Christmas Day Down Under

We spent Christmas day on Johanna Beach. It didn't exactly feel like Christmas without snow, family, decorations, etc., but we had a wonderful day!

We explored the beach and its various waterholes and rock formations...

...and we boogie boarded in the big, crazy waves.

Johanna Beach is one of the stopping points on the Great Ocean Walk, a multi-day trip you can do in about one week if backpacking or in multiple segments over a longer period of time. It stretches all the way from Apollo Bay to the Twelve Apostles near Port Campbell. In the afternoon, we hiked a small section from our campsite up to the hike-in campsite, and on the way, we got some beautiful views.

The hills and valleys were green and lush...

...and full of kangaroos! We even saw two big ones "boxing". There were over 100 of them, but the picture below is a closeup of some of the lazy ones.

This is a view of Johanna Beach from way up high. Very pretty. We chatted with a backpacking Aussie who was staying at the hike-in campsite for the night, and he taught us a little more about how to spot the rips at the beach. Johanna Beach is where the Rip Curl Pro is held when the waves aren't good at Bells Beach, so it makes sense that it was above our level of surfing!

The sun went down on our little Christmas, and we cooked up some ravioli and garlic bread for dinner before putting on some fun glow bracelets and walking down our own private beach. Merry Christmas to us!