Great Ocean Road

Memorial on Great Ocean Road

Today, we took in the countryside by riding the Great Ocean Road, along the Bass Strait between Australia and Tasmania. The road began near Anglesea where there is a memorial to the 3000 World War I veterans, who constructed the road between 1919 and 1932. Before lunch, the coast reminded us of Great Breton in Nova Scotia. The road went up and down, climbing cliffs and then descending to the shore line. Along the way we passed a section that had a bush fire last December, caused by a lightning strike. The Eucalyptus encourage fire to take over an area. The bark is loose and easily burned. The leaves produce an oil that vaporizes above the trees, easily causing fireballs. After the fire, lots of leaves sprout from the trunks, which will in time become new branches. We stopped several times for short walks and photos. Lunch was in Apollo Bay – we made the mistake of stopping at George’s to get a substantial lunch (since we probably would miss dinner). The place was packed with people in this quick serve restaurant. The food was good, but the place was crowded and noisy. We should have stopped in one of the small cafes instead, which despite the numerous buses, never got too crowded. 

The Apostle Islands

The highlight of the trip was in the afternoon: the Apostle Islands. We were on top of a tall cliff and the islands were just off the coast. The waves pounded the area, making for quite the picturesque scene. Further along, we came to Loch Ard Gorge. The Loch Ard was a ship that sank here killing 52 of the 54 aboard. The Captain spotted headlands that he thought was Apollo Bay, but instead the ship hit land as he approached the shore. This stretch of coast had over 200 shipwrecks between 1850 and 1900. This was an absolutely fabulous coastline while on the trail I bumped into a potaroo, a marsupial about the size of rabbit. It was a long day, we got back to the hotel at about 8:30 PM. 

Potaroo on the trail