The Great Ocean Road

Step one rent a car
Step two hit the road with our sweet car
Step Three enjoy the hell out of it

Peggy and I got our rent a car (aka Big Betty), a small red economy car, and proceed to the great ocean road which deserves its name most heartily. When you here a name like great ocean road, you expect greatness and damn , because when you get there you find the most winding serene drive along the ocean and cliffs that one could find this side of the world. You felt dwarfed in-between massive cliffs and rock formations, winding road down into valley’s that strangely resemble somewhere in Ireland, and all of a sudden find yourself again hugging the sea as the sun dances off the ocean creating some of the most amazing views I have ever experienced. We chased the sun and showed up at the famous twelve apostles spot right as it turned dark, we were going to get there for a daylight view the next day we swore. Peggy and I then spent one night at Port Fairy a sleepy little fishing town with an amazing Yha, (imagine old manor house turned hostel) and drank wine while counting our blessings and stargazing.

The following morning found us walking around the nearby island nature reserve that was hands down the creepiest Island either of us have ever visited, sense it was covered with dead sea birds. Apparently after a big storm as many as a 100 sea birds can be driven and crushed on land and this is where they go, that along with a few small swamp wallaby’s and one lone old lighthouse the place had all the makings of a mediocre horror film. The second island we visited however was a kick ass nature reserve island in a dead volcano, wicked yep it was as bad ass as it sounded. We had to follow a ranger into the volcano park due to the main road under work and the whole place surrounded by wet lands, so the maitenence road with the park ranger it was. Here we found ourselves hiking beautiful peaks, with wild emmu’s lounging in near by wetlands and wallaby’s and rabbits running everywhere, it was also here we saw our first wild Koala!

Yep he was as adorable as everyone says they are and this fat little furry baby we saw climb a tree so slow that I could have run up grabbed him and swung him around, I didn’t but was so tempted. After this super high we proceeded back up the great ocean road, and after a thousand beautiful cliff stops, millions of photos and another night stop at the Yha in Loerne, were we played cards all and drank beer with a lovely Hong Kong couple named Calie and Barry, we headed back towards Melbourne. Needless to say, Peggy is an amazing travel partner and I wouldn’t have wanted to do the trip with anyone else, I almost convinced her to climb in my luggage and come up north, she would have fit.