The actual "official tourist" stretch of the Great Ocean Road finished but the great coast line and beaches continued all the way to Melbourne.
Some shots taken on the way to the city of Melbourne / Victoria.







Famous for surfing in Oz = Bells Beach Recreation Reserve.

Soak up surf culture, sunshine and holiday fun on the surf beaches around Torquay.
You can have all kinds of seaside sun in Torquay, but this picturesque holiday town is most famous for the surf beaches that surround it.
Sitting south-west of Melbourne at the gateway to the Great Ocean Road, Torquay is fringed by some fantastic breaks with fairytale names.

You’re more likely to hear waves and loudspeakers than bells on Bells Beach, which is a Torquay’s southern outskirts.
This is where the world's top surfers converge to tackle waves of up to five meters in the Rip Curl Easter Pro, the world’s longest running surf contest.
The two day festival – which also showcases some of Australia’s hottest musical talent – draws crowds of thousands to the cliff grandstands.
If you can't make it for Easter, surfing carnivals are held throughout the summer, as well as the Australian Strongman Triathlon in February and the High Tide Festival in December.
If you’re itching to take on the swell yourself, Bells Beach has two right-hand breaks for intermediate to advanced surfers.
The waves are almost guaranteed to be good, particularly from March to October.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Heading to Torquay from Bells Beach area.
Dose up on surf culture at Torquay, the home of Bells Beach and birthplace of iconic brands Rip Curl and Quicksilver.
The official start point of the Great Ocean Road, Torquay is Victoria's surfing and beach worship capital.













Ocean Grove is a seaside town in Victoria, Australia, located on the Bellarine Peninsula.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Queenscliffe coffee & cake pit stop....
The Borough of Queenscliffe is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state.
It is the smallest local government area in Victoria, covering an area of 36 square kilometres and, at the 2011 Census, had a population of 3000.
It includes only two settlements, which are Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale.
Queenscliffe is situated on the south coast, south-east of Geelong on the Bellarine Peninsula south of Swan Bay and next to the Port Phillip Heads, the entrance to Port Phillip Bay from Bass Strait.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Point Lonsdale Lighthouse, also known as the Point Lonsdale Signal Station, is close to the township of Point Lonsdale in the Borough of Queenscliffe, Victoria, Australia.
It stands at the eastern end of the Bellarine Peninsula, on the western side of the entrance to Port Phillip from Bass Strait, on a headland overlooking the "Rip".
The "Rip" a stretch of water considered one of the ten most treacherous navigable passages in the world, and the only seaborne approach to Melbourne.
It is operated by the Victorian Channels Authority, part of the Port of Melbourne Corporation.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Melbourne / Victoria = http://www.visitmelbourne.com was in and out affair within a day for a long lunch meeting.
On the way out of the Melbourne CBD picking up a rare special ignition parts for a H-D Shovelhead a mate is rebuilding back in China.
Back in the alley behind custom Melbourne HD-Development http://www.hddev.com.au spotted this well used and ridden HD bike, if bikes could tell stories....

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Lakes Entrance, which lies almost at sea level, can be reached from Melbourne via Bairnsdale and the town of Kalimna to the north-west by a stretch of the Princes Highway, which snakes down and around a point protruding into the Gippsland Lakes known as "Jemmy's Point".
Spectacular views of The Entrance and of the Lakes can be seen from various look-outs on Jemmy's Point. The Princes Highway leaves the north-east side of the town through hilly countryside towards Nowa Nowa and Orbost.
Lakes Entrance is predominantly a fishing and tourism-driven town; the main beach front is a safe harbour for many major commercial fishing and recreational waterspout operations.
The surf beach is patrolled by the Lakes Entrance Surf Life Saving Club between November and March every summer, with lifeguard patrols from late December to late January.
The waterfront is populated by restaurants, shops, caravan parks, a Safeway, a Target Country store that opened in 2007, a McDonalds restaurant that opened in September 1997, and a KFC.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Riding through Snowy River Country direction Wollongong and Sydney in NSW.











The Kiama Blowhole is a blowhole in the town of Kiama, New South Wales, Australia.







The Sea Cliff Bridge is a balanced cantilever bridge located in the northern Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia.
The bridge links the coastal villages of Coalcliff and Clifton.
Featuring two lanes of traffic, a cycleway and a walkway, the Sea Cliff Bridge boasts spectacular views and is a feature of the scenic Lawrence Hargrave Drive.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Via the lookout at Stanwell Tops and park cruising through the Royal National Park back to Sydney.







Wish we had this type of catering vans.....







Sydney’s heritage-listed Royal National Park is affectionately known to locals as the ‘Nasho’ or just ‘the Royal’.
Established in 1879, it’s the world's second-oldest national park. It features unique heritage attractions, along with fascinating plants, birds and animals.
Perfect for bushwalking, cycling, surfing, picnicking or whale watching, this diverse park offers everything from beaches to rainforest.















Yummy... back to the start of the ride at Manly Beach Ben & Jerry's.
The stick-on GoPro mounts on the top of the helmet might work as ice cream transport device....

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Deus Ex Machina Sydney for lunch with mates, always a great spot to meet up and look around.....

Deus Cafe • 98-104 Parramatta Rd. Camperdown NSW 2050 • Australia
http://www.deuscafe.com.au and http://deuscustoms.com

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Crossing the world famous bridge for the last time during the trip with a motorbike.
The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge across Sydney Harbour that carries rail, vehicular, bicycle and pedestrian traffic between the Sydney central business district (CBD) and the North Shore.
The dramatic view of the bridge, the harbour, and the nearby Sydney Opera House is an iconic image of Sydney, and Australia. The bridge is nicknamed "The Coathanger" because of its arch-based design.













Bike returned to rental company, taking the ferry to Manly Beach from Circular Quay again, awesome view...









Tried hard to get my hands on two particular rental bikes to give them a test ride: KTM ADV 1190R or Yamaha Super Tenere 1200, both were not conveniently available and had to settle for a new BMW 1200GS-LC (2014) out of Sydney.
10000+ k's from and back to Ben & Jerry's Manly Beach round trip with some extensive side tracking through the Aussie states of NSW, QLD, SA, VIC.
Not bad a ride must admit, simple route as per map below....



Down Under riding will be continue with future trips in the planning stages.... ride and rock on!

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR