{"id":26686,"date":"2024-06-26T00:01:10","date_gmt":"2024-06-26T07:01:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/?p=26686"},"modified":"2024-07-03T09:09:32","modified_gmt":"2024-07-03T16:09:32","slug":"adventure-toward-ayers-rock-part-ii-the-great-ocean-road","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/2024\/06\/26\/adventure-toward-ayers-rock-part-ii-the-great-ocean-road\/","title":{"rendered":"Adventure Toward Ayers Rock Part II: The Great Ocean Road"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Mike Huber<\/h6>\n

I will start this story with the disclaimer that my lack of planning and just going with the flow of Australia allowed for this adventure to even happen. I originally thought that I would easily be able to circumcise (I think that\u2019s the right word) the Australian continent in a month.\u00a0 Not a big deal.\u00a0 Yeah, some long days, but doable.\u00a0 Well, if you go back to Part I of this story, you will realize I got hit by a brick daily on that theory.\u00a0 Either way I had a rental car for a month and would see what adventures I could experience using a list two close friends had provided as a high-level blueprint.<\/p>\n

After a couple days exploring Sydney, it was time to pick up my rental car, hit the open road, and embrace what would come while in Australia.<\/p>\n

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One of the first locations where I was able to slow down and take some time to embrace my surroundings was The Great Ocean Road.\u00a0 Having ridden some pretty incredible roads throughout the planet, for me to say much about any road is a rarity.\u00a0 Well, this is one that I was kicking myself for being in a rental car (and not on a motorcycle).\u00a0 \u00a0I encountered a group of Japanese tourists, and one was a student at Boston University.\u00a0 I was wearing my Boston University shirt, so we posed for a photo.<\/p>\n

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The Great Ocean Road begins just west of Melbourne and extends to Port Fairy.\u00a0 It is 146 miles long.\u00a0 The road is paradise for anyone who has ever ridden a motorcycle. The entire length skirts the coast of the Southern Ocean from cliffs high above.\u00a0 “Breathtaking” doesn\u2019t begin to touch how this feels, as every corner provides a new panoramic view of rock formations and ocean as bright green as you can imagine.<\/p>\n

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Occasionally the road cuts inland through thick rain forest. There are plenty of short hikes gushing waterfall views along these parts.\u00a0 If you look closely you will likely find a koala bear lazily eating eucalyptus leaves in a tree high above.\u00a0 Wallabies dance around your car, curiously peering in to see if anything is worth a closer inspection for something to fill their bellies.<\/p>\n

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Another beautiful feature of this paved paradise is the lack of people along the way.\u00a0 Several campsites I visited had no one in them. I am certain it helped that it was offseason (that and my ability to find off-the-beaten-path locations).\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t odd for me to have miles of beach to myself while enjoying a cold VB Bitter beer.\u00a0 I could stare along the endless coastline while listening to the waves crashing, with my surroundings devoid of any other creature (with the occasional exception of a kangaroo hopping by).<\/p>\n

Upon driving along the Great Ocean Road my mind was in the right place.\u00a0 I was filled with peace through the solitude I enjoyed from star-filled nights.\u00a0 I felt as though my mental clarity was honed, and I was prepared for the next part of my journey (that being the vastness of the Outback of Australia).\u00a0 On many levels, this would prove to be more challenging than I had imagined as I continued the long journey to my destination of Uluru, Ayer\u2019s Rock.<\/p>\n

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