The Great Ocean Road

Up bright and early for a Macca's breakfast and back on the road.  Luckily today was more exciting!

The Great Ocean Road starts just after Warrnambool and is a scenic strip of highway that was built after World War One by returning soldiers.  This strip of coast is know as the Shipwreck Coast, as many explorers were caught here back in the day.  It borders the Southern Ocean (don't remember learning there was such a thing from my social studies teachers!) and there are tons of things to stop and see every few minutes.  It's amazing to see how the ocean can change the land so much and erode the rocks into these different formations.

First stop was Loch Ard Gorge.  It was super windy here with gaelforce winds at 30 km/h!

I love that Dad got a photo of me taking a photo- my favorite thing

 

The Grotto

Joel was the only one brave enough to climb out here...

...then had to climb up here (even though you're not supposed to)

London Arch (formally bridge).  It used to be connected to the mainland, but one day the bridge part just fell down!  There were two tourists stranded there for a few hours while helicopters came to rescue them.

 And finally the most famous of them all, the Twelve Apostles.  There are only eight left now.  Unfortunately it was so windy I didn't get too many great pics.  I also twisted my ankle on a hill here, which put a damper on my heel wearing for the next few days!

 

Yep, it really was THAT windy!

You can't really tell from this picture, but the highway got pretty windy.  It literally hugs the coast and twists and turns it's way through hills, valleys and forests.  Dad and Joel had to take turns driving this road!

 Ocean Road completed!

After a yucky lunch in Apollo Bay, we drove past Torquay to the famous Bells Beach.  This is where the world's longest running surf competition, put on by Rip Curl, takes place each year.  Even though it was cold and windy, there were still a ton of surfers out there!

From here on it was back to sleep for me until we pulled into our final destination, Melbourne...