Down the Great Ocean Road

It was my last weekend in Australia before heading to New Zealand and then home for the holidays, and I wanted to take a trip. So we rented a car and headed west down the Great Ocean Road. Similar to the Pacific Coastal Highway on the western U.S. coast, Australia's Great Ocean Road is a popular weekend adventure for tourists and locals alike, and includes many fun stops along the southern coast before the grand finale stop of Port Campbell National Park, home of the Twelve Apostles.

Our overnight stay in Lorne was a nice half-way break, and after an unexpected detour we made our way to the Ottway Fly Tree Top walk. Suspended mid-air on a 600 m long 25 m high slightly bouncy bridge, we made our way through the cool temperate rainforest wonders - tree ferns, Beech, Blackwood, and Mountain Ash. Quite impressive.


And we were off again. Driving on the curvy 2-lane road was quite fun, and we stopped every so often if we came across a worthwhile look-out point. I found a sign along the way that was a good reminder to the tourists. Once we made it to the Twelve Apostles, I discovered there were actually only eight still standing due to erosion, but this fact didn't take away from the beauty of the natural site. I also learned that the so-called "London Bridge" had eroded and fallen down as well, but when I asked if the famous song was written as a commemoration, I was told the two were unrelated.