From Torquay to Nelson, the Great Ocean Road is one of Victoria’s (in fact the country’s) most popular scenic drives. Filling the car with camping gear, and following this road, brings back memories for Aussie all-rounder Simon O’Donnell.
Simon spent holidays down this way as a young man, at around the time he was deciding whether to pursue a promising career in Australian Rules footy, or cricket.
You can’t drive the Great Ocean Road without checking out the swell at the famous Bells Beach surf break. Simon’s strictly a ‘swim between the flags’ type of guy, because he says he is petrified of sharks.
There are plenty of places of interest to investigate as this great drive winds its way along the Victorian coastline. One of them is the town of Lorne.
Lorne Foreshore Caravan Park offers campers and caravanners a variety of options. There are five different sites in the oceanfront town, including Erskine River Park, that is ideal for anglers who want to chase bream at their doorstep, or make the short walk to fish for whiting, flathead and salmon.
The Great Ocean Road Coast Committee manages all of Lorne’s campsites, as well as caravan parks in Torquay and Anglesea. All the revue the parks raise goes directly back to managing Great Ocean Road foreshore and infrastructure.
Simon has fond memories of summer days spent in Lorne. “Christmas time, sun, surf, beach club, fishing of a night time catching flounders. Onto the barbie late. Great fun, great part of the world this.”
Recollections flood back too, on a walk along the well-known Lorne Pier. “Right at the end of the sand we used to as kids play a bit of beach cricket. This is famous for the Pier to Pubs which is a massive swim, thousands of people go in at the pier and swim over to the pub for a refreshment when they finish.”
