(No photos on this one....not at a good place to download them....but will soon!)
I'm so glad Sarah recommended I travel along the Great Ocean Road. It was fantastic! In addition, Boone gave a top six list of things to do while I was on the road and I was able to do most of them. From Port Fairy I traveled to Port Campbell and saw the beautiful 12 Apostles at the marine park there. These are a series of limestone monuments that were part of the mainland but have been eroded away by the ocean and now standalone like sculptures along the coast. Very cool.
I dropped by several of the other little towns along the road and checked out plenty of 'Scenic overlooks'. But the drive was stunning and I was lucky enough to have a gorgeous day. Another one of Boone's things to do was take a rainforest walk. A rainforest walk you ask? In Australia? You betcha! It was just off the main road and quick 20 minute hike. But it really was a rainforrest. It smelled like it too. Very lush, green, with huge trees! Totally unexpected considering most people think of desert when they think Australia.
I continued onto Lorne, my stop, and went through Apollo Bay. These are awesome beach communities with really beautiful beaches that are shallow and tame. Once I got into Lorne I settled into my hostel roamed around town then headed back to get ready for dinner. I ate at this really surprising tapas bar called BaBaLu. It was Paella night with a live band. Very relaxing. I didn't have the paella but I heard it was good...instead I opted for a series of tapas which were quite filling and delicious.
My plan for the following day was to learn how to surf....at the surf capital of Australia, Torquay. Unfortuneatley, a storm blew in the night before and it dropped the temperature 15 degrees. Too cold for my blood...55 degrees F. Cold weather + cold water = unhappy Laura...strike one. But I decided to check out the famous beaches on Torquay, Jan Juc, and Bells anyway. There were some dedicated surfers out there but it was dang cold. It start by Boone to check out the golf course. He wouldn't tell me why but he said it was a surprise. Anyway, as I drove up there I saw signs that the course would be closed to visitors that wanted to see the kangaroos...so I guess that was what the surprise was...strike two. Oh well.
Took my time on the GOR towards Lorne and enjoyed the scenery. At this point I only had one thing left on my list. Erksine Falls just outside of Lorne. I was debating. Should I or shouldn't I. It was about to rain again. I've already had two strikes....Ah, I did it.
Homerun....it was an awesome waterfall in what seemed another rainforrest. It was a steep hike down then up to get to the base of the falls but well worth it. Again really lush and green. And what's so amazing is that its this beautiful forrest and woods just 15 minutes for the most gorgeous coast you can imagine. I was in heaven folks.
At this point, I've done all on my list and it was relax time. Took a walk along the beach, headed to one of the pubs when it began to rain, and chilled....tomorrow travel to Melbourne then Sydney.....
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