Great Ocean Road in a Day

After three days exploring Melbourne city, we were keen to get out to the coast. I've been lucky enough to visit the Great Ocean Road - a coastal route that stretches from Warrnambool to Torquay in Victoria - twice before with my family, and I knew Esme would enjoy it. Being carless and last minute adventurers, we booked onto a day tour that promised a jam-packed itinerary.

We had to meet the bus just before 7am in the morning, at a hotel in the south of the city. Groggy but excited, we made our way there on the tram. Our driver and guide for the day, Warren, immediately set a jovial tone for the day when he pretended that there was only one booking under Esme's name. As we got seated on board we saw others fall for the same trick. The first part of the day was a drive out to Torquay surf beach, where we were given morning tea: cookies and juice. We sipped our juices from the sunny grass, overlooking the beach, before taking a walk along the sand. We had once again been blessed with beautiful weather, and the ocean glittered with the sunlight. We watched surfers warm up and paddle out.

Our next stop was the official start of the Great Ocean Road, and we saw the iconic sign. Warren was keen to ensure everyone got great photographs throughout the day, always offering to take shots and getting creative with them too! Esme and I had a wealth of photos at the end of the day.

The tour had advertised opportunities to see koalas and kangaroos in their natural habitats, so a portion of the morning was dedicated to seeking out some creatures. We drove to a golf course in an attempt to see kangaroos sunning themselves, but they were far away from the fence and we could only just make them out. However, as the bus trundled away to go find some koalas instead, I saw one statue still on a driveway, and another hopped along towards it. I pointed it out to Esme, who managed to catch the movement before we were gone. I was so glad she'd seen one!

We got out to walk in an area where koalas are often seen snoozing, but all we saw was a (still interesting) bird. After a longer wander down a river, someone pointed out a grey ball of fluff in the trees. It was a koala, after all, sleeping soundly in the branches. A satisfying end to the walk. As we continued driving, Warren advertised a prize for anyone who spotted a decent sighting through the window. Esme shouted "Koala!" not long after and we pulled over. From the side of the road we could see it, and it was a good sighting (though difficult to photograph). We could see its adorable little face squished against the bark. And we were rewarded for Esme's effort! With cute little koala keyrings to take home.

Cape Patton Lookout was our next stop. There are loads of lookouts along the route, but in a one day itinerary you have to be selective. We understood why this one was chosen, as we looked out over the stunning coast, green hills tumbling into turquoise waters. We were looking out towards our next stop, in Apollo Bay.

In Apollo Bay we were given about 45 minutes to explore and eat lunch. Esme and I had other priorities, though. The beach at Apollo Bay was glorious, waves falling like curved glass. We'd planned to bring swimsuits, and I'd remembered, but Esme's face had dropped on the tram that morning when she checked her bag and realised she hadn't packed hers. So, we sped into action at Apollo Bay and ran into the first surf shop we saw to buy Esme a new one. And then we ran down to the beach and dived into the water. It was glorious. Blue sky, picturesque hills. So refreshing in the hot afternoon sun. Two men followed us into the water, grimacing at the temperature of the water. We just laughed. When we returned to the bus we were salty and running with seawater. We put together our lunch on our laps as we got on the road again, ready for a refuel.

We'd seen rocky coast, bushland, a river, and the ocean itself. Next it was time for a rainforest. Maits Rest rainforest walk is a short circuit where you can wander through lush greenery, including towering Mountain Ash trees half covered in mossy life, and beautiful, widespread ferns. We crossed between two halves of a broken tree, lying on its side. It was ginormous! Overall it was a beautiful walk.

It might have been at this point when Warren told us very sincerely that unfortunately we would no longer be able to get out and see the 12 Apostles. There had been an incident, we'd have to  look out the window of the bus. Faces fell in the seats next to me but, remembering Warren's earlier joke, I didn't believe it for a second. 

The 12 Apostles are an iconic formation of rocks, however there aren't twelve as the name suggests, they were just named as such to encourage more people to come and see them! And it works, because the site is always heaving. We found that out when we arrived and were let off the bus after all! We wandered down to the lookout and admired the sand coloured rocks stretching high out of the ocean. But the amount of people there, and the amount of tiny bugs crawling on us, plus the increasingly hot afternoon sunshine, meant we were soon done with staring at them. 

On the way to the apostles, we had made an unexpected stop. Warren confessed that he wasn’t happy with our limited kangaroo spotting, so he took us on a detour to a campsite where kangaroos usually hangout in a neighbouring field. We saw a large group of them chilling out on the grass!

Our final stop was at Loch Ard Gorge, which ended up being one of my favourites. There were four short walks you could do to admire different rock formations on the water. We loved looking out over a bay, sheltered with cliffs, down onto yellow sands and turquoise waters. It looked like something from a story, bringing images of pirates to mind. 

Next up was the long drive back. We’d seen the highlights as promised and been delighted with our wildlife encounters. As much as we’d been enjoying the city, getting out to the coast and spending a day in contact with the ocean and trees was so perfect for us. It gave us the smallest tease of our future days ahead, where we would be getting behind the wheel ourselves and exploring van life in New Zealand.