Great Ocean Road – Port Campbell to Warrnambool
The major purpose of the Great Ocean Road began early. Early mornings in Australia are good. So many others stay in bed and leave the beauty and peace to those of us who begin at dawn. Port Campbell was very quiet and having filled the car with more gas I drove back down the Great Ocean Road to what is known as the Port Campbell National Park.
The park itself covers more than the 12 Apostles. The inland areas of vegetation and fauna are native to Australia and Victoria in particular and the Park area covers such a diverse range of coastline, woodland, cliffs, limestone stacks and arches.
It is the limestone stacks that most of us come to see. The 12 Apostles in particular. These stacks are the remnants of the Australian coastline, formed over many millions of years as the water erodes the soft limestone.
12 Apostles
As a result of the limestone eroding the badly 12 Apostles aren’t numbered very well. There are no longer 12. In fact, there never was 12 Apostles. The stacks were originally called “Sow and Piglets” but the name was changed in the 1950s for something that would attract more visitors. At that time only 9 of the rock stacks remained.
The visitor centre for the Twelve Apostles was closed when I arrived but the early morning light made for some excellent photographs and since I was the only person around had the whole of the area to myself.
Once the Visitor Centre had opened I was able to go to the toilet and have a brief read of the information of what is known as “The Shipwreck Coast”. One of the most famous shipwrecks came in the next stop Loch Ard Gorge.
The Loch Ard ran aground in 1878 off Muttonbird Island. Of the 50 or so crew and passengers only two survived. The gorge was named after the clipper and remains a breathtaking part of the coastline. Having walked around the area there are a number of boards telling the story of the Loch Ard, the survivors and the peacock. Many of the dead from the Loch Ard are buried in small cemeteries in the area and their graves are all duly marked.
Continuing back west along the Great Ocean and the other side of Port Campbell brings a series of fantastic lookout points and further examples of beautiful erosion. One day all this will be gone, one day new cliffs and stacks will stand testament to nature. London Bridge is one major formation which has already fallen, leaving only one of the two archways that once stood off the mainland. Further along, the Grotto and Bay of Islands show just how the weather can shape a country and nature create something so visually stimulating.
At the end the Great Ocean Road merges into the Princes Highway and I continued on to Warrnambool for the third night, stopping at the Cheese Museum for the novelty of cheese and some luncheon.
Warrnambool grew from dairy farming and whaling with a little help from the Gold Rush in the 1850s and provides a wonderful place to finish a Great Ocean Road drive. The town is picturesque in parts and the Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum is a must for anyone who has driven along the Great Ocean Road. The museum tells the story of many shipwrecks and houses the Minton peacock which remained intact (apart from the beak) after the Loch Ard ran aground.
