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Hi everyone - I am currently at a place called Apollo Bay about half way along The Great Ocean Road - sounds pretty cool hey? Well it is, it's awesome!
I took an early train from Melbourne on Thursday morning to a city called Warrnambool - at the western start of the Great Ocean Road. It was a fairly bog-standard place but the dramatic coastline was stunning - I did a walk out to a headland called Thunder Point - it was desolate, very windy with rolling black clouds and I got covered in sea spray but it was exhilarating, I have never seen such huge waves! I followed the coastline a long way before cutting inland and treking to the local swimming pool - I must be mad but it was worth it - a nice pool and a hot shower! Yesterday I took a bus from Warrnambool to Apollo Bay - it wasn't the most convenient option of getting along but certainly the cheapest - and it turned out to be great - we made several stops en route, long enough to run around the sights and take in the scenery which was spectacular. First stop was Bay of Islands, then London Bridge - a huge arch in the sea - I admired it in the rain, before reaching Loch Ard Gorge and then the pinnacle of the Great Ocean Road - the Twelve Apostles. They were the most awe-inspiring sight I have ever seen - twelve gigantic lomestone pillars rising up to 65m out of the ocean and lined up along the cliffs - it was incredible! I walked out to a viewpoint along the headland and even remembered to bring my Saints shirt for a snap - nice one! I got a bit soggy but the changeable weather certainly added to the sight, it really was spectacular.
From the Twelve Apostles we cut through Otway NP before reaching Apollo Bay - a pretty town set between rolling hills and pounding surf. I made use of a free bike at the hostel and set out on a long ride inland to the border of the Otways to reach a short track up to Mariner Falls - a beautiful waterfall hidden in the bush. The road was deserted and the ride in itself was great - it followed a river on one side and a huge green cliff on the other. The track up to the Falls took in several small river crossings and some fairly dense bush - I could of been in New Zealand except for the towering eucalyptus trees above the fern and palm undergrowth, and of course the spiders - I took no risk against the beasties and prodded my way through with several large sticks, staying firmly to the track - success! The ride back was largely downhill and the track quite muddy - so I got cacked in mud but it was so much fun!
A quick skip back to Melbourne and I had a fantastic few days there after my last update. One day I met up with a friend from Washington - Renee, who I met in the first week of my travels - that seems a world away now so it was bizarre but great to catch up. We wandered around Docklands and then down to Port Melbourne, pigging out on lamingtons (very Aussie cakes) and strolling along the beach :). I went out walking with Anita in the Dandenong Ranges a short way out of Melbourne one day, ate shark fish & chips and headed back into the city another to follow a walk around the Fitzroy Gardens and gaze at the foodhalls in the posh department stores - the smell of cookies in one was so overwhelming that I treated myself to one - ahh I savoured it for ages! And finally on Tuesday, I went in search of a long lost relative. I had been given a very vague address but after lots of door knocking I heard about an 'old Irish chap' who lived over the road - he turned out to be my Mum's uncle and my Great Uncle - he was shocked to say the least about seeing me but chuffed to bits so I spent an afternoon catching up with him - very rewarding.
I am heading from Apollo Bay to the end of the Great Ocean Road today, a surfing town called Torquay which has the most famous surf beach in the world (Bells Beach), I contemplated a surfing lesson but after poking my toe in the sea the other day, I think I'll pass!
Grace xx
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