Lorne - A Winter Weekend

It winter! While most (sane) people goes to the snow hills during winter to "catch" some snow, doing downhill skiing or cross-country skiing, tobogganing or just to play with the snow, we however did something really different.

We spend a week-end at the seaside town of Lorne, at Louttit Bay. If you are wondering where this seaside town is, it's in Victoria, Australia.

Lorne is situated along a popular tourist destination called the Great Ocean Road. That stretch of the Victorian coast is also known as the Surf Coast Shire. You can alway find something to do along the Great Ocean Road.

We wanted to take some time off to relax and to unwind, to enjoy the cafe culture, cellars, eating spots, shops, boutiques gift stores and galleries in the town and not forgetting also to see some of the area's surroundings. Beside the bay itself, we heard there are several beautiful fern gullies and waterfalls in the area that are worth the walk to.

Lorne is around 140km south-west of Melbourne. Passing through Geelong, the drive to Lorne via the scenic coastal route is 65 km. The route gives you the opportunity to take in the panoramic views as the road winds along the edge of beaches, across river estuaries, cliff tops and lush rainforests. There were many a time I wanted to stop and take some photos of the view, except that the road is narrow and windy; too risky to stop except for some designated scenic lookout spots.

If you are on the way to the 12 Apostles or other coastal attractions along the Great Ocean Road, Lorne is certainly one of the towns worth stopping, to rest and get a bite, especially if there is a farmer's market on the day.

The playground and trampolines are very popular with young children. There is even an outdoor swimming pool, but the pool was emptied since it is too cold to swim in, in winter. Even so, there were a number of children in shorts or short sleeves. They must have forgotten it is winter.

There are plenty of accommodations in town to cater for the summer crowd and in winter, you can certainly get some bargains. That however is a matter of differing opinions. There are some art works and sculptures placed around the town with some colourful home/accommodations and decorated cafes making the town look more like a seaside town.

For more photos of Lorne, click here.

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