Fauna Australia Wildlife Retreat

My lodging for tonight is at Fauna Australia Wildlife Retreat (Update: currently closed due to COVID).

The retreat rescues and rehabilitates animals. Guests can stay at the retreat and learn about their rescue efforts while also supporting the organization by paying to stay at the retreat.

There are a set of rooms accessible from outside the retreat but my lodging is in a cabin inside the retreat. There is a deer that follows me to my cabin.

The retreat technically doesn’t rescue deer but the story is that this guy just showed up and hasn’t gone away since.

The cabin is family sized and big for just me but it is all that is available at the time of booking.

I drop my bags and take a couple carrots to go meet some animals on site.

On my first day I only notice the caged koalas. I find out the next day that most of the koalas on site are able to roam free and the caged are baby koalas that don’t have the intelligence to not wander off and get hurt; they are enclosed for their protection. The adults stick around because they are fed regularly.

Creepy deer that follows me everywhere. I am getting stalked for my carrots.

After handing out some carrots I go back to my cabin to settle in before I head out to see glow worms tonight.

Melba Gully Glow Worms

There is a short drive from the retreat to the Melba Gully Day Visitor Area (Great Otway National Park). Tonight I want to see glow worms since there is only a few places in the world you can view them. Glow worms (Arachnocampa otwayensis) are the bioluminescent larvae of small flies seen at night only along the stream banks and walking tracks.

I am a terrible judge of when nightfall is. I arrive to the Melba Gully trail and I am the only car there. It is still light outside but the sun is setting. I am starting to question that this solo visit is a good idea. I gather my headlamp and head down the path anyway.

I arrive at a clearing where I get a nice view of dusk.

I take the walking track toward the glowworm viewing.

I am walking on a path through a rainforest. It is damp and I see a stream of water and listen to its meditative flow. Darkness unfolds. It is almost pitch back except for a slight bit of sunsetting light. I can’t see what is around me but I hear water flowing below and the sound of something moving around in the dark maybe; or maybe I just the hear water hitting rocks, or maybe it is an animal. Almost an hour has passed and I am still out here alone. This seems to be turning out to be another one of those “this isn’t the best idea and I could get murdered” situations; I have had a few of these traveling solo but have been lucky thus far. I walk back and forth along the boardwalk and start spotting a glow worm or two as it finally darkens. They are hard to see but I start picking them out.

I don’t have the right camera for taking pictures of glow worms but I do capture a couple.

They are really cool to see but I just can’t stick around. I have already been here over an hour all alone. I am scared and feel like I am pressing my luck as far as safety is concerned. As I take the return journey I walk by a couple arriving, and then a family, and then another. I have already made it so far back on the trail and feel committed to leaving. I return to my car even though it most likely it would have been safe to stay at this point. At least I see SOME glow worms….and luckily I’ll get another chance in New Zealand.

I drive back to the retreat. It is getting chilly so looking forward to cuddling under blankets tonight. I do spot this nocturnal guy on my walk back.

Sorry for flashing light in your eyes lil buddy

The next morning I wake up early as I always do. They have a set checkout time and I have a while to wait so I walk around the grounds greeting some more animals and handing out the rest of my carrots.

creepy flying foxes giving me the eye

The Kangaroos

On my way out I get to meet some of the retreat staff members and have a meet and greet with the three naughty baby koalas. I learn many things about koalas.

I like how they don’t encourage guests to handle the animals. They seem to do a good job with rehabilitation.

Below is a little video of all the animals I see….

This lodging is a unique experience. I am so glad I found it.

Great Ocean Road Australia

I have my rental car ready and I am heading out along the coast for a road trip. In my research I found that a drive down Great Ocean road is a must. A road trip along great ocean road is the plan. I am starting from Melbourne (or Lancefield – guesthouse location) and will ultimately end up in Adelaide where I will return my rental car.

I drove near Hanging Rock yesterday so I am not a total novice to driving on “the wrong side of the road” but I admit I am a little nervous on driving on curvy cliff-side roads in traffic. I will drive slowly and cautiously. Hopefully locals won’t want to kill me for backing up traffic.

My little car seems to do well. Things do get a little curvy at some points but I make it through ok.

As soon as I reach the coast I am rewarded with beautiful views. My first stop is in Torquay for some lunch. I originally planned for lunch at another restaurant in another town but I discovered the restaurant I originally wanted to dine at is closed for the day. I instead stop at Fishos for some fish and chips.

Torquay

It takes me longer than usual to order because I have never had any of the types of fish on the menu. I ask the cashier lots of questions to get an idea of the different fish types and how to compare them to fish I know. I settle on one finally and of course order it fried – because fried. I like the nice little outdoor area. The weather is perfect.

Weirdo birds that just lay in the grass like this. Must be nesting.

I am parked across the street at a park that overlooks the water. I walk along the trail, taking in the views. I notice many birds along the way.

I drive on but stop on my way to Lorne to get some spectacular views of the coast.

Lorne

I stop at Lorne to take some pictures. I enjoy the shale-like flat rocks and watching surfers at the beach. It looks like a nice area. I would have liked to spend a night here and explore a little more.

Again I am on my way and stop at another lookout.

I slowly move away from the coast as I head to my final destination for the day north of the Great Otway National Park. Oh how I wish I scheduled more days on this drive. There are so many areas I would have loved to explore more….

Hanging Rock

Today I fly into Melbourne to start my journey of Victoria and South Australia. I am arriving in the early evening so I decide to book a hotel near the airport for the evening and pick up my rental car in the morning. When I walk outside to meet my hotel shuttle I am very happy to be greeted with temperatures of 68⁰F (20⁰C). I am in heaven. I spent the last couple months sweating non-stop but now I am finally in my favorite temperatures. I love Melbourne already and I haven’t even left the airport.

I have a dinner in the hotel restaurant and then leave early in the morning to pick up my rental car. A new adventure is starting, I have never driven on left side of the road nor the right side of the car. I am nervous but I am up for the challenge.

I take a little while to make sure I am familiar with the car and all the gadgets. I have also sprung for the GPS like I did in Spain; I make sure to have all my coordinates inputted.

Soon I am off on the road. I am nervous but I drive slower and stay in the slow lanes. Traffic gets thick in some places but luckily it is not too bad. My drive is less than an hour. I can do it!

It is almost mid day when I arrive at Hanging Rock, my main destination for the day. I could have visited this site on my way to other travels but I don’t like to rush my travel – especially when I am traveling alone. I plan to visit Hanging Rock and then stay the night in the area.

Why do I choose to visit Hanging Rock do you ask? Besides it being a very interesting looking rock structure, I also have a family connection of sorts. I recently have lost my aunt who died a horrible slow death at a relatively young age. In the 1970’s she went to see the mystery movie Picnic at Hanging Rock in the movie theater with my grandmother and they both loved the film. My aunt had communicated that to me in the past so I watched the movie on my own and was drawn to the film as well. Viewing the movie made me want to visit the sight where it is filmed. I spent some time helping my aunt convalesce in Las Vegas in the year prior to this trip. Unfortunately she died a couple months later but during my time with her the new series Picnic at Hanging Rock came out. I was able to watch the series with my aunt not knowing that is the last time I would get to spend any kind of quality time with her before she died. So you can say I have an emotional connection to this place and the visit is a pilgrimage of sort.

I walk up a concrete path where the view of the rocks gets clearer the closer I get. In the movie the girls walk through brush and cross streams. I have a nice paved path that takes me straight there.

Once at the top I enjoy the views below.

I notices the crevices between the rocks so I do some exploring.

I also do a slight bit of rock scrambling but really it is just me sliding down some rocks on my butt.

I come to an area where I am alone and only hear bees buzzing, it is very ominous. This is where I feel like I could have been part of a movie scene.

More crevices….

Some rocks to sit on to enjoy the view. I see farms and maybe alpacas or llamas in the distance.

I start my descent back down where I actually see hanging rocks. I chose the smooth flat uphill path on the way up and taking the stairs on the way down. I am glad I chose that method.

There is a short trail around the rock formation. I take the trail around the loop. I seem to be the only one taking the trail. I hear nature and get other views of the hanging rock.

As I drive away I stop to take photos from another angle.

It is a nice visit. I wish I would have brought a picnic and bottle of wine to truly live out a picnic at hanging rock. If you haven’t see the original movie it is an interesting watch.

I check into my guesthouse twenty minutes away at Lancefield Guest House. I do a self check-in and don’t see another soul there until the next morning. I feel like I have the whole place to myself for the night.

At the guesthouse I see a list of the activities in the area and I spot a couple wineries close by that are still open for the day. I rush out to visit some cellar doors (cellar doors are what tasting rooms are called in Australia).

Here is my little note about what I know about Australian wines: In my opinion the majority wines we import in the United States from Australia are the most horrible wines ever. I am coming into my wine journey of Australia with low expectations.

WOW am I surprised!

I start my tasting at Cleveland Winery.

I am pleasantly surprised with my tastings. The first two are sparkling wines which I generally avoid due to headaches but they are quite good. I even like the chardonnay I sample and it is hard for me to find a chardonnay I like. Even though I didn’t think I am a fan of the style, the shiraz wine is pleasant to me. I pick up a bottle or two of wine to take back with me. I wouldn’t normally buy bottles while I am traveling but I will be traveling by car for about a week so no worries about carrying bottles on my back.

The hostess at Cleveland recommends a couple more wineries in the area. I only have time (and alcohol tolerance) for one more so I visit Curly Flat.

It is a terrific recommendation. The wines are more expensive but pretty good. I also pick up two bottles here – one I mean to take to my cousin when I visit him in Sydney. Sadly (for him) the wine never made it to Sydney. I couldn’t resist opening it a week later.

I head back to my hotel and walk to get dinner.

I walk to Lancefield Hotel to get dinner. They are all booked for the night at their nicer sit down dining (reservations only) but I am able to order food at the bar. I order the not so healthy prawn and chicken in garlic cream sauce. It seems like it might be the Australian version of comfort food. I sleep well after that meal.

I am staying in a sleepy area so there is not much to do after dinner. I head back to my room and get some rest.

Tomorrow I start my road trip!