Day 5 Aireys Inlet to Waurn Ponds

Ok so this was the final day of our Great Ocean Road ride and the weather gods saved the best until last. Yesterday was blowy, but today took it to another level, and we had to ride right into the teeth of the gale for the last 10km or so. This is going to be a pretty short post as there's not too much to talk about on this leg of the ride, especially when the weather is not in your favour.
We left Aireys at around 830 with a gameplan to beat the worst of the winds and I think we won that battle. We left the highway at Anglesea and didn't bother to do any coastal lookouts on the way. The traffic was pretty heavy and the shoulders narrow to non existent in some places and with the wind often coming across us, we were keen to get off the highway sooner rather than later. We also decided to pull the plug at Waurn Ponds rather than riding all of the way into Geelong. This saves about 10km and unless you're into box ticking exercises on tour routes, it's probably better to finish here, even if the weather is good.
All up, this is an awesome ride. You need to be pretty fit and savvy in traffic moving at high speeds. Also make sure you've planned your tour carefully. The western end is pretty scant when it comes to services, so think ahead before you commit to riding on days 1 and 2. If you want to know any more about the GOR road, don't hesitate to drop me an email via this site.
We were lucky enough to catch a train that was waiting on the platform and before we knew it we were at Southern Cross station. I went down to check in my bike for tomorrow's train trip and was greeted by a guy who was probably related to the luggage attendant in Sydney. I won't bore you with the details, but let's just say he was a late middle aged man with a mullet. That can only head in one direction.
Anyway, here's a few pics from wandering around Melbourne this afternoon