Tragedy and Beauty

Jan 6

The trucks roaring past the motel window first woke John at 7am. This was to be the last day of the journey around a little corner of Australia, a journey that in the end took perhaps 2,500km and maybe more.

The two friends decided not to have breakfast at the motel but hit the road early as it was to be a long day. Soon after they had started they came upon a grim scene. There had been a road accident. A transfer trailer had collided with a pickup truck that was pulling a trailer on a narrow and twisty section of road.

There were three or more police cars, a rural firefighting crew, road crew, park rangers, tow trucks, and traffic control people guiding cars along one lane, and... a veterinarian's car but no ambulances. The two trucks had been carrying cattle either to or from a sale that they had just passed by in Mount Gambier. There were many lifeless forms of cows lying scattered on the road, in the fields or in the trucks and the vet was putting down the other injured animals. It was both gruesome and heartwrenching at the same time. Both Janice and John had tears in their eyes as they carried on their way in silence. It was an extremely sad start to the last day of the journey.

As they continued along a few hours later they came across an echidna (a cute little marsupial anteater) sitting in the middle of the road and took great care in avoiding it. They hoped that other drivers on the road would also care for this little animal that had no idea of the scene down the road from where he or she sat.

They travelled onward for a number of hours eventually joining the Great Ocean Road, a road John had partly travelled about 10 years before. They stopped in Portland for brunch. John didn't feel like meat and so chose pancakes in maple syrup, with berry compote and whipped cream. He said goodbye to any thought that he would be somehow lighter at the end of his trip than he was at the beginning.

They set off again, stopping at many lookouts to see the spectacular coastal scenery (if John can get the dongle to work, he will upload video from this day before he uploads videos from past days).



The cliffs were spectacular, the sea was a gorgeous shade of blue, the waves grand. Many of the seaside towns were full of people and for the very first time on the trip they saw 'No Vacancy' signs. It mattered not as they were planning on ending the day back at Janice's house.

Finally, after a number of hours it was time to leave the Great Ocean Road - a name that truly fits it - and head back into Melbourne from Geelong on the divided highway. They stopped in to a local chicken and chips and Janice bought a whole chicken, fries and coleslaw for them and Stewart.

It was a happy reunion for Barney (aka Barnaby) the beagle and Janice. And Stewart was happy to see them as well. It was the end of a spectacular trip around the southern part of the Great Southern Land.

Postscript: One of the only - though fairly constant - negatives of this day of the trip were the flies. They were everywhere and they got into your ears, land on your arms, legs, head, and even try to get in your eyes. It makes shooting video very uncomfortable and itchy. Janice even demonstrated the great Australian wave - a hand going in front of your face to shoo the flies away.

TRB