as the koalas were more than enough reason to have detoured. Dan drove us back and we passed another one on the road which was awake but we couldn't stop for a photo anywhere. It was a shame as this one had white fur around it's face.

We drove to the 12 apostles. The sun made them seem all the more special. We took loads of photos and Dan did his usual photographer bit for everyone else! We drove about 5 km down the road to the Loch and Gorge and again took loads of fabulous photos. They're really amazing to see and the waves crashing on the rocks show how they have been eroded over thousands of years.

We'd had enough of sight seeing for one day so drove to our accomodation in Port Campbell. We said we'd be arriving around 5pm so when we got to reception there was a note on the door telling us where to go. The cottage was lovely. We put our things in and then drove back up to the town to get a few things. It was a small town. We went back and we cooked bangers, mash and peas. Dan watched some TV while I went out for a walk. I wanted to see the sunset but it was too cloudy really. I walked back and we watched TV before falling asleep in our comfy bed.