It was about 350 miles from Victor Harbor to Portland which we did in one day taking the less traveled roads like we usually do.  I can’t say enough about the scenery around Adelaide. As we got closer to Portland we were in wine country again and must have driven through at least 30 miles of vineyards.

Portland is the site of the first European settlement in the state of Victoria and is along what is known as the Discovery Coast.  This is where we stayed in a Comfort Inn overlooking the working harbor.  Portland has one of the few deep water ports in Australia and is strategically located close to the southern shipping lanes. We actually stayed two nights because of strong winds and rain during the night and the next day.  But that didn’t stop us from driving to Cape Bridgewater and Discovery Bay as well as visiting the kangaroos that you saw in a previous post.

Bridgewater Cape is part of the Great South West Walk, Victoria’s premier 250km bushwalking trail located between Portland and Nelson on the gateway to the Great Ocean Road. One of our guidebooks says that it is a world class experience including rugged cliffs, bays, forests, a river and all within four National Parks.  We walked on part of it here and there can vouch for the scenery.

The sea at the end of Bridgewater Cape is wild.  Here there is a blowhole sending the water to the top of the cliffs.

This part of the Great South West Walk is above and along Discovery Bay

Discovery Bay

Had to stand on tip toes to see over the hedges. This picture is untouched – the water is really that color when the sun is out.

There are as many Kangaroo warning signs as there are deer signs in the US

The Cape Nelson Lighthouse was built in 1883

This is a vacation cottage next to the lighthouse