What is the meaning of GOR…



During our night in Melbourne, it just rained almost continuously, so our plan to stay in Melbourne and catch up with some friends was rapidly changing. Mike and I looked and each other and agreed to get of town as soon as we could. Early next morning, we headed out along the freeway towards the city of Geelong. From here the riding should be great. The Great Ocean Road (GOR) starts just past the city near the famous Bells Beach (made famous in the 1991 movie "Point Break" with Patrick Swayze). As you roll out of Anglesea, with Point Roadnight up ahead in your sights, you know that you’re in for a treat. Following Bass Straight, sometimes very closely, along the coast to Lorne and then on to Apollo bay is a wonderful experience on a motorcycle. Always - providing you stay on the road as you need to be careful! What a lot of people don’t realise is that the best of the GOR comes after Apollo Bay, from where the road tackles the Otway Ranges cutting off the corner of the Southern Cape. For us, there was a further surprise in store. Once we entered the forest I saw, on the digital thermometer on my dashboard, the temperature go into single digits for the first time ever - 8 degrees. Light rain, twisting forest road - in places covered with leaves and sticks, plus a section of dirt road where repairs were being done, made it a bit of a challenge. Tucked away behind the screen, handgrip heaters on full and helmets closed we made it through to the other side and continued along the edge of the ocean for another 100 km through corner after corner amongst some absolutely beautiful scenery. When you are riding you need to keep your eyes on the road, so at times you need to stop and admire your surroundings. There aren’t just rock formations out in the ocean to look at - the inland hills and valleys of the Otways are a feast for the eyes also. We continued to the town of Warrnambool for the night. Although at times it had been very cold, it was a great 8 hours (360km) of enjoyable riding in this part of the world.



Warrnambool to Adelaide.



About 75 Km west of Warrnambool is the small city of Portland. As you roll into town it is hard to believe that, back in the 1840s, Portland competed with Melbourne for the title of Victoria’s major settlement. The two towns do share one major advantage - they are both deep water ports. Melbourne was closer to the gold fields and became the dominant place of future settlers. Portland is a pretty town and prices are very low. Many houses are advertised between 200 and 250.000 AUD.



The road towards Adelaide runs along the coast and past many shallow lakes called the Piccaninni Ponds. Sand dunes separate the ever twisting road from the ocean. The roads are in excellent condition, the only danger may be around the corner by way of wildlife (mainly kangaroos) crossing the road or the many heavy timber trucks hauling logs from the pine plantations which seems to be everywhere.



Further Northwest the road passes many lagoons and the town of Beachport which used to be a whaling station. The town has an interesting attraction which (due to the temperature) we rode past. Along the main road leading out of town there is a large circular “Pool of Siloam” which has so much salt in the water that its density is seven times that of sea water. It is said that you can't sink no matter how hard you try. A windswept ride along Rivoli Bay eventually takes you to the town of Millicent where the road joins the main road from Melbourne and into Adelaide. After 785 km we stopped along the beach at the suburb of Glenelg, one of Adelaide’s prettiest beaches.