Melbourne is a city with plenty of things to do, but it’s also got many places around it that make a great day or weekend trip. Wilsons Prom is about a 3 hour drive from the city and thus I was reluctant to go out there just for a day. But then again… what if it’s stunning?! I found a company that wasn’t too expensive and signed up for a Monday in a long weekend. Man, I wish I could have gone for the entire weekend!
I had to get up at stupid o’clock to get into the city for the pick up point. The organization was terrible and we had to wait for our guide for over half an hour! When she finally showed up, we had a long drive out to the national park. But, it was so worth it! First I climbed up Mt. Oberon, together with many, many other day trippers and weekenders. It was the last weekend of school holidays and the park was buzzing. It didn’t matter.
I powered up the mountain like I was followed by a boxing kangaroo. It was a wide dirt track that led to some old telegraph towers, but vehicles were not allowed. It was an easy path to follow. When I thought I made it to the top, of course there were some steep steps to finish the workout. It was very hot and I was now fully exposed to the midday sun. When I did reach the top, it was super crowded and the first row seats were already taken, but again it didn’t matter. In awe I sat down on a rock and stared out over the surroundings.
Soon a prime spot became available and I scooted over. I took out my lunch and took in the views. I was looking out over lots of trees and shrubs that covered the hills. There were perfect, uncrowded beaches, with nice-looking sand and bright blue water. And this view stretched out in front of me, until I couldn’t make out what was sea and what was sky. I couldn’t believe how much Australia surprised me yet again.
The park reminded me a little of Kangaroo island. After hiking we were driven back to the Tidal River campground, from where I walked out towards Squeaky Beach, the final stop of the day. The trail was beautiful and although it wasn’t that high, it still provided beautiful views of the coast. There were big rocks that had split through the middle, with waves crashing into them. At Squeaky Beach I couldn’t hear the sand squeak, but it was so clean and so perfect, that I really didn’t care. I was overly excited to get into the water and cool down. The waves were pretty big and had a lot of power. The water was so refreshing. What a perfect spot! And I almost didn’t come to this place!
The organization of the trip was once again horrendous at the end of the day. With a bus of 50 people you can expect someone to be late. In this case though, it included the 3 people working for the company! 45 minutes late they rocked up without an apology. They weren’t the only ones, but still! As a tour leader this makes me so angry. The only job they had was telling us what we could do and where to meet and be on time. The only job!
Safe to say I will not travel with this company again, but I would love to go back to Wilsons Prom. What a glorious spot to unwind!
