After a pleasant flight we arrived In Melbourne at noon. It was sunny and hot. We picked up our little Hyundai Getz and off we set for the delights of Australia and the great ocean road. Thankfully the airport was on the right side of the city for our route and we didn’t have to cross it as there were toll roads….Our route took us out on the Princes Highway until we hit a sign for the great ocean road. We stopped off on the way to get some fruit and some water to see us to a town with a supermarket.
We passed through bushland and came to “the road” at Bells beach, somewhere we had been told to see. As we pulled into the car park the first thing we saw were kangaroos in the field behind us. Been in Aus two hours and we were seeing ‘roos already. Anyway I digress, Bells beach was sadly closed due to a major surfing event – remember those dudes from Raglan – they were all here being cool and stuff as they say. We stood a while and watched from the cliffs. There was TV coverage there so it was obviously serious stuff. We drove on down the coast and the beaches were wonderful as the road wound its way down the coast. We stopped off at a couple of lighthouses and “scenic lookouts” it was quite pretty.
We eventually arrived at Apollo Bay which was a lovely little resort. We went to the wrong backpackers first off – good job as it didn’t look too good. We then found our digs for the next couple of nights and we were pleasantly surprised. It was called a backpackers but we had a self contained apartment with kitchen, dining area and bathroom with spa bath, wow such luxury. There was also a supermarket across the road – how handy is that!!
The next day we went in search of Koalas in a valley river walk. We drove up the unsealed road to the point as detailed and saw nothing. Well when I say nothing there was a sea of eucalyptus trees and dense bush forest which in itself was quite spectacular. There were no koalas. We walked back to the car a little despondent and set off back down the unsealed road to the main road.
To our surprise, the little guys were all sat in the trees above us sleeping. We saw at least a dozen!!! They sit clinging to the smallest and thinnest of branches just sleeping. To say we were pleased was an understatement. In one tree it was quite blowy and the branches had some serious sway and he just carried on sleeping not bothered by the wind.
In the afternoon we went to a hilltop canopy walk – as it was described. In actual fact it was a bit of a disappointment after the mornings adventures with the koalas. It was very touristy and busy and certainly no where near as pretty as where we were in the morning. We did see some lovely parrots in there though. The canopy walk itself was quite good, high up in the forest on a steel constructed range of linked bridges. It was cloudy too by now so not that good.
Another splendid evening of luxury was had in our super apartment. The next day we were told by the owner of the digs that we should visit Tower Hill on our way to Port Fairy. Apparently it is a volcanic basin which is teaming with wildlife which lives there – not been put there. We will see………
We passed through bushland and came to “the road” at Bells beach, somewhere we had been told to see. As we pulled into the car park the first thing we saw were kangaroos in the field behind us. Been in Aus two hours and we were seeing ‘roos already. Anyway I digress, Bells beach was sadly closed due to a major surfing event – remember those dudes from Raglan – they were all here being cool and stuff as they say. We stood a while and watched from the cliffs. There was TV coverage there so it was obviously serious stuff. We drove on down the coast and the beaches were wonderful as the road wound its way down the coast. We stopped off at a couple of lighthouses and “scenic lookouts” it was quite pretty.
We eventually arrived at Apollo Bay which was a lovely little resort. We went to the wrong backpackers first off – good job as it didn’t look too good. We then found our digs for the next couple of nights and we were pleasantly surprised. It was called a backpackers but we had a self contained apartment with kitchen, dining area and bathroom with spa bath, wow such luxury. There was also a supermarket across the road – how handy is that!!
The next day we went in search of Koalas in a valley river walk. We drove up the unsealed road to the point as detailed and saw nothing. Well when I say nothing there was a sea of eucalyptus trees and dense bush forest which in itself was quite spectacular. There were no koalas. We walked back to the car a little despondent and set off back down the unsealed road to the main road.
To our surprise, the little guys were all sat in the trees above us sleeping. We saw at least a dozen!!! They sit clinging to the smallest and thinnest of branches just sleeping. To say we were pleased was an understatement. In one tree it was quite blowy and the branches had some serious sway and he just carried on sleeping not bothered by the wind.
In the afternoon we went to a hilltop canopy walk – as it was described. In actual fact it was a bit of a disappointment after the mornings adventures with the koalas. It was very touristy and busy and certainly no where near as pretty as where we were in the morning. We did see some lovely parrots in there though. The canopy walk itself was quite good, high up in the forest on a steel constructed range of linked bridges. It was cloudy too by now so not that good.
Another splendid evening of luxury was had in our super apartment. The next day we were told by the owner of the digs that we should visit Tower Hill on our way to Port Fairy. Apparently it is a volcanic basin which is teaming with wildlife which lives there – not been put there. We will see………
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