The Coast to Portsea
Trip Start
Apr 04, 2006
1
109
117
Trip End
Mar 30, 2007
Portsea, Australia
Monday, March 12, 2007
As we started our coastal journey so late on Monday (3/5), we decided to make our way out of Sydney and find a caravan park to stay the night. Our rental car was a late model Ford Falcon station wagon and the camping equipment included in the price was: a tent, 2 chairs, a table, a one-burner stove, a cooler, water jug, as well as pots, pans, utensils, plates/cups, etc! We were very well provided for. Fortunately, we arrived minutes before the office closed in Bulli and secured our site for the night. It was a very blustery and windy night and so as we attempted to pitch the tent, the tent pole snapped. Jeremy duct taped it but then another section snapped as well, so we decided to just sleep in the car. It was actually quite comfortable and had a decent sleep. The next morning, we called the rental company about the tent and they just told us to purchase new poles or a tent and they'd reimburse us for the cost!!
On Tuesday (3/6), we stopped off at purchased a new tent as well as foam mats, did a bit of grocery shopping and continued south along the coast. We called it a day about 4 hours later when we arrived in Burrill Lake. Our campsite was located on the lake and had these amazingly large pelicans! That evening, we decided to cook up some corn and realized that the camp stove didn't come with any fuel. So it was just hotdogs for dinner. Tonight was our first night in the tent and it was cold!! We only had our sleep sheets as we had sent home our sleeping bags when we were in Cape Town. We were going to need something warmer!!
On Wednesday (3/7), we found ourselves at K-Mart and purchased a blanket as well as camp stove fuel. Hopefully, we were finally prepared for our camping adventure! We only drove a few more hours and stopped off at Eden for the night.
On Thursday (3/8), we made our way down to Lakes Entrance. The Lakes Entrance area is made up of multiple lakes enclosed by a peninsula with a small opening. The beach is 90-miles long and Lakes Entrance is the start of the beach. It was an amazing sight to see as you gaze down the long stretch of sandy beach.
On Friday (3/9), we decided to make it a long drive day and finish near Portsea. After about 6 hours and stops along the way, we arrived to find most campsites and caravan parks full. It turns out that it was a long holiday weekend in Victoria. They were celebrating Labor Day weekend, which is celebrated in November by other states such as New South Wales and Queensland. Finally, we found a campground in Rosebud. The campground was very similiar to those we have back at home. Not as extravagant as the caravan parks, but still had a decent shower and BBQ facility. As it was a holiday weekend, we decided to spend two nights in Rosebud.
On Saturday (3/10), we decided to drive south to Portsea about 14km away from Rosebud. We visited Fort Nepean and walked to the various forts located within the national park. We spent about 3 hours walking the 5km trails throughout the park. The forts were located at the entrance to Prince Phillip Bay which goes up to the City of Melbourne. The forts were closed to the public untill 1991, when they were opened up to the public as a national park. From there, we decided to visit a few of the local wineries in the Mornington Peninsula area. As the time was drawing close to 4pm, we decided to just visit one cellar door (as they are called in Australia) for a tasting. The lady was quite charming and we tasted a variety of their wines. We ended up purchasing a couple bottles and then had a drink at their pub restaurant next door. Afterwards, we headed back to the campsite for dinner and then watched the movie "Wild Hogs" at the nearby cinema.
On Sunday (3/11), we packed up the car and headed to Sorrento (9km south) and caught the 45 minute ferry to Queenscliff.
See you on the Great Ocean Road!!
- Jeremy and Suzanne
