The Great Ocean Road

Like all great road trips, we started off by picking up a trusty Toyota in Melbourne. This is particularly iconic to mention because we are driving on the other side of the road (aka not the right side, get it?) and we survived! I wasn’t driving, but I was sure-as-hell nervous that Kidai would not be able to process the cognitive overload of driving on the left side of the road. Everything on the dashboard was reversed, which meant that there were a few times when he meant to signal to turn, but instead the windshield wipers came on. I don’t think I’ve seen as many signs to remind people to stay on the left side of the road. Left side of the road, people!

Before going on the Great Ocean Road, not going to lie, I was a bit skeptical. Could it really be better than Highway 1 in California? I even asked friends who had done it, and they all urged me to do it. And honestly speaking, after completing this journey, pictures don’t do Great Ocean Road justice. I mean… in photos, all beaches kind of look the same. But I’m telling you that this was, !!spoiler-alert!!, amazing, and definitely worth doing.

So… our plan was to drive 5 hours on the first day by taking the scenic path, and 3 hours the next day back to Melbourne. Thank god the drive was easy. There was no tailgating or pressure from locals to drive faster, or scary one lane merges, in comparison to the infamous Road to Hana that we did last year in Maui.

We started off in Bells Beach where we saw surfers, young and old, riding the waves like it was second nature. It made us both excited to learn how to surf, until he started asking why surfers don’t wear floaties while surfing, and then I remembered that Kidai did not know how to swim… We then parked our car by a (no name) beach and enjoyed a French baguette for lunch that we had packed from Melbourne. Protected from the wind outside, we got to enjoy our hearty sandwich while reveling in the blue skies, and the sandy beach right from the comfort of our car.

As we continued on, it started to rain at times, and then it would clear up, almost immediately. It was as if the weather was sneezing on us. We pulled out onto the side of the road so many times, just because it was so scenic and gorgeous. The beaches were really clean, not like some that you see that are littered with seaweed or rocks. We made it to the Princetown area in the afternoon and that’s where most of the attractions are.

We spaced out everything by checking out three places in the afternoon, and three places in the morning the next day. Our favorite spots were Gibson Steps, London Bridge and Bay of Islands. I liked places that were more peaceful and had fewer tourists. The aforementioned listed all had small parking lots, which didn’t even allow tour buses to enter (signal that this place is gonna be good). Twelve Apostles was by far one of the most popular places. There were several tour buses lined up, and they even sell food in the visitor center!

When we went in late September, it was starting to warm up, but still super windy and chilly which made it hard to enjoy everything when all I wanted was to not get blown away. I would love to come back again (maybe actually surf next time?) and highly recommend it for any of you skeptics out there.