Sharon and Andy's World Tour 2006

7 - 8 May

The Great Ocean Road, begun in 1919 to give employment to soldiers returning from World War 1, stretches from Allansford, not far from Warrnambool all the way to Torquay following Victoria's rugged coastline for more than 300km.

Hailed as one of the world's most scenic routes to drive, we were to travel along its length for the next two days. Sadly, on Sunday 7, the weather was a bit variable but we were determined to make the best of this unmissable journey.

The dramatic rock formations caused by coastal erosion provide the scenic aspect to the Great Ocean Road, and there are simply too many to post in a single blog entry, so I'll bring you the highlights, in (roughly) the order we visited them.

First up, the Grotto:

Just before Port Campbell, a landmark with a familiar name - London Bridge:

We stopped at Port Campbell for lunch, and to get a few pointers from the Visitor Centre as to where we should head next. They directed us to the spectacular Loch Ard Gorge:

With sunny spells diminishing and rain becoming more frequent, we pressed on to the famous Twelve Apostles as the afternoon wore on toward evening.

We settled for the evening at a campsite in Apollo Bay, a cosy little one-street town with an incredible number of eateries! An appraisal of the various menus on the street lead us to the popular Apollo Bay Hotel, where we had a really good meal despite the fact that the kitchen forgot to deliver our main course! The staff could not have been more helpful and apologetic and offered us free desserts and coffees.

8 May

We travelled quite some distance along the Great Ocean Road yesterday, and so on this sunny Monday morning we were easily able to complete our trip along the route.

With the end of our Australian odyssey drawing near, and Sydney beckoning we felt it best to bypass Melbourne, and so upon leaving the Great Ocean Road at Torquay we headed towards Queenscliff in order to catch the ferry across the Port Phillip Bay to Sorrento.

Although chilly, the sun was still shining and the hour-long ferry trip across the bay was relaxing and pleasant with dolphins following us in the distance.

"I'm sure she was standing next to me a moment ago..."

Back on dry land we started covering some distance again, stopping at a deserted, unlit rest area when we were too tired to continue. Hopefully, this would be our last encounter with the evil 'drop dunnys'.