Great Ocean Road

The same tram back to the CBD followed by a breakfast at our favourite place on Degraves St. The coffee is great as usual, and so is the bacon in this bacon and egg on toast set.

Car rental commences at Geelong, outside of Melbourne but only 1hr away on the V/Line train. Similar to many Australian place names the word Geelong (jih-LONG) is hard for foreign tourists to pronounce. Geelong is Victoria's second-largest city, with some of the largest population growth in the state (especially post-covid). The car was ready and we headed down south towards Torquay and onto the Great Ocean Rd.

A windy lookout at Southside Beach. A rare clear day along the southern coast of Victoria where the weather changes very frequently and rapidly. 

The memorial arch for tourists to take photos on. Right by the arch is a long tranquil beach. Scenery like this can appear impressive to those from Hong Kong who have never seen long coastlines but nothing when compared to other coastal views in Australia.

After the arch, the road started to run along the ocean built under massive cliff cuttings. This type of road is common in Hong Kong as engineers secure walls to prevent landslides under the subtropical climate. Yet the length and limited technology of the people who built the roads certainly make it an engineering marvel worth appreciating.

We stopped at a lookout (Mount Defiance Lookout) just to appreciate the cliff walls and cuttings where the road runs through. A perfect sunny day in Victoria gave the ocean a great greenish colour as if it is in paradise. The road is also lined with "Drive on left in Australia", reminding tourists on the tourist drive not to drive on the right as in most countries of the world.

And the drive continues along the road. We went straight to the Port Campbell direction with lunch at Angelsea. The towns of Apolo Bay and Lorne all sit next to long beaches, with the road going through some of the roughest oceans in Australia.

After Apolo Bay the road goes slightly inland into the Victorian countryside. Somehow similar to those in NSW and somehow not, the countryside features the same short grassy hills and cattle farms. The road also heads into the forest and winds through hills slightly inland.

Meanwhile in the car the group had a meaningful conversation on the overused phrase "for sure". Garen has written a great summary on it.

The long discussion ended as the car popped back onto the coast at Port Campbell National Park. The coastline is back and the group has finally approached the greatest view spot of the day, after around an hour in the car. With a car (and not on an organised tour) it is easier to explore smaller view points. London Bridge is too far and the best one might be the Baker's Oven, referring to the sandstone formation in the sea with a small a

The sunset has commenced and this is the hour where all the sandstone look the best, having a fine orange touch onto the cliff surface. Shortly after exploring the area the team hopped back into the car and backtracked into some of the most well known spots along Great Ocean Road.

Into Loch Ard Gorge. The rock formation is named under the creativity of europeans.

Along the beach there are also cool rock formations and caves to discover. There is a small pile of rock in the middle of the beach where those newer to bushwalking have attempted to climb it but failed to Press On Regardless and gave up.

And lastly the Twelve Apostles for the sunset. Shortly down the road it is the most well known and touristy bit of the road. Walking from the visitor information centre to the lookouts feel more like a walk in Disneyland Resort.

and the Twelve Apostles. Ideally, 12 should be present but several have been missing as a result of weathering. These vertical cliffs are also almost impossible to walk down.

The group spent some decent time enjoying the nature as the daylight gradually comes to an end and the sun sets into the horizon. Simply looking into the nature, feel the rolling ocean and sea breeze in the middle of nowhere is all that's needed for a great time.

Then comes a short drive to the campsite which we have prebooked for a very low price. It sits right next to Johanna Beach, has sealed road access and is a great place to camp inland while being close enough to wake up near the ocean. It is the first time for some to camp outdoors in Australia, trying out their fresh new Kmart tents for the first time. At least they have discovered how hard it is to set up a cheap tent.

The fire was set up by the beach and everyone sat next to it enjoying their dinner. With charcoal added to the fire it was also used as a barbecue, heating up frozen pizza from Coles for dinner. 

With limited time we have only visited two waterfalls along the way before returning to Geelong. The first one is Hopetoun Falls in the Great Otway. Deep in the rainforest it certainly gives different vibes to those in Blue Mountains near Sydney.

Surrounding the waterfall was dense rainforests. We went off track from the lookout, went along the mud and hopped onto the rocks in front of the waterfall for a close up view. It is certainly some of the best places to visit in Victoria.

And the next one, Beauchamp Falls, is a decent walk away. With limited time we can only allow ourselves half an hr to an hr in this site. Those who walk fast proceeded straight to the falls while those who are slow were unable to make it and could only spend the time enjoying and exploring the rainforest.

The walk itself was really impressive as well. The sun shines right through the leaves giving this satisfying light green colour. There is also the tree that has decided not to grow straight up but instead took two 90 degree bends into the canopy.

After the waterfalls, we drove out of the bush to Colac, then back to Geelong through the Princes Hwy. The way through Winchelsea to Geelong runs on motorways and is very smooth to drive on, compared to the windy Great Ocean Rd we have been on. We've also got lunch from a bakery in Colac which serves freshly baked pies and coffee. The trip ended at Geelong Station where some got onto an Uber for the Tasmanian trip, and some got back to Melbourne (also to Tasmania but on a plane).