The Great Ocean Road
There are places in the world which are very special and we miss them … long after we miss other aspects, even the football, the gang. I have such places too … some here but as I’m here … they’re still here.
There are places which were here but decades later, they’ve died or have been overrun by hordes, even by modernist “architecture”. There are places which were special with someone special.
One such place for me is the Surf Coast Road and Great Ocean Road:
The SC road links Geelong and Torquay on the map, the GOR goes west once you hit the shoreline, which looks like this:
That’s looking west by the way, rock formations called The Twelve Apostles. Bell’s Beach is a famous surfing beach. Right … so when I saw this below in my inbox, first thought was oh no … but as it’s not the GOR itself, just the approaching SC road, it’s not as dangerous.
Why? Why not so dangerous? Well have a look at the topography above and below.
The entire lower section is heavily forested, which means fires in summer, esp. with leftist arsonists. Now, travelling west, there are those cliffs on your left, then a narrow strip you’re on, along which the GOR runs (the B100 you’ll notice on the ggl map) … a fairly rustic B route.
The steep hill to your right (going west) runs alongside the road, heavily forested … burning forested. There’s no, as in Maui, stepping onto the beach and into the water … there are those cliffs, remember. You getting the idea?
And in summer, there are resort places attracting Melbourne’s bright young things, e.g. Lorne Hotel. Were there to be a forest fire dot dot dot …
Back to the map. If you follow the top edge of the pic west or to your left, then head north-west, you eventually hit South Australia and Adelaide, having travelled through the rich farming land of the Western District, where you’ll find people like the Rupert Lowes of the world.
Were you to head north along the right edge of the pic, and keep heading north, eventually you hit Melbourne across the water.
Were you to turn 180 and head back south, then keep going, you’d hit Tasmania … eventually … if you didn’t drown.
Were you to follow the lower edge of the map, the pic, east, rightwards, then turn south-east … you’d eventually hit New Zealand.
Notta lotta people know that oop norf ’ere.
My late wife and I drove along the Great Ocean Road during.our visit to southern Australia in 2007. After the long, boring two lane Highways, where no one used the overtaking lane, but followed everyone else at a steady 70kph, the GOR was a relevation with it’s twists and turns. Apollo Bay was our mid route overnight stop, in a youth hostel, before continuing the next day, across the top of the Cape Otway promontory, past Castle Cove and up Lavers Hill. We did intend to stop at Port Campbell, but decided to continue to Warnambool for the night, before returning to Melbourne. A fascinating two days.
Being ex military, I was interested to learn that the GOR is the largest official War Memorial in the world, being built by returned WW1 Service personnel in memory of their fallen comrades. The driving (no pun intended) force was a former mayor of Geelong, Howard Hitchcock, who put in his own money when public contributions were low. He saw the completion of the road, but sadly died before the official opening.
This journey is a must for any visitors to this part of Australia.
Having used the inland route Adelaide-Melbourne we drove the Great Ocean Road on our return trip. Fond memories. Maybe we should have stayed in Oz.