The Great Ocean Road begins at Torquay. From Torquay the road heads inland-ish and winds through some stunning hills and valleys before landing into Anglesea. If you’ve begun fairly early you’ll most likely seek some lunch by this stage. Just as you head into town there’s a little strip of shops with loads of cafes to match all tastes and budgets and show shops with your favorite womens ankle boots, and if you wish to stay a little longer then the Big 4 Anglesea Holiday Park or the great ocean road accommodation are good locations to start.
Before you set off make sure you do the usual car checks like checking the ironman rooftop tent is in tact, because you don’t want to have to undertake a car tyre repair on the side of the road. Once you’ve done this, get back on the Great Ocean Road and head towards Lorne which is a stunning little town set right on the sea. Along the way the road runs right along the ocean offering travelers some definitely spectacular views; words don’t do this place any justice at all, if the weather is good be sure to open up your sunroofs. Eastern View is about midway in between Anglesea and Lorne and is the spot where a statue celebrating the building of the Great Ocean Road has actually been erected. It’s a bronze statue of 2 Diggers, and for a photo opportunity, there’s a huge archway over the road with Great Ocean Road composed on it. And for a minor visual distraction, take a look at your home on a stilt jutting out of the hillside not far from the statue. It’s as bizarre-looking as it is cool.
Keep driving to Lorne, and this part of the drive is most likely a favourite, it’s simply what I anticipated the Great Ocean Road would be; the roadway essentially runs along the shore.
Lorne is among the bigger towns along the road, so if you need anything like replacement tyres or food for your ironman 4×4 fridge, make sure you do it here. If you had more time it ‘d definitely be worth stopping in town for a number of days as there are loads to do; you can either stay in some great Lorne accommodation and play by the beach or head up into the hinterland and go horse riding or bush walking.
Pushed on to Apollo Bay where the road continues on clinging to the rocks as it twists and turns its method down along the coast. It’s simply remarkable, and if you had a sports car, well, it ‘d be among those one-in-a-million driving experiences, make use of the after market sunroofs you’ve no doubt installed.
Apollo Bay is a fantastic area for both food and shopping for your womens boots. With lots of cool coffee shops, pubs and a handful of caravan parks it’s a place well worth camping at for a number of days. At Apollo Bay, you might kid yourself you’re a million miles from anywhere. It’s a serene location unless you’re there throughout a show like we were then, as you ‘d anticipate, discovering a website will be difficult; the environment was excellent, though. We found a patch of ground, thanks to the vans small size, at the Apollo Bay Holiday Park. It’s only a little park and is filled primarily with cabins but we scored a good, non-powered grassy area to park the van among a bunch of tents next to the pool.
