The start of our five-week loop around Oz could not have come soon enough! We were so excited to NOT be at work and to put our traveling shoes back on that we would've had fun no matter what got thrown our way on Day One. But as it turns out, we were blessed with an abundance of sunshine, epic coastlines, and wild koala sightings.
After some tricky navigating around the trams and bicycles of Melbourne's Monday morning rush hour (and Lauren's first hook turn!), we took off down the Great Ocean Road in our rental car, Casper the Friendly Getz. Let me tell you...little car, big heart.
We only had 350km to drive and all day to get there, so we took our sweet time, checking out the surfies and Split Point Lighthouse and frolicking in Southern Ocean along the way. The Great Ocean Road runs along the southern coast of Australia just west of Melbourne and is a must do for anyone visiting Victoria (that's our state by the way for all you yanks).
A friendly barista in Anglesea shared his local knowledge on where to spot wild koalas near Kennett River. The unsealed detour into the Eucalyptus forest of Otway National Park proved to be a worthy adventure as we watched koalas hanging from branches and munching on leaves. Well, one koala did that anyway while the rest of them napped as furry little balls in the treetops. Koalas can spend 16-18 hours per day completely motionless. Throw in the 5 hours they spend eating and there's really no time for anything else!
Just before sunset we reached the Twelve Apostles, the most famous feature of the Great Ocean Road. Years of erosion have left a series of stunning rock pillars along the coast. As you can tell by the name there used to be 12, but rockfalls and more erosion have caused a few to collapse in recent years.
Honestly, the viewing platform was full of annoying tourists and faced west making everything backlit at sunset, so I left the Twelve Apostles feeling a little underwhelmed.
Luckily Lauren pulled over at a small fishing spot just a few km down the road, and a short hike and one hopped fence to the cliff's edge gave us the spectacular views we didn't find at Twelve Apostles. The cliffs to the east were glowing bright orange in the setting sunlight, and we were able to catch the last moments of glory as the sun ducked behind the silouhetted rocks to the west. Epic end to an epic day. Epic beginning to an epic trip!
Be sure to check our the full photo album by clicking on the image below. Woo!
For more epicness, a helicopter ride over the Apostles is suggested. Glad you guys are going well! It's pissing down in Melbourne with no signs of relent, you left at a good time!
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