Great Ocean Road

Another excursion we went on was to the Great Ocean Road which travels along the southern shore of the continent. It was constructed by World War I veterans after they returned home in need of work. The road is 280 km long and is the host of 157 shipwreck sites, along with many famous rock formations. We stopped in Anglesea for some fresh bush billy tea and lemingtons. These are two traditional Aussie treats. Lemingtons are white cake bars dipped in chocolate and rolled in coconut. As you can imagine, Eric was a big fan! One of the neat facts about Anglesea is that they offer a 5 day surfing course as an elective for Melbourne upperclassman. Students travel down there to learn the ropes of surfing as well as ocean water safety. Wish we had that as an elective!
We then continued along the windy bumpy road, Jess desperately trying not to get carsick, until we reached the Twelve Apostles. These are giant limestone pillars that reach out from the water towards the sky. Originally there were actually more than 12 pillars, but not there are less than 10 because water erosion has taken its toll.





Our next fun point was traveling on a helicopter ride! We strapped in and soared in the sky circling the 12 Apostles and several other beautiful rock formations. The sights were fantastic!





After landing we returned to our group at Loch Ard Gorge, which contains a secluded beach and caves along the cliff line.







Our final stop was at London Bridge! (not the one in London!) This rock structure was named London Bridge because it originally had a double arched shape similar to that of the bridge in London. However, again water erosion took its toll in 1990 knocking over the mainland half of the structure. Two tourists were actually marooned on the outer section for hours until helicopters came to rescue them!