After catching up with friends in Melbourne we hit the Great Ocean Road again and were officially on the home stretch back to Adelaide!
One of our first stops was Kennet River where we were told you could see lots of wild koalas in the area. I struggled to spot the cute furry animals at first, but Tom soon pointed out at least 5 up high in the gum trees. It was such a beautiful spot to see these native animals in their natural environment.
We made the most of seeing the sights along the GOR. The sun was out and the coastline looked stunning. We stopped in Apollo Bay for some fish and chips and visited The Twelve Apostles, The Arch, London Bridge (what’s left of it) and the Grotto along the route. The waves crashing against these natural attractions was a picture!
After a quick stop at the cheese factory at the end of the GOR we were excited to arrive at the Saw-pit campground for a relaxed evening among the forest. It was a large free camp, toilets weren’t great but what’s new! We had experienced a lot worse… With plenty of campers about, we decided to park up in a nice spacious grassed area. We had one group of backpackers in their tent to the right of us and two caravans about 50m to the left of us. Feeling content after a busy day on the road we watched a movie in the van and planned an early night.
It wasn’t until our movie had finished when we heard some commotion outside. A guy was obviously annoyed at someone as all we could hear was a lot of shouting and swearing.
We instantly felt a little anxious and I asked Tom to come to the toilets with me as there was no way I was walking out there in the dark on my own. On the way back to the van we were approached by three people, in the dark, with hoods up. Fair to say we could have been part of a horror movie. Luckily it was just three backpackers but they were clearly shaken up. They told us that a hippy in one of the caravans near us had started threatening them for no reason and told them to put their campfire out immediately. The guy was clearly on something and had shouted and slurred comments about Donald Trump, calling them every name under the sun. We felt pretty useless and worried thinking he might approach us too. We told them to pack up their tent and drive towards the other end of the campsite where we had seen a lot more campers. Strength in numbers right?
Tom and I decided to stay put, get back in the van quickly, turn all the lights off and hope for the best. They must have eventually called the cops as we saw a police car rock up not long after they moved their tent to the other side.
We survived the night anyway. And once we saw this crazy guy already up at 8oclock in the morning with his chainsaw chopping down some trees for his firewood, that was our cue to leave. The joys of free camping hey!
After one more day on the road and a less eventful night camping in Kingston, we were finally reunited with our beautiful family in Adelaide! It felt surreal driving into Lawton Crescent again. Five and a half months on the road and here we were back where it all began. We had officially completed the ‘big lap’ of Australia! We had missed our family so so much! To top it off, the moment I saw another little bundle of joy sleeping in her rocker, well my heart could have burst right at that moment. Margot Vivienne – you are perfection.
We spent the evening catching up, telling them our latest stories about the crazy guy in the forest and sharing some gifts with them which we had picked up along the way. Paul came over for some drinks and we ended up playing drinking Uno for the rest of the night which was great fun! (It’s more rock’n’roll than you think)
It certainly took a few days to get used to home comforts again. A large bed, a fridge, a shower, a TV, a sofa… simple things which now feel like pure luxury.
After almost half a year on the road, we really learnt how little we need in life to be comfortable. We shared 24 hours a day together and didn’t once want to turn around and head home. I’m not even sure now if it has really sunk in. The adventures, the experiences, the landscapes, the highs and lows of #vanlife. I’m totally proud of how well we not only coped with but thrived and fell in love with the simple, exciting and adventurous lifestyle.
But for now, we are well and truly content with being back in Adelaide with our family again and this week will be spent having lots of cuddles with the little ones, drinking wine and beers with the big ones and just lots and lots of catching up. Good times.
Gemma.