🇦🇺 A Morning in Apollo Bay: Cycling, Kindness, and the Ocean’s Edge

The Road from Apollo Bay

At four in the morning, I woke up naturally. The night was still lingering, but my body felt unexpectedly light. When I stepped outside, the sky was painted with the most breathtaking sunrise of my journey so far.

From the horizon, colors spread—orange, red, purple—like watercolors seeping across the canvas of the sky. I caught myself wondering, “Could there ever be a sunrise more beautiful than this?”

After watching the sky slowly brighten, I cooked breakfast as usual—rice, noodles, and canned tuna. A simple meal, but one that reliably restored my energy before heading back onto the Great Ocean Road.

A Day of Hard Climbs and Gentle Encounters

The road after Apollo Bay was full of steep climbs and sudden descents. My legs grew heavy, but each turn promised new scenery, and that thought alone gave me the strength to keep pedaling.

Along the way, an elderly woman near a bus stop called out to me. With a smile, she handed me some money, saying, “Buy yourself a coffee.” I was stunned by her kindness. She didn’t owe me anything, yet she chose to encourage a stranger on the road. That small act warmed me more than the morning sun.

Later, in a larger town, I stopped to rest. Colorful birds walked around me, chirping and squabbling as if having a lively conversation. I sat alone, but I didn’t feel lonely. Their chatter kept me company.

A Camp Above the Sea

By late afternoon, I reached my campsite—on top of a cliff. At first, the height made me uneasy, but the view erased every worry. The sky, sea, and land stretched endlessly, like a single painting laid out before me.

I stood there breathing deeply, realizing: “I’ve camped in many places, but never somewhere this vast, this beautiful.”

Setting up my tent on that cliff felt like a rare privilege. Even though the wind was strong and the air grew cold, simply being there was reward enough. To sleep under such a view—it was more than I could have asked for.