Great Ocean Road Adventure - Part 1

A month ago we took a road trip to the Great Ocean Road with the delightful company of J&G. We are planning to hit the road again on Easter weekend - before that, here is a peek into our GOC road trip.

Torquay, Cool Beaches & Free Coffee <3

Our first stop on the way was in in Torquay for a pre-lunch snack + to hang out first on the beach lookouts. Some interesting finds in the local bakery (savory + scones), accompanied by a free flat white from a local coffee shop ("Sorry, no EFTPOS here" - "Well, I don't have cash on me" - "Alright, have one on the house then - enjoy" episode). 

Eagle Rock & Split point lighthouse

After a short drive, we reached the first actual lookout point on the way. There you could tour the grounds of the Split point lighthouse, and view the first scene of terrain formations that are characteristic of the Great Ocean Road - The Eagle Rock.

Lorne, Apollo Bay & the Hairpin Jungle 

Up next was a long stretch of a drive through the Beach towns of Lorne and Apollo Bay, through a long stretch of winding roads on the coast side and in the mountainy jungle. If you're into rally driving, this is pretty close to mountain road racing, altho not as steep as it could get for example in Japan.

Into the outback, and reaching Port Campbell

After a few hundred kilometres of green roller coaster, we reached a series of outback scenes on the way to our hostel in Port Campbell (soup, anyone?).  The weather started turning cold, with antarctic winds blowing from the south. A bit of a difference from the heat waves in Melbourne.

12 Apostles

The terrain formations on the seashore near port campbell are probably the most known attraction on the Great Ocean Road, both due to the spectacular views and absurd formations of land, shaped by the currents along thousands of years.

Despite the cold weather, we spent quite some time at the 12 Apostles, freezing ourselves solid. Besides the promise of a nice sunset, the region also has another special treat for those willing to tough it out until the end of day: Penguins, native to the Antarctica, scour around to the shore roughly at dusk. 

And thanks to these delightful ladies, we stayed for those "five more minutes"

And sure enough, we did see a bunch of happy feet!