Our GPS did us right, and really, the signage the whole way was so clear – it was impressive (all of the sights had warning signs so you didn’t miss anything big, and constant reassurance signs that we were still going in the right direction). We hopped on and off the freeway all day, stopping in several towns, and stopping even more all along the ocean sites… the whole day was gorgeous, and the terrain and geography were so varied the whole way, and it was everything we ever imagined.
We started out in Torquay, the surfing capital of the world, drove all along the coast through Anglesea, Airey’s Inlet (great lighthouse), Point Danger, and by then it was lunchtime so we stopped in Lorne at a great café out for gourmet chicken schnitzel burgers (YUM) in the beautiful ocean air (it’s weird because it was cool and breezy, and dry somehow – like Colorado weather with an ocean right there?).
We went down to the beach and waded in the water, looking out on one of the most southern points of land (inhabited) in the world – we imagined how far Antartica was and it was humbling looking out at that ocean.
Then onto Sheoak Falls for a short hike, where along the way we saw a million dewberry bushes – so many that the birds and animals can’t apparently keep up because there were so many ripe berries. The falls were beautiful and pristine, a steady trickle of water flowing down as a river to the ocean.
The section from Lorne to Apollo Bay is one of the more beautiful sections – high cliffs dropping into the ocean, winding roads with amazing views of the coastline looking out at bright turquoise water – gorgeous.
We continued through to Glenaire, which is one of my favorite areas as we passed through a rainforest sitting on top of mountains – the trees were so tall, and the light was so beautiful through the Otway National Park.
Princetown was next, with Gibson Steps, and The Twelve Apostles, which is what The GOR is kind of famous for, and for good reason… it was one of the most beautiful natural sights I have ever seen. It was around 5 p.m. so the lighting was just gorgeous, weather amazing, and looking at these sentries guarding the coast. We were so glad we fit this in to our schedule – it would have been a great shame to miss it!
After we spent some good time with the Twelve Apostles, we went on to see The Arch, the London Bridge, and the Grotto (all natural rock formations along the way), and then onto Warrnambool, driving through miles of dairy farms and small towns watching the sunset to get to the end of the GOR (where we are staying for the night).
It took us about 8.5 hours from start to finish, but it didn’t seem like that long as we stopped so many times and were seeing such beautiful things!
Tomorrow we go back the other way to Melbourne, and we’re so excited as there are a few stops we had to skip as we weren’t sure how much time we had, so it should be another amazing GOR day!
(For the moment, see FB for pictures - once I get back or have more time here I'll add them, but for now, this will have to suffice!)
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