The Great Ocean Road is a 240km stretch of magnificent coastal roadway between Torquay and Allansford – possibly the most spectacular stretch of roadway we’ve ever experienced.
After WWI our returned soldiers were employed to make this road, so from 1919 until 1932 the work continued at which time the road was dedicated to those who did not return from the Great War.
It is a narrow, windy two lane road that hugs the Coastline for nearly its entire length. At times a little concerning with blind hairpins and traffic often going to quickly there is something to see every kilometre you travel.
Passing through gorgeous little camp spots and tiny villages, there are also a few larger coastal towns like Lorne, Wye River, Apollo Bay and Port Campbell that each have their own vibrant atmosphere.
Pubs and restaurants are plentiful and the hardest thing is choosing which one to stop at and visit !
After around 2 hours of constant wind and rain and constantly winding roads, we reached the part of the GOR that most people are familiar with – the Twelve Apostles.
Passing through The Otway Ranges and the Shipwreck Coast we landed in Port Campbell which is a life support town for the Apostles region and National Park.
While the “Twelve” Apostles are the best known limestone structures, there are a number of other equally impressive points of interest in the immediate area.
Loch Ard Gorge is one of those that is a standout – named after a boat that was shipwrecked in the late 1800s. I can see why.
In all areas along the coast where these points of interest are there is plenty of free public parking and the walk to view the sites is easy and relatively short – notice more than 10 minutes.
The weather was relentless – winds gusting at high speeds and rain hosing down continuously. While it wasn’t a glorious day to be visiting it certainly showed us the rugged nature of the coastline in all its ferocious glory.
The Grotto is just up the road and is a magnificent easy walk down from the cliff tops to sea level with views out to Bass Strait.
When down at sea level, you can view The Grotto up close and personal and it’s a delight
London Bridge (or Arch) is another amazing natural limestone structure that had part of the “Bridge” collapse into the ocean in the 1990s
Today it sits alone just off the coast and it is magnificent in its beauty.
You can often see penguins in this area (we didn’t) and the noise of the ocean is deafening.
An interesting tidbit from when the section of the bridge connecting to the mainland collapsed – there were two tourists isolated in the section remaining at sea that had to be rescued by helicopters. Now that’s a travel story you could retell for years to come.
The Twelve Apostles – well this is weird. There were never TWELVE Limestone karsts or Apostles. There were only ever NINE.
Those responsible for naming this site thought the “9 Apostles” sounded odd. And the “12 Apostles” was more romantic
In fact they were originally called “The Pinnacles” and they were formed by 20 million years of erosion from the wild seas and winds blowing at the coastline from the Wild South.
So they were the 9 Pinnacles. Get it?
But now there are only seven ….. eroded forever.
But it is magnificent to see and the National Parks responsible for the region have done a brilliant job allowing access from many different areas to see it in all its wonderful glory.
There’s no doubt it’s one of the great road trips and drives – if you’ve not done it well maybe it’s time. Because it is absolutely worth every minute.
We drive back to our camp site via the inland road which took a little bit of tine but was a lovely change to the roughest coastline to venture through rainforests, farmland and dairy farms.
A fantastic day out.
Ralph and Karen's Tours 