The Good
Great roads for your Alfa GTV
This little road is just made for ripping around. It runs along the top of the Yarra River and runs about 5 km from Chandler Highway to Studley Park Rd - if you get a rush of blood you can keep going another 3-4 kms through to Studley Park.
It is a combination of 35 kmh (speed limit indicated - try to at least double that!) left and right hand sweepers with tightening apexes, drops and rises and plenty of vision. (Although that doesn't stop the gendarmes from hiding in the bushes and catching their fair share of weekend Fangios.) If you've got any problems with your front end or shockers then you'll soon find yourself heading off in frustration for a repair job. Running wide, bouncing and understeer are common effects as the excellent road surface sorts out the wheat from the chaff.
(30 minute round trip from Melbourne)
About two hours out of Melbourne this twisty, narrow torturous road through the state forest is much acclaimed among all Melbourne drivers, riders and tourists - the first run needs to be made just to look at the spectacular sub-tropical rain forest with massive gumtrees rising straight up into the sky with the floor carpeted by enormous tree ferms.
The run home is a different thing altogether.
It is an excellent trip down narrow country lanes with very large trees just metres from the mudguards and straight blasting bits that end in heavy braking and plenty of movement from the rear end as you force yourself around corners that are slower than you expect. Gets a bit wet due to its location in the mountains which can cause too much slippage for comfort. Heavey rain and fog can also reduce the trip to a dawdle - take some good music and plan on stopping at the open fire at the hotel at the end of the road. Can also be highly frustrating gettting stuck behind tourist buses with no opportunities to pass.
(Four hour round trip from Melbourne)
There is no doubt this amazing road is one of the great driving experiences of the world. Some say its better than Big Sur but I can't confirm that. Carved out of the sides of cliffs, the road winds and falls along the sheer drops of the ocean on one side and the cliffs hemmed by rainforest on the other.
The real driving runs from Lorne to Apollo Bay where a succession of hair pin bends, big sweepers and blind hills, turns and rises make sticking to your side of the road obligatory. Natural obstacles include high powered motorcycles, other made road users and road conditions that change from wet to dry in very rapid succession. One the way back from Apollo Bay take the Deans Marsh turn off at Lorne and flick over the Great Dividing Range on someexcellent roads - it also cuts about an hour of the return trip with some high speed wide open country roads back to the Princes Freeway.
(Eight hour round trip from Melbourne - more if you stop at Chris's for Greek food on the top of the mountain near Apollo Bay. Can be days. There are cabins out the back for over indulgence.)
