The Great Ocean Road

The Great Ocean Road is one of the world's great scenic drives, a spectacular route winding along the wild southern coast of Victoria, southwest of Melbourne. It sweeps past surf beaches, rainforest and clifftops to its climax at the Twelve Apostles, a line of towering limestone stacks rising from the crashing Southern Ocean. Built by returned soldiers after the First World War, it is also the world's largest war memorial.

History

Towards the end of the First World War William Calder, chairman of the Country Roads Board, sought money to employ returned soldiers on roads in the remote Western District, where the south-west coast could then be reached only by sea or rough track, and the Great Ocean Road Trust, a private company led by Howard Hitchcock, raised £81,000, to be repaid by tolls before the road passed to the state. Building began on 19 September 1919, by hand with explosives, picks and shovels, and some 3,000 returned servicemen worked on it as a memorial to those killed in the war, several of them losing their lives on the steep coastal sections; they were paid 10 shillings and sixpence a day and lived in tent camps, and the road was finished in 1932 (Wikipedia, Great Ocean Road).

Highlights

• The Twelve Apostles - the towering limestone stacks in the ocean.
• Loch Ard Gorge - the dramatic gorge and its shipwreck story.
• The coastal drive - the winding road past cliffs, surf and beaches.
• The rainforest and wildlife - the Otway forest, koalas and lighthouses.

When to go

The Australian summer and autumn, December to April, for the warmest weather; sunrise and sunset light the Apostles beautifully. It is best over two days rather than a rushed day trip, staying overnight along the coast.

Practical notes

It is a long drive, and rushing the whole thing as a day trip from Melbourne means hours in the car with little time at the stops; two days is far better. The famous Twelve Apostles viewpoint is crowded at sunset and by tour buses. The number of standing stacks is now fewer than twelve, as the sea erodes them.

Nearby

Melbourne is at the eastern end; the Grampians and the surf town of Torquay are nearby.

Key facts