Once Around on a Bicycle
This is where I entered my third Australian state, Victoria.
This stone plaque and modern sculpture memorialize the guy who surveyed the SA - Victoria border. The plaque doesn't say how he died, but I'll bet he was crushed by his tripod.
This is beautiful downtown Nelson (the BP station) with the Glenelg River and Southern Ocean in the background. I took this picture after climbing up this hill to make a phone call. It was the only place in town with mobile phone coverage.
This is the busy port of Nelson. Maybe 'busy' is not the right word.
Here's another road picture. This one was taken between Nelson and Portland. I think I'm allergic to pine trees.
Portland is on Australia's "Shipwreck Coast". Here's a very unsuccessful lighthouse.
This park on Portland's foreshore was the site of the first plowed field by the first permanent settler. The obelisk on the right honors the early settlers and explorers. The gazebo on the left is covering an early whale boiling cauldron. Probably only really, really small whales could fit in there whole.
It's no wonder that Australians love to travel. Every town seems to have a prominant signpost pointing to other places to visit, outside of Australia.
Warrnambool is famous for bicycle racing. They take care of their cyclists in town with bike paths and wide shoulders painted red. This sculpture is in the median strip of the main road through town.
This was the first stop on the famous Great Ocean Road, the Bay of Islands. I took a picture of myself on the viewing platform, then jumped over the railing and risked my life on the fragile limestone cliff edge for the second picture. I hope you enjoy it.
The Grotto is an eerie rock formation at the base of the cliffs. Under the arch is a still pool of water. Behind that are the waves of the Southern Ocean crashing. That's me again. Sorry.
London Bridge was a double-arched bridge until January 14th, 1990. Then, like the song says, London Bridge came falling down. The two Japanese tourists stuck out on the seaward arch had to be picked up by helicopter.
The Loch Ard was one of the many ships that sank on this coast in the 1800's. They named this gorge after the ship that sank just outside the entrance.
These are the 12 Apostles. They are limestone stacks separated from the mainland due to erosion. They're one of the most photographed features on the Great Ocean Road and in all of Australia. Don't worry if you can't see 12. There's only 8. The tourist literature was a little light on the reason for this miscalculation. Maybe they were hoping we wouldn't count the stacks.
Apollo Bay is a quaint, scenic town on the Great Ocean Road. The main street runs along the beach. Then there's a few residential blocks behind that. Finally, it's backed by the green hills. Even though they don't have a McDonalds, I could still live here.
This lookout at Cape Patton on the Great Ocean Road gives you an idea of how difficult it must have been to build a road along this coast. Soldiers returning from World War 1 were employed by the government to build this road linking a few remote coastal towns. It was all done by shovel and pick axe.
I hardly ever see other bicycle tourists when I'm riding. But, on the Great Ocean Road, there are quite a few. At the Wye River, near Lorne, a few of us stopped for a group photo. In the front row are Giel, Andrea, Lisette, and Peter. In the back row are me and Barry. Lisette and Giel are Dutch and have traveled from Darwin, through Alice Springs, to here. Giel travels with a unique collection of hats. Andrea and Peter are German. They are riding a custom Santana tandem bike with a BOB trailer. They plan to be on the road for years. Barry is an Englishman who befriended Lisette and Giel weeks or months before in Alice Springs. He just happened to be driving by as we were talking at the Wye. For many days on the GOR we crossed paths with each other and with other cyclists. As soon as I got off of the GOR, bicycle-touring became a solitary experience again.
The wooden arch over the Great Ocean Road near Anglesea signifies the end (or begining) of the road. This is where the"diggers" from World War 1 began their work.
This is what happens when good architects go bad. This house on the Great Ocean Road near Anglesea can not possibly be insured.
Just another picture postcard view from the GOR. Does that bike look familiar? Not since Pee Wee's Big Adventure has a bicycle received so much attention.
Bell's Beach is like Mecca for surfer dudes. They get some of the biggest waves in the world here. The Australian Open Surfing Championship is held here annually. In the movie "Point Break" it's where Patrick Swayze hangs ten for the last time.
Torquay has one of the nicest foreshores I've seen. There are well-manicured lawns with perfectly spaced pines between the Esplanade and the sandy beach. I've added Torquay to my list of places to buy a house when I win the lottery.
Don't let the line down the middle of this road fool you. The 'bitumen' is barely wide enough for one car. Whenever a car passed lots of stones and dirt were kicked up. You can see that the road infrastructure in Australia isn't quite finished yet.
Here are a couple of views of downtown Melbourne. It's a much bigger city than Perth or Adelaide. The Rialto Tower is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere. I took a few pictures from the Observation Deck at the top.
Cunningham Pier in Geelong is an amusement center. I stayed in Geelong for three nights. Since there is no easy path to cycle into Melbourne from Geelong I took the hour train ride to see the sights one day.
The easiest way to accumulate miles on a bike tour is by ferry. This is my second ferry ride of the day. It's sailing from the Mornington Peninsula to Cowes.
This is Clancy's Print Shop in Wonthaggi. I didn't meet Mr. Clancy because it was Christmas Eve and the place was closed. It's just like a Clancy to slack off.
This is Clancy's Restaurant in Lakes Entrance. You can make up your own punch line for this picture.
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