A very interesting day to say the least…!!
I took a leaf out of “Dave Young’s Country Road Riding Manual”, and chose to ride the scenic route down to Port Fairy, rather than take the much shorter and direct route through Mount Gambier…
I have seen wider roads in my time...!!
Decisions, decisions...!! But lets steer clear of the one on the bottom, shall we...!!
Great Country roads near Langkoop in Victoria...
I met three riders on their Harley’s in a little town called Casterton, and we chatted for almost an hour… A reporter from the local rag came bustling over and interviewed us, and I had an interesting chat with the lady who runs the coffee shop…. More on this later…!!
Grand old hotel in... Guess where...!! Why, Casterton, of course...!!
"I should bloody well hope so...!!"
My Harley Mates from Murray Bridge... Pat Polak, Graham Foster and Lois Polak...
"Go now...!! You're scaring the children...!!"
Port Fairy was alive with motorcyclists heading for Philip Island to watch the Moto GP, and I decided to make a run for Port Campbell further down the coast, to find a bit of peace and quiet… I met a crazy Italian named Paulo, who had been riding through Australia for a year already, and had covered 40 000 km on his BMW 650 Dakar…!!
When will we see a sign that says "Go like the Clappers when Dry"....?? Not anytime soon is my guess...!!
Not what I needed to see before the Great Ocean Road...!!
"Can I pull over first...??"
"Yes, ...but there once was a tortoise named Cyril, and one day, while crossing the road...
The Great Ocean road opened up before me and if the first 50 km is anything to go by, I want to find a job somewhere down here, so I can ride this road every day…!!
Bring it on...!! I've waited for this day for a long time...!!
London Bridge, which used to be joined to the mainland...
The Arch, Great Ocean Road...
"Oh, Poppycock...!!"
Port Campbell, where I am spending the night ....
...Pretty as a picture...!! And colder than a witch's tit...!!
I rode into Port Campbell in the late afternoon, having covered barely 400 km today, but having the time of my life…!!
I had called ahead and booked a room at the Port Campbell Motor Inn, and the receptionist greeted me with a, “You must be Ronnie…??”, which I was…!!
After a friendly bit of banter, we set about re-negotiating the price he had quoted over the phone, and settled on an appropriate discount… I had a feeling that the prices had been put up because of the huge influx of bikers, and I was right…!! After convincing him that I was not part of the “Philip Island crowd”, he relented and I came away smiling…!!
More on my ride today later, but right now, my eyes are droopy, and I need a power nap….!!
The Great Ocean Road is amazing. I was lucky to be at a conference along there three years ago. Really beautiful.
The roads in Australia just seem to be getting better and better. Stunning views below too. Your three Harley mates look like they in training for hijacking.
enjoyed meeting u at casterton on our ride also enjoyed your website great photos! safe journey hope we meet again your harley mates lois and pat(chuck) polak and graham (grub)foster
Hi Lois…!! Great meeting you guys and having a natter….!! Ride safe and hope we meet again one day…!! R.