Swapping the beautiful fluffy green hills of Tasmania for the flat red, brown and grey of Melbourne, the only thing raised from the ground, the shining towers at its centre, I knew I’d made the right choice when I took that flight to Hobart two months ago. Now much more a fan of open spaces and leafy surroundings, I was happy not be spending my weekend in the centre of Melbourne, but to be heading west.
I’d booked a tour that would take me first along the Great Ocean Road and then into the Grampians National Park. A journey which, on top of my driving in Tasmania, would mean I’d travelled over 3000 km on roads alone in the last week.
I’m not a great fan of tours. Getting on and off the bus as instructed and having little to no choice in where, or how long you stop. It did however, have its benefits, in particular our great tour guides and the amount of knowledge imparted about each location we passed by. Some of which I noted down in order to share it with you lucky readers.
The Great Ocean Road is 243 km long. Built between 1918 and 1932, it was created to connect many remote towns from Melbourne heading westward. At the time, it was also seen as a great opportunity to offer employment stability for 3000 veterans returning from WW1, who completed the whole construction with hand tools alone.
Despite, or perhaps because of, serious dangers along the way (men needed to climb on the side of cliffs from time to time to blast holes and enable them to continue along their route), they were also very capable drinkers! Proven in 1924, when a two week party commenced as a result of 300 barrels of beer and 120 crates of spirits reaching the thirsty men as a ship capsized along the coast. The whole road is now dedicated to Australia’s fallen soldiers of WW1 and thus is the world’s largest war memorial.
I collected a random array of facts as we were driven along the coast​, many contributing to the uniqueness​ of the region.
Rock fishing is the most dangerous activity you could choose to do in your spare time in the state of Victoria, with people often standing on cliff edges and getting caught out by the occasional uber wave (I’m not sure this is the scientifically correct terminology, but you get the drift).
Over 80% of the marine life is unique to this part of the world, including the leatherback turtle and three species of dolphin.
I discovered that bush fires, as destructive as they seem, are vital for the diversity of Australia’s plants. Some, for example, needing the heat for their seed pods to open. Historically Aboriginals had burnt the country annually for bush food, a process ruined by European settlers and the after effects of which continues to affect the stability of the environment today.
Apart from the joy I had as the tour guide rained down his knowledge, the sights we came across were pretty spectacular. The twelve apostles, the most famous sight along the road, were (actually eight) mightily impressive towering blocks of limestone and sandstone, standing tall within the crashing ocean waves. Admittedly, the initial beauty was lost on me as the first viewpoint required us to weave our way through a dense crowd and I struggled to focus on anything aside from the mass of people. I appreciated the sight more at our second, much less crowded, stop a little further down the road.
We drove inland as the sun was setting and the final image I recall before night took over was the silhouette of a lone cow, standing tall upon the crest of a hill amid a brilliant orange backdrop.
Not quite at its end, the day offered still more as we stood by the local wild kangaroos at the hostel, beneath a dark blanket filled to bursting with shining white pin pricks. As we stood with our necks strained upward and witnessed a shooting star pass by, a conversation with a different tour guide let me hear of a youth spent sleeping out beneath the stars in north west Queensland.
We rose before the sun the following day so we could reach the top of The Pinnacle in time to view the green, sandy, flat and hilly, lake dotted terrain in a golden glow as we rested on the rocky outcrop above. A wonderfully fresh start to the day that I truly enjoyed. I was able to sit and watch as the trees glittered in the gentle morning light and the sun forcefully filled the sky.
From here we had a couple more stops along the way; a waterfall, a winery and a well needed food break, before continuing on to Melbourne. I struggled my way through the final hours, my body exhausted after the last few months of constant activity and became more excited than one should ever be about the prospect of lying on the airport floor that night.
