Canada, Seattle, San Fran, Yosemite and back to L.A.

Hi all,

Banff was great, like I said it was Canada's first National Park and it was a little different to the American National Parks we had already seen because it had a town and a town and civilisation. We spent our first day looking around the town and went out in the evening for Gary and Lauren's birthdays, who are another couple on our trip. We went out to a few bars and found one that had loads of English Football shirts on the wall (No Tottenham shirt but they did have an Aston Villa shirt, obviously no class!). The next day we headed back into the town and did some laundry and found an internet cafe.

Our third day in Banff was a little more special because we travelled for about an hour through the park to Lake Louise. It is a huge lake fed by a Glacier and the process of "flowering" gives it this amazing turquoise blue colour which looks really beautiful. A few other of the trekkers went on a hike but me and Jen decided we were just going to hang by the lake and wait for them. I decided to have a paddle, bad idea, the water made my feet hurt it was so cold! When the hikers got back we headed for van and a CRAZY guy was swimming in the lake. I asked him how it was when he got out and he went on for ages about how the latitude that Lake Louise sat on gave the Lake mystical powers that will make you live forever! Yeah, good luck with that one guy! All I know is that you got COLD!

The next day we headed for Emerald lake. This lake was green, also due to "flowering" (I don't get it either!) but myself and a couple other of the guys decided to ignore the lake and go on a big hike. Me, Stu and Rob hiked 10 miles up the steepest hill I've ever hiked and I was knackered afterwards! We hiked to get a good view and even hiked above the cloud level, which ruined the view a little. It even had snow! After we hiked (or rather ran) down the mountain, we headed for the next campsite, Beaverfoot lodge. It seemed at first that this was going to be a nightmare campsite with no toilets, no showers and no drinkable water... but then we realised we were in the wrong site... the next site had most of the ammenities and the field had deer in it qwhen we got there. The campsite itself was beautiful and had a real character which was refreshing. The lodge was 5 minutes walk away and had REAL showers, not the stupidly weak, cold showers that you mostly get! We had a really big bonfire and played cards. That night, we heard things running around outside the tent. It turned out to be deer but at the time I thought it was a bear! Pretty scary stuff!

The next day was an overnight stay in Kamloops which was not ver eventful at all. We had dinner and went to bed! Whoop!

The day after we travelled to Vancouver. I had had high expectations of Vancouver, people had told me it was a really nice city and I always see it on those lists of the safest places to live! I have it on my own list... titled "Dumps that are full of homeless people and that you should never visit!". It seemed like one big ghetto! I mean there were nice parts but the bad parts made them seem insignificant and the good parts were right next to the bad parts and it all spilled over. I was not impressed. Luckily, our campsite was 40 miles outside of the city itself. We had an evening in the hottub and using the internet. The next day we had a choice of going into Vancouver or going to bungee jump. Now, unfortunately our budget wouldn't stretch to the bungee jump but we decided that we wanted to go and watch our mates do it so we got in the van and travelled to Whistler. Whistler is a famous ski resort, we were just outside. The guys all did their bungee and we headed back for Vancouver. We went out in China town for chinese food and managed to hit a place that was obviously suffering after the recession. The food was awful and... well, let me put it this way, the food didn't make it home with me!

The next day we were leaving Canada and travelling to Seattle. This was a one night stop in a Hostel. We got there nice and early and went to see the city. I went with Rob to the Experience Music Project. The museum for music was an impressive building made from metal bent into strange abstract shapes and the city monorail goes through it! Inside, the museum was one of the coolest I've ever been to, there was a section about Seattle's contribution to music which had a big section on the grunge era, with Nirvana and Pearl Jam exhibits and displays. There was a Jimi Hendrix Exhibit and then there was a place where you could go into a Studio and play some instruments and lay down a track! Me and Rob had a blast on the drums and guitars in there. Attached to the Music place (and included in the price) was the Science Fiction Museum, which we happily geeked about! There was an exhibit on Jim Henson which was awesome, it had original Kermit the Frog puppets that were in the shows and Me and Rob got to play two muppets in our own show! I was Animal and Rob was a Jimi Hendrix muppet and we played Louie Louie... as Muppets! After the museum we headed for the marker where the guys throw fish and there are lots of crazy shops. In the evening, we ate in Cheesecake Factory (AMAZING!) and went to bed.

The next day we headed for Oregon, this was another over-nighter that was uneventful too!

The day after we arrived in Redwoods National Park. We were here to seee some BIG TREES! Redwoods grow big and tall and the tallest tree in the world is in this park. The best thing though, this was the best campsite we'd been to in ages. We did some laundry, played table tennis and used the internet, and then took the van and tried to drive through a tree! That's right, the trees are so big you can ALMOST fit a van through it! This one was living still and they had cut a huge hole through it! After that, some crazy hunter guy took me and a couple other of the trek guys out to the river on his POWER golf buggy! We went off roading, in a golf buggy! it was awesome!

The next day we headed to San Francisco! This was a two night stop in Hotels and was welcomed after all the camping we had done! We got to the city and drove over the Golden Gate Bridge. We got to our Hotel and got settled, then went out for a Curry! Having not had a curry in about 2 months, I was very excited! I didn't expect the curry house to have items like tikka masala on the menu but they did and it was great! After that we all went for a few drinks as one of our trekkers was leaving the next day, leaving the trip early!

The next day, Jen and I went out to explore the city. We walked through Chinatown and through Little Italy to the Fisherman's Wharf and went to Pier 39 where all the Sea Lions were after that we headed for the Golden Gate bridge, checking out some other sites on the way. The city has a great vibe and I love it.

The day after, we headed for Yosemite. We walked though another tree here and went to see the tallest waterfall in America. We also got pictures of El Capitan. We headed for the campsite next where we had a pool. The next day, in a very lazy way, we decided not to join the crazy few people who were doing an 18 mile hike in the blazing heat up a mountain but instead we decided to laze by the pool and top up the tans!

The next day we headed to the Pacific coast for our last night. We had a few drinks in celebration and commiseration and everyone was in a great mood.

We're now back in L.A.

We fly home tomorrow evening so we'll be back in Blighty on Tuesday!

x x x

Niagra Falls, Chicago, Yellowstone, Glacier and CANADA!

Hi all,

Again, long time no Wifi!

We met our new tour guide in New Jersey... luckily, our old tour guide dropped us off at the hotel, which was just outside Giants old and new Stadiums! We picked up 4 more passengers too, since we lost a couple in NY. First stop, Niagra.

We got to Niagra and our proximity to Canada was very humurous... literally across a river! We stayed at a campsite on one of the Great Lakes (the name escapes me) but you could see Toronto across the lake! We slept there for the night, freezing cold, and got up the next day for Niagra Falls. We headed down to the falls in the morning to catch the first Maid of the Mist boat. We picked up our souvenier ponchos (free!) and climbed aboard. We first decided that we might get a bit wet when we saw the state of the boat already... but what's a bit of water!? We cruised off towards the falls and before we knew it, we were soaked! The falls are colossal, its amazing to withold that much water and the power that that much water creates. I later learned that Niagra Falls is the greatest source of renewable energy in the world!

Later we set off towared Sandusky, Ohio. There's not much to do here.

Chicago next. We got there, checked in to our Hostel and then headed out for Dinner. We had Deep Dish Pizza... Oh My God! Now, think of the kind of "Deep" pizzas we get here? All crust, right? Not here... It was HUGE! Imagine the thickness of a quiche and you're nearly there. The crust isn't that thick, its almost all filling! Anyway, enough about Pizza... we went out later that night in search of Blues music but they all had a cover charge on the door of about $8-$10 so we decided not to.

The next day we went sight seeing. We went up the Sears tower, which is the third tallest building in the world, and saw most of the city from there, then we travelled to Millenium Park to see a sculpture which can only be described as a massive, reflective Bean. The surface of the bean is completely mirrored so you can always see yourself and it makes for some great photographs. It reflects the skyline too and is really quite remarkable! We went for a look round some shops and in the Evening went to a Whitesox Baseball game. Everything was typical, like you see in the Films, with the national anthem and fireworks at the start and the music and the vendors shouting "HOTDOGS!"... the game itself was boring but you had to love the atmosphere!

The next day we set off for Sioux falls and then to Cody, Wyoming. These were both very uneventful. It seems that the start of the North side is a lot of driving to get West where all the interesting stuff happens. We were supposed to see a Rodeo in Cody, but it was too cold! The other thing about this end of the World is that it's the Miswest; Cowboys and Indians, Hunters, Guns and Left Wing Politics! We stayed in a Ranch on of the nights and there were Turkeys, Deer and even a Mooses head mounted on the Walls. These people loved their guns and loved killing things which was rather unnerving! The night in the Ranch was fun but I was glad to get out of there! At some point in these few days, we attempted to see Mt Rushmore. Our luck with the weather had not been so good and this particular day, it was so foggy, you couldn't even see it! Not even faintly!

We arrived in Yellowstone for the first two day stop in a while. National Parks tend to have worse facilities that normal, so there were no showers at the camp and we had to Bear Proof everything (Bear Proofing means locking all food, cosmetics and toiletries in the trailer or the Van at night!). On our first day in Yellowstone we hiked up a Mountain to get a good view of Lake Yellowstone. Half way up, we encountered snow! There was snow on the ground (in some places it went up to your thigh!) and it was snowing while we walked! It made the whole forrest look incredibly beautiful and picturescue! We got to the top and the view was stunning. The rest of the day we were vanned around by Andy, the tour guide, and he showed us a lot of the cool spots like "Old Faithful", one of the biggest geysers in the park and to "paint pots", smaller geothermal spots that had claylike liquid in them that just bubbled away.

The next day I did another hike, this time without Jen as she pulled a muscle in her leg, and we hiked around a sulpher lake, through some sulpher hotpots and to a place called Artists Points, a huge waterfall at the start of a canyon. Then we went to some other bits in the north side of the park. To shower that evening, we decided to sneak into a Hotel and use their communal showers! Take it to the Man!

The next day we headed for Glacier NP, a park dedicated to... yes you guessed it... Glaciers! We did more hiking here, some of it quite gnarley (we hiked across sheer faces that used to have footpaths but were now covered in snow and one slip would lead to a long fall!). We then hiked across a Glacier to a Frozen lake!

The next day we were crossing the boarder... into CANADA! We were taken into a room, had to strip off and... ONLY KIDDING! The Canadians were very nice, actually! and they do all say "eh?" at the end of every sentence, it's not a myth! Our first stop (and where I still am this very moment) was Banff NP. Banff is lovely, its a National Park, Canada's first and contains, amongst other things, Lake Louise. It also has a town, unlike most other Nationa Parks, and is very nice! Tomorrow, we hike the afformentioned lake and then on to Golden... wherever that is.

Nice talking to you, eh?

Take care, eh?

bye now!... eh?

Orlando, Key West, Daytona, Charleston, Washington DC and NYC!

Hi all,

Long time no WiFi, sorry!

Orlando was the rainiest place on earth... but nevertheless we ventured into the Magic Kingdom and got Rain Ponchoed up! We arrrived at the opening and were keen to take in some of the parades and shows... except Mickey doesn't like rain... Wuss! So instead we wondered round and did the rides and attractions, had lunch in Pinnochio's place and met Ariel from the little Mermaid. Then we went to Mickey and Minnie's house and met them too. And we met the Disney Princesses! What a day! The best atttraction by far was a very dated ride called the "Carousel of Progress"... some old mechanical dude bantering on about the different decades!

The next day, a slighly sunnier morning, we ventured Universal Studios. We decided to get the Roller Coasters done in case the weather turned on us and went straight for the Hulk and Jurassic Park. After that, as predicted, the heavens opened again and we went to the indoor rides. We rode the new Simpsons ride which has replaced the ageing Back to the Future ride! It was good... and even better was seeeing that they were homaging the Back to the Future ride with fresh snippets of the Simpsons cartoon playing on the TVs while you queued.

After Orlando we headed for Key Largo and the Key West. Key West is a craqzy place... one road goes from Gays to Bikers to Yuppies, all Bars! We went out and partied in Sloppy Joes and had frozen margaritas.

The next day, the weather was too hot to do anything so we lazed by the pool and did some laundry, nothing special, except topping the tan up... which by the way is coming on very well!

Daytona was really just a stop off but to pass the time we learned a game called Beer Pong. I lost!

The day after, we headed for Charleston, SC, a lovely city and a great change of pace. The city's historical department won't let them knock any buildings down so it has a very historical feel. They have a very deep south feel as well which I find endearing and everyone downtown was very friendly.

The next day, instead of stopping over a day in The Middle Of Nowhere, North Carolina, we decided to do huge drive (12 hours) to Washington DC a day early. We camped in a little pavilion in the woods! That night, Jason took us on a tour of the city by night, we saw the Washington Monument, Thomas Jefferson's Monument and Abraham Lincoln's Monument. We also saw the War Memorial.

The next day we went to see the White House. We stood outside and took pictures like usual but then we were asked to clear the road... something was happening in the White House, and I noticed to guys dressed in black on the roof. We later found out that he... B-rock... Mr Obama himself was coming out and getting into a car to go to New York! The rest of the day we looked around Downtown (we found the only Nando's in the entire USA) and in the Smithsonian Museums.

The next day we headed for New York. We'd done all the sites in New York so we enjoyed a couple of days just wandering round... we also had to find the new Topshop, NY for Jen. It was a nice couple of days but then we had to say goodbye to our tour leader Jason. He does stand-up comedy in his spare time but might be making it big because he got a gig that meant that he couldn't take us for the North. We now have a new tour guide, Andy.

Next time, Niagra falls and Chicago!

Lafayette, New Orleans and Panama City

Hi all,

We had a huge drive from San Antonio, Texas, into Louisiana. This was a 10 hour drive. We had our iPod's charged and ready and we tried to keep ourselves entertained. When we got to Lafayette, Louisiana, we were all battered but we got the tents up and had a good night sleep at a nice campsite. It was so hot though...

Next day, we were heading to New Orleans, but before this, we took a trip to Cajun Jack's for a Louisiana Swamp Tour. We headed out on his Motorboat and headed down the bayou. We had to go through a lock to the Mississippi river then went into another Bayou to some real swampland. The scenery was incredible, like you were in a forest but on the water. Cajun Jack tought us lots about the wildlife and the environment in the swamp and we saw some too, we saw a water Moccasin, an Egret, a Beaver and an Alligator. After the tour, we got back on the bus with a short drive to "the Big Easy". We got the hotel, and after a little confusion with what rooms we were in, we realised that me and Jen had to share with another couple on the trip. This was not what we had paid for and there were some arguments with the management of the hotel but there was nothing we could do about it. Its OK because we are really good friends with Gary and Lauren, the other couple.

That evening, we were taken by Jason, our tour leader on a tour of the French Quarter finishing at the Mississippi River. We then went to Bourbon Street where the party was already underway. We hit the Tropical Isle, home of the Hand Grenade, and then followed that up with a Hurricane at the Funky Pirate where we watched Big Al sing the Blues. After more Hand Grenades and more dancing... actually, it gets a little blurry from here on!

The next day, hangover in tow, we went back to Bourbon Street for some brunch. You know what they say... when in Rome... I had Gumbo! We spent the rest of the day chilling by the pool and went back to Bourbon Street for dinner. I had a Catfish Po-boy! New Orleans has some GOOD food!

The next day we set off for Florida. Another reasonably big drive and we were in Panama Beach, Spring Break central! Luckily, the college folk had long gone but the "seaside resort" feel was very prominent. The campsite was full of Hillbillies and we were very careful with our stuff. We headed out on to the strip and found some mini-golf. After losing by a mile, we headed back via some tacky souvenier shops and headed onto the Beach. The rest of the group left and me and Jen had a stroll by the sea. We met a man playing his guitar and we sat and chatted with him for a while and he played us some songs. It was a really nice escape from the corny night clubs and neon lights of the strip.

The day after, I had been looking forward to all trip... JET SKIING... WITH DOLPHINS! We went down to the place, got out life jackets on and jumped on the Skis. I drove and Jen clinged on for dear life. It wasn't long before I lost control a bit and flung her off! She was fine and we sped off again. We got up to 50mph and we making air off the waves. Then we saw them... the dolphins. We were circling around for ages are they circled around us. The sea was really choppy and they were bobbing up to the surface and ducking back down again. We were taken by the guide to an Island called Shell Island. The sand was white as snow and the water on the other side of the Island was beautiful. We spent some time on the beach and then got back on the Skiis and headed back. Luckily, me and Jen didn't fall off again... until we got to the part where we had to slow down, and I tipped to ski over. D'oh!

We are currently in Orlando, we had another big drive today (who knew Florida was so big!) and we have got to the campsite. We were supposed to be camping but the Sunshine State isn't living up to its name so we were given the choice of having a cabin that sleeps 6 people for $4 a night! You'd be STUPID not to, right?

Tomorrow, DISNEY!

x x x

Colorado, Toas, Carlsbad and San Antonio, Texas

Howdy Y'all,

Colorado is a beautiful state and was a welcome change to all the red rock and dust we had been experiencing until this point. In its place... Evergreen trees, snow capped mountains and GRASS! We had started to think it didn't exist in America at all (except on Golf Courses). The roads through Colorado were very hilly too, ears poppin' and such. We got to our first destination in Colorado, Ouray. Here, there's not a lot to do, so that's what we did... not a lot... where we did it was the key! Hot Springs! Clothing Optional hot springs to be precise (yes, I took the option... Jen didn't!). The sprrings were lovely, natural pools of hot water, some pools hotter than others (the Lobster Pot was TOO HOT! 75 degrees C!) and they had saunas and all other sorts of relaxation stations going on. It was a good day to take everything that we've done so far in.

The next day, we headed off for Canyon City, Colorado. The event of the day was White Water Rafting through Royal Gorge. We hit 3 grade 4 rapids and the rest were grade 3. It was a brilliant activity and Jen and Myself very much enjoyed it. We were in a boat of 5, me, Jen, Gary, Lauren, and the Raft Guide. The two boys sat up front, with the girls behind and the Guide in the back. We learnt the first 3 rules of White Water Rafting:

1. Don't fall in the River
2. Don't fall in the River
3. Tip your Raft Guide.

After Canyon city we left Colorado for Sunny New Mexico. We arrived at our destination, Taos (pronounced like Mouse with a T). It was our Tour Leader, Jason's, Birthday and he didn't want to camp that night so we stayed in a Hostel called the Abominable Snow Mansion. It was fairly nice, for a hostel. We all got dressed up to go out for dinner, Hawaiian style. We all had leis on and jason had a Hula Skirt. We got him and dancing Hula Girl for his dashboard and a 6' Inflateable Palm tree. He had put away a few beers by the time we left for the restaurant so decided that it would be a good idea to top the costume off with a Clown wig and cake all over his face! The restaurant didn't mind and we had a great evening.

Next, we went to Carlsbad, with a breif stop over in Roswell (the Walmart there to be exact). No Aliens, its all just a massive tourist trap! We got to the campsite in Carlsbad... WORST. CAMPSITE. EVER! Lots of POO everywhere, no electricity, it was IMPOSSIBLY HOT and all the showers and toilets were horrid! That night, we realised why there was so much poo. We were greeted by all sorts of wildlife, namely Racoons (HUGE!), Skunks (Not scared of anything!)and Foxes. Oh yeah... and A TARANTULA! The thing was running round our feet at the benches at the speed of light, all of us had our feet up out of its way. That night, a storm blew the crap out of our tents and we got our first rain! The Racoons, meanwhile, opened up the coolers and ate our fruit! Bats screeched overhead as we tried to sleep and it was also too hot to sleep! FUN! The next morning, we packed up in a miserable state and headed for Carlsbad Caverns. These amazing natural Caverns are the second largest in the world and are home to the Bats that we had heard the night before. We spent ages looking around at all the stalagmites and stalagtites and other rock formations. Then we had a big drive to San Antonio, Texas.

San Antonio campsite was a site for sore eyes (geddit!?), we had a pool, nice showers and it didn't rain. It was very humid though and the weather got up to 38c, we were gasping. We went to the downtown area to have a look at the famous American landmark, The Alamo, where Davie Crockett and a load of other Texans were slaughtered by Mexicans and the the US Army got involved and the famour phrase "Remember the Alamo!" was born! The landmark is pretty dull unless you're American. Downtown San Antonio is lovely, they have a River Walk with eateries and such on the river as well as a mall. We got ourrselves back into the urban lifestyle for a change and had a look around shops and such.

Today we have arrived in Lafayette, Louisina and we are taking part in a swamp tour with a guy called Cajun Jack tomorrow! Then, New Orleans!

x x x

Lake Powell, Grand Canyon, Monument Valley & Moab

Hi all,

We arrived in Lake Powell on Friday, the lake is a man-made one, they dammed part of the Colorado River to fill a Canyon and that's the lake! It's pretty astonishing, we played frisby on the beach and I made a spectacular diving catch into the water! The campsite was the best yet and we did some laundry there. It was Jen and my turn to cook so we grilled up some burgers on the barbeque!

Next day, the Grand Canyon! We got our first glimpse on a viewpoint on the way to the campsite! It's big! A little too big... now I know that doesn't make any sense but here goes... it just looks like a picture! The scale of it is so huge that its almost impossible to take in! We set up camp, a rubbish campsite with pay-showers about halfva mile away and no real facilities to speak of... and Ravens, HUGE ones! And they'll rip your camp to bits if you leave anything out for them! They look pretty cool though! That night we went to watch the Sunset over the canyon. Next day we went on to the rim and walked around. Very touristy but good for photos!

Monday we went to Monument Valley, home of the Native American tribe known as the Navajo. This place is very famous even if you haven't heard of it... the monuments they speak of are tall pillars of red rock and many Westerns and some more recent films (mission:impossible 2, at the start when he's climbing the mountain and Back to the Future 3 when he's being chased by Indians) were all filmed here! We went on a Jeep trek with a Najavo called Jimmy. He took us to see lots of cool monuments, some in the shape of Eagles, Ears or whatever (you have to squint a bit). He took us to one that was like a big amphitheatre and played the flute and sang a traditional navajo song. It was a nice moment... They took us to one of their homes, a mud hut, and we sat in there and they cooked for us. Navajo tacos are immense!

Yesterday we arrived in Moab after a 5 hour drive (we stopped at the part of the road in Forrest Gump when he decides to stop running, amazing pictures!). Moab is dubbed "Adventure town USA" and is a really cool desert town. Near to Moab is Arches Nat Park where natural stone arches are in abundance. We hiked 1.5 miles to see Delicate Arch. Its amazing, better described with pictures (sorry guys I'm trying).

Today we're just chillin' in Moab! Our campsite has a "swimmin' hole"!

White water rafting and New Mexico to come!

x x x

Vegas, Zion and more...

Hi y'all!

So we made it to Vegas. Amazing city, the strip takes your breathe away, so over the top, no expense spared but not an ounce of tackyness whatsoever. Our Tour-guide took us out for dinner in the Luxor, all you can eat buffet WITH EVERYTHING. On one plate, I had Pizza, chinese food, mexican food, sushi, fried chicken, swordfish steak and chips and salad! Immense. We had given him some money for a night out he was taking us on but we had not bee given the details... we turn the corner to see what's waiting for us and it's.... A MASSIVE, STRETCH MINIBUS LIMO! We had the whole thing to ourselves and it was packed full of drinks and Pimpin' tunes so we got down to it. We went to the Vegas sign for some photos, went someplace else for a free show and then went to the Bellagio. We decided to do some gambling and went to the slot machines, I put a few dollars in and won $400!!! just like that! Incredible rush but I do have a head on my shoulders so I went my way with the cash rather than betting any more!

Hung over the next day we went in search of food! We ate at the Harley Davidson Cafe and then went to watch the fountain show at the Bellagio... where I popped the question to Jen. She said yes and it was a lovely moment. To commemerate the moment and to celebrate my winnings, I went off to get a Tattoo. I now have each card suit tattooed across my wrist.

Later we went to see a show. Criss Angel and the Cirqu du Solei were doing a show at the Luxor so we bought the cheapest tickets in the house, right in the back corner. 10 mins before the show started, the usher moved us 5 rows from the front! I was having a lucky couple of days! The show was incredible, that man has some talent but the dancers stole the show, they were outstanding!

Yesterday we arrived in Zion Nat Park and climbed a mountain... yeah, that's right, I climbed a mountain... and not a sissy little one either, a massive one. Parts of it were so steep we had to used chains that they'd bolted into the rock to keep from falling off! Pictures speak louder than words so those are to follow!

Today we ventured to Bryce Canyon and hiked through it. All this hiking, I'm turning into a bit of an action man! Knackered now though!

Lake Powell tomorrow, than the GRAND CANYON!!

x x x