USA : Utah, Arizona, California; 20 days

[Hallu]

Believe it or not, I ended up doing this trip because 20 days in the US is less expensive than 2 weeks in Iceland which was the original trip I had planned for May/June. The flight to Iceland was around 450 €, the flight to Los Angeles 570 €. Hotels in Iceland are 100 € per night minimum, rental cars are expensive, fuel is 2 € per liter... So I decided screw it, I'm gonna check out the country who invented the National Parks. 13 parks in 20 days, around 4500 km of driving, and a mix of camping and budget hotels. I considered renting an RV, but as a solo traveller it was too expensive.

First, let's get the bad stuff out of the way :
-US cities absolutely suck : ugly, huge, no city centre to walk around, depressing looking. Especially cities like LA (East side), Tuscon, Blanding, St George, Pahrump and the worst, Palm Desert. Some were fine, with a bit of a wild West flare, like Moab or Torrey, but mostly it's a huge succession of shopping malls and fuel stations. I wasn't in a foodie part of the US (unlike the South, the Pacific North-West or foodies cities such as San Francisco or New York) so out of the 5 or 6 restaurants I did, only 1 was good : an unpretentious mexican restaurant serving authentic food.
-Hotels are horribly signed : and with no mobile service the first day as I didn't take the international option, I circled for nearly an hour to find my first hotel in Palm Desert.

The first park I visited was Joshua Tree National Park. Right next to the ugly eyesores that are Palm Desert or Palm Springs, Joshua Tree is an oasis of wilderness and varied vegetation. Big boulders and rock formations that remind me of Mt Buffalo in Victoria, cacti everywhere, the omnipresent and mysterious Joshua Tree, it's quite unique. And the cherry on the top is the cactus garden, a huge field covered with cactus. Lucky for me, April/May is flowering season, and cactus flowers are gorgeous. Oh and no flies : it's not Australia. So appart from the heat, you can hike comfortably. I climbed Ryan Mountain, which is an easy 320 m climb. It's rated as hard and strenuous, but for the average walker it's fine. Nice views towards the vastness of the desert, and, unlike Aussie desert, a background of snow capped mountains and lower mountain ranges. The Mojave Desert of which Joshua Tree is a small part is definitely not flat.

[Hallu]

Next on my list was Saguaro NP, near Tucson, Arizona, a couple of hours South of Phoenix. Tucson is a toilet, let's be honest, but surrounding Saguaro NP is a gem. The saguaro cactus, reaching 15 m and growing more than a century old, is quite a sight : their bulk is impressive, and their flowers are gorgeous. And they're everywhere, amongst other cacti and colorful desert plants. For a desert, it's totally covered in vegetation. Add to this ancient native american rock art, big lizards and chipmunks, jagged peaks, and it's a memory that won't leave me. I wished I had planned for longer hikes in the area, but big traffic jams near LA and Phoenix had screwed up my schedule.

[Hallu]

Petrified Forest NP was next. Amongst colorful badlands, you find big logs of petrified wood. They're everywhere, and extremely colorful. Due to a storm in the South of the park, I drove further North to escape the heavy rain. But the colors weren't faded by the grey skies, and you could still see the layer of red blue and white deposits on the mesas. Add an old rusted car where route 66 used to be, the famous "painted desert", and I completely forgot about the weather. Again, no time for long walks, but this isn't the park for it anyway, you just stop your car every few miles and gaze at the colors. Oh, and a roadside Cafe in Holbrook was where I first learned that American actually call the main course of a meal the "entrée" which means first course in French... Weird as hell.

[Hallu]

Time to head for the Grand Canyon now. But before seeing it, let's squash a careless squirrel with my car at the entrance... Damn, I was only doing 50 km/h and this guy basically threw himself under my wheels. I didn't know about suicidal tendencies amongst grey squirrels. First stop : Mather Point. The most visited view point in the Grand Canyon. And despite the crowds, Grand it is. It motivated me even more to start the South Kaibab trail, one of two trails going to the bottom of the canyon from the South Rim. They advise against doing down and up in one day, as it's about 1200 m elevation gain. Well I listened to them and instead stopped at Skeleton Point, half way down, which is signed as a 6 hr walk. Most people stop a quarter of the way down. The scenery is beautiful, you're surrounded by gigantic red walls, temperatures were cool that day, and it wasn't that crowded. I took in the views, photographed everything, took my time. I passed a group of kids on the way up. They're faster than me, but stop every 10 min. Stopping is the enemy in those situations. And in the end it took me 3h30 to do the whole walk stops included, ahead of the noisy kids. 6 hrs would be if you included a lunch stop and a break every 200 m or so. So I had time to check out the other viewpoints West of Mather Campground. Cars are forbidden, you have to take the free shuttle. It is a nice idea, that only works in very popular parks with limited parking space, such as Zion or Bryce Canyon. I don't think it would work in Australia, appart from heavily visited areas such as Port Campbell NP or Uluru. The grey skies frustrated me, but then a short pierce of sunrays in the clouds lifted my spirit up and got me a great shot at Mojave Point. The next day, I visited the Eastern side, with more viewpoints, a sunny morning, and a cute mule deer. My only regret is that I couldn't do the North Rim, which was scheduled to open only in late May : it closes for the winter because of snow. It's less visited, got the same gorgeous views, so I hope I'll be able to see it some day. Mather Campground is noisy though, people didn't respect the quiet hours and park rangers don't enforce them despite claiming the contrary. Not everything is perfect, but the scenery makes up for it.

[Hallu]

Americans tend to be very firm with criterias for a National Park. It should be wild, with unique natural features. Then there will be no logging, no mining, no farming, no settlement. While it was good news for animals and plants, it meant eviction for many native Americans, forced away from their land. This may be one of the only areas in which I'm in disagreement with what the US did with their parks. Other countries kept their original inhabitants : aboriginal people still live in Kakadu or Uluru, some cheesemakers and hunters still live in some Europeans parks, as they've become part of the ecosystem over the years. Also, Australia is giving back original aboriginal names to many landscape features and parks (Karijini, Uluru, Ningaloo, Croajingolong etc...) while the US did the opposite (only Denali National Park replaced Mt McKinley NP, but the mountain is still officially called Mt McKinley). All of this to explain why Monument Valley, my next destination, was never made into a National Park : that would have meant native americans removed from one of their most sacred places, comparable to Uluru-Katja Tjutta for native australians. Instead, it is a "Navajo Tribal Park". This means just about the same level of protection as a National Park, except Navajo Indians are allowed to live in it. Although advertised in many places as "high clearance only", the track around the valley was fine for my little Mazda 2. As the lady in the ticket booth told me, "take it slow and you'll be fine". And taking it slow I did, because everywhere you look is like a painting in front of your eyes. The distant storm and black skies added drama to the awe-inspiring red monoliths. Once in the park, not a building in sight, only navajo souvenir stands, which are actually a sad sight, but for most of them their only source of income. The Valley isn't as touristy as I would have thought. Sure you find a lot of car tourers and bikers, but once on the slow sand track it's easier to enjoy yourself. Henry Ford ? Westerns ? Movies ? Couldn't have cared less, the scenery stands on its own.

[Hallu]

Welcome to Utah. Canyons, canyons and canyons. I thought I might get sick of it. This would not be the case at all. I started with the Southern part of Canyonlands NP, called the Needles, because of the towering formations you see in the distance. Also my first long walk, with the 17 km round trip to Confluence Overlook, where you reach a lookout above the confluence of the Green and Colorado rivers. But first I had to go down and up two (dry) canyons, walk on slick rock, endure a long drizzle, and scramble down some hanging rocks. Looking back on it, it was fun and adventurous. Of course after seeing Monument Valley and the Grand Canyon it seems less impressive, but it's always a different landscape. This time a collection of mushroom rocks, a background of needles, plenty of Utah juniper trees, and quite the view at the end. Temperatures past half point started to climb though, and blisters started growing on my heat-swollen feet. It took me about 5 hrs to do the whole thing. After a couple of other short walks, I went back to my tent at Squaw Flat campground. I noticed a detestable habit from the rangers though : they always put up the "campground full" sign, regardless of the actual occupancy of said campground. It was only 2 thirds full when I pitched my tent. They do that also at carparks in Zion or Bryce to force you to take the shuttle. In the end I ignored all those signs, feeling for those poor clueless tourists who didn't know the trick. Squaw Flat is a very nice campground though : amongst rock formations, all of them have picnic tables, larges tent pads, and a parking space, some are in caverns, other amongst trees, some in open areas with a view. Canyonlands, often overlooked in favor of parks such as Arches, Bryce or Zion, is definitely in a class of its own.

[Hallu]

Canyonlands is big, about as big as the Grampians. That's why it was one of the few parks I decided to spend 2 days in. The Northern part is called "Island in the Sky". It's more visited than the Needles because it's closer to Moab, and consists of a long scenic road with short walks to viewpoints. But global warming was at it again, and heavy rains were on the menu. The following evening, I met a local girl who told me I was actually lucky to see all this under a storm because it's so rare. But at the moment I just wanted to see the sights without the views being blocked by a sea of clouds. Luckily, after looking online at some pictures in fine weather, I realized the grey skies didn't make me miss much, enhanced the constract of the weird canyons and made it quite bizarre and unworldly on camera. I also hiked upheaval dome, and in the rain it was actually quite dangerous. I was surprised to see the absence of warning signs, as you sometimes walk on slickrock domes with drops on either side, but most tourists simply turned back, scared by the ordeal. I spent the night in Moab : it's got old wooden buildings (or made to look old, I don't know) and with some improvement could really be Utah's perfect frontier town. Plenty of good restaurants and hotels, friendly people. Looks like Republicans can be nice afterall (sorry, couldn't resist).

[ofuros]

Great looking trip & roundup, Hallu.

[gayet]

Absolutely fabulous Hallu. Thank you. I might even reconsider my decision not to go back there. But I was stuck in cities 99% of my limited time. The photos are great. More requested.

[north-north-west]

Wonderful.
I always love your trip reports, Hallu. You get to some very interesting places and the photos are lovely. Thank you.

[GPSGuided]

Fantastic! Saw my first humming bird in Joshua Tree NP. It was an amazing creature. Did you chance upon one?

[vicrev]

Great trip,Hallu...........envious

[Hallu]

No humming birds I'm afraid. Coyotes, bears, marmots, mule deers and plenty of squirrels/chipmunks but no hummingbirds.

[Hallu]

More parks to go to finish the report. Arches National Park is an icon : the shape of Delicate Arch is known almost all over the world. So I thought "ok it's gonna be Canyonlands with some Arches no big deal". Wrong, by now I should have learned something : each park is different, with unique features. Arches is no exception. Appart from the Arches, you'll see petrified sand dunes, big red mesas, rivers, and (for once) challenging walks. Delicate Arch was first on the menu. It's an easy although steep walk on rocks to the arch. It may be a killer in summer, but in spring cool temperatures make for a nice pleasant walk. Unlike Canyonlands, Arches is more undulated : you can see many hills and a distant snow capped mountain range, and the road leading to the park climbs through many switchbacks so Arches feels like a plateau. The arch itself is nested in a nice rocky amphitheater. Afraid of seeing a queue of people waiting to take a selfie under the arch, I realized it's not the norm (probably because there's a scary cliff beyond the arch), and that (most) people who do it are educated enough to do it quickly so that the less self centered people can actually take a photo of the arch in its natural state. The light is lovely, the background landscape wild. It's a place where you could spend hours, it must be heaven in winter to be alone there when there's a nice blanket of snow.

After a couple more rock oddities, I went to the Devil's Garden, an area where you can see a collection of Arches, including the biggest of them all, Landscape Arch. But while it's an easy walk to this one, the so called "Primitive Trail" is definitely harder. And with the rain and slick rock, plus some rock pools and aging ladders, some sections were actually quite dangerous. But it's a very varied walk, all the arches have their own charm, my preference going to the wet, green and secluded Navajo Arch.

On the way back to the entrance of the park, I checked out the "Windows" section, with nice accessible big holes in rockwalls, but from a distance, as the afternoon crowds were swarming over them. Park Avenue is also very nice, basically a corridor amongst red rock remparts towering above you. Wherever you are in the park the views seem to extend forever without having to climb anything, the only park in Utah with that pleasant characteristic. Arches is an "in your face" park. You don't have to explore it to see its beauty (although some of it is nicely hidden), which is why it's much more crowded than Canyonlands or my next park, Capitol Reef.

[Chris]

Thanks for the great report and photos Hallu. Brought back memories from over 30 years ago, and inspired wishes to visit those we missed.
Very much hoping for more tomorrow - Bryce? Zion? Yosemite?

[Hallu]

After Arches and before Capitol Reef, I decided to camp in a little state park, named Goblin Valley. Once you see the pictures you'll understand the name. Erosion has carved fields of weird mushroom/goblin like formations, reminding you of Norwegian trolls or Toad from Mario depending on the light and shape. I also realized that American state parks have luxurious campgrounds : hot showers, covered picnic areas, drinking water... and all this for 23 $. Is anyone from Parks Victoria reading this ?

So it's a beautiful park, but being "only" a state park it's not as protected as a national parks : dogs are allowed in the campgrounds, kids can climb on the goblins and potentially harm them. There's different levels of protection in the US : a National Park is the first (no mining, hunting, logging, settling etc... hands off basically), then there's a National Monument (an area protected under the Antiquities Act by the will of the President), a State Park (the Federal Government has nothing to do with those, so the State decides what to do with it, if they want to build a golf course in it they can) and National Forests (which are basically forests up for grabs by the department of agriculture : in its early days the *&%$#! used to log the forests until there was nothing left, now it seems a bit less destructive). This doesn't mean the scenery is less beautiful in State Parks, but, unlike Australia, criteria to make it into a National Park are very strict : it must be unique, preferably big, unspoiled, or have a remarkable ecosystem. First national parks were created for scenery alone : Yellowstone, Yosemite, Sequoia. Then they also were created to save ecosystems and wildlife : the Everglades, Channel Islands. Goblin Valley may be too small to be a National Park, the surrounding area being wild but mostly flat and with no prominent feature. The wildlife is also quite "ordinary" for Utah. But unique it is. The three goblins isolated near the entrance feel like they've been sculpted by some fantasy fan, or out from Bone by Jeff Smith. It's remote but all roads are paved. I didn't have time to do long walks, but at dawn and dusk it's an unforgettable sight.

[Hallu]

Capitol Reef is the second least visited National Park in Utah after Canyonlands. With good reason ? Absolutely not. Its only problem ? Being South of the Interstate 70 from Arches to Zion. So many people don't do the detour. But I love less visited parks. Capitol Reef main problem in my eyes is that it's pierced by Utah state route 24 so that from most vantage points you see a ribbon of tarmac. But to be honest it's not about the views. It's about the "reef". It's basically a wrinkle in the Earth's crust, showing layers of colorful rocks : chocolate, white, yellow, grey/blue, red/orange. You see those layers everywhere in Utah, and the colors you see depend on the altitude. The ace in Capitol Reef's sleeve is the walks : they climb steeply at first, then reveal their secret. The first one was the Navajo Knobs walk. You're basically surrounded by rock cathedrals : this side of the park it's yellow and white peaks, alongside cheerful chipmunks. It's worth the walk, but the big surprise was Cohab Canyon. A short steep climb (unusual to climb to see a canyon) and you're in another world. Erosion really did some wonders here, with slits in the rocks, honeycombs rocks, insane colors, a bounty of squirrels, and no crowds. Amongst all the canyons I've seen in Utah, this isn't the most impressive but it's probably the most beautiful. So much that when I then drove the scenic road to see the "reef", I wasn't that impressed. I returned in the evening to get a softer light, which was definitely worth it. If you're travelling from Zion/Bryce Canyon to Moab, don't miss Capitol Reef, that'd be a shame.

[Hallu]

Time to head to Bryce Canyon. First of all, it's not a canyon. Just a big amphitheater of "hoodoos" those weird towering rock formations. The weather wasn't great, but luckily it's so colorful you don't even need sun to take great photos. The trademark of Bryce Canyon is that because of the altitude (above 2000 m, which is higher than the previous parks I visited) you get a new color in the rock rainbow : pink. Also, you get trees, and since it's mountainous, more fun walking tracks. You don't see the hoodoos from a distance. First you drive into a densely forested area, park, then walk half a km to the first viewpoint. Then it strikes you. It's really something, one of the most spectacular sights of my trip. My first walk then was descending amongst the hoodoos. There are nice loops but it's quite crowded. I wished I had planned a backcountry walk there. Each viewpoint gives you a new perspective. Then you drive further into the park and see more spectacular stuff : a rock bridge, then the oldest living trees on earth (bristlecone pines), but the biggest sight was for the next morning. Camping at nearby Kodachrome State Park, it was raining (a lot). It's a good thing the ranger told me "no we never get rain here". Then I woke up hearing rain but not rain, softer, less agressive. What the hell ? I peeked out and there was a snowstorm. Panicked at first, I thought "ok I don't have snow tires or chains so I better get the hell out of here before the roads are impassable". Luckily it never snowed enough to stick on the road. Then I thought "you fool this is the biggest gift the sky could give you, go back to Bryce Canyon instead of driving straight to Zion, and go see the hoodoos under the snow". So I did, and it was quite something. The sun was shy but I didn't care. I ticked all the viewpoints I could that morning. I couldn't take a walk because it was too slippery, but the scene was still magical.

[Hallu]

Entering Zion the same day it was snowing in Bryce Canyon was a mistake. Zion is lower in elevation, so it meant only rain and clouds, I couldn't even see the top of the canyonwalls. So I decided to take the shuttle (you can't drive the main road up the canyon from May till October) and go at the end of the road to walk a bit up the Virgin river which carved Zion canyon. It was very crowded and full of begging squirrels. I saw a wild turkey too. But the clouds really ruin the park. You can enjoy most of Utah's parks on a grey day, but Zion needs blue sky to unveil its full glory. Luckily, this is what I got the next day. So I was faced with a dilemma : there are two main hikes in Zion. Angel's Landing which is a scary vertiginous climb with chains and scary drops, with big crowds or Observation Point which is 50% higher than Angel's Landing but got better views. Since I hate crowds and care more about the views than the scariness of the hike, I did Observation Point. Rated as difficult and strenuous, it's a 600 m walk up the walls of the canyons. That's half what I do in a lot of daywalks in the French Alps so let's go. And it was much better than I expected. The pavement ruins the walk a bit, but the scenery is grand : half way up you pass through a slot canyon, then see the other side of Zion, with forested area and bright yellow rocks, then you climb next to the cliffs onto a plateau until the views expand. It's magnificent indeed, and you can see Angel's Landing down below, and realize you would have missed those big views from that other hike. It's hard to capture on a photo but it's undoubtedly the best way to feel the size of Zion. Now, despite the beauty of the area, this didn't stay in my mind as the best park I've visited. It's mainly because of the combination of crowds, the slow shuttle, and a lack of variety. It's either walks up the canyon walls or alongside the river. Also, I couldn't visit the remote Kolob Canyons area because of the extensive roadworks. Had I seen that part of Zion, I'm pretty sure my opinion would have changed.

[Lizzy]

Great pics... Shame it's in America

[Hallu]

Death Valley was next on the list. I didn't even bother staying a day at Las Vegas, I new I'd hate it. I only crossed it. As a matter of fact, it wasn't a sea of vomit as I expected, it was nice and clean. A big clean amusement park for adults. Instead I stayed in Pahrump, which can barely be classified as a town. It's just a huge area with fastfood chains and malls, fuel stations and low houses. I stayed here because there was nothing left when I booked my accommodation (3 months earlier), but if you can avoid staying there, do it. "Hottest place on Earth" will they tell you about Death Valley. Well it topped 40° C that day, but it's not that bad. First of all, even though vegetation is scarce, the colorful rocks make up for it. I've never seen so many different colors, even in Bryce Canyon or Zion. Yellow, blue, grey, brown, red, there's everything, even some green. The first stop though is purely white : Badwater Bassin, the lowest point in America (85 meters below sea level), the white being the salt crust. Artist's Drive is much more interesting, and shows you all the colors of the valley, depending on the metal present in the rocks. Cheat a bit with the saturation on your photos and it's striking. Then there's a walk up the Golden Canyon, with at its end what's called the Red Cathedral. It's a very nice walk, the yellow is really striking. Further South you can drive to the start of the Telescope Peak walk. I couldn't do the walk as it's 6-7 hrs with 1200 m elevation gain. Not to mention it's still snowy in may. Snow in Death Valley ? Yup, it's 3,366 m high, and the road climbs up to about 2100 m. So if you wanna get cooler temperatures in Death Valley, just take that road. It was 40° in the valley, but more like 15° up there.

Next I visited the Borax Works site. Borax was mined there in the later 19th/early 20th century, and Stephen Mather, who would later become the first Director of the National Park Service (and its creator), made his fortune on Borax. His money would then be used to build roads in parks, save huge parcels of land, and ultimately help with the creation of parks such as Bryce Canyon, Zion, or Grand Canyon. A controversial man, he had the groundbreaking idea that by opening the parks to more tourists, they would ultimately be better protected. And he was right : thanks to the roads he built, and the very disputed decision of opening the parks to automobiles, the number of visitors exploded under his watch. This meant that when dam, logging and grazing projects were proposed again and again in Yellowstone, Yosemite or the Grand Canyon, they were met with fierce public opposition and uproar. A model that should inspire Australia today, still lacking a loud voice against mining in parks such as Karijini or Kakadu, or against grazing and feral pests in mountain parks in the South East.

As the evening approached and the light got better, I drove to the two most famous viewpoints in Death Valley : Zabriskie Point and Dante's View. Zabriskie Point is next to golden canyon, and shows yellow wrinkle next to brown/orange hills. It's a very nice area, a bit ruined by the shiny new pavement up the viewpoint. Dante's View is more difficult to access : at 1,700 m elevation, the road is narrow and it's quite a long drive. The view is amazing though, and I couldn't get a good photo out of it, with the complex lighting (grey sky and sun piercing) and colors. But it is worth it. Unlike the rest of Death Valley, it's not that colorful : it's mainly a sea of white from the salt and dunes, surrounded by black mountain ranges, hence the name.

[Hallu]

With 13,628 km², Death Valley National Park is the biggest park in the 48 contiguous states, twice as big as Alpine National Park in Australia. So on the second day I still had much more to see. Early in the morning I saw Titus Canyon : a narrow dark brown/yellow canyon with big lizards plus, oh joy, shade. It also gave me one of the biggest scares of my life : since entering Utah, you keep seeing warning signs and brochures against flash floods in narrow canyons, how you need to get the hell outa here once you hear a strong low growling sound or climb to higher ground. So when half way in the canyon, I heard a deep gut shattering growling sound, what was I supposed to do ? I looked at the sky, not a cloud in sight. Then the sound got closer. I had never heard anything like it. Then the sound was onto me, and from the next bend came out... a freaking 4x4. The canyon is so narrow it totally changes the nature of the sound an engine makes, so much that a regular car going slowly sounds like the killer tidal wave in Interstellar or something. Anyway, now it's just a funny story I pass onto you. The canyon itself was very nice. Not many people walk in it, as it's a gravel road up to it, but still I didn't see the shy desert bighorn sheep that eluded me the whole trip.

Another of Death Valley wonders is Ubehebe Crater. 1 km and 240 m deep, it is quite something. The wind in that area was insanely strong too, adding to the unhospitability of the site. Next to it is the area called the "racetrack" where rocks, when rainfall freezes in winter and thaws, move and created tracks behind them, as if pushed by some flying con artist during the night. A phenomenon only recently explained by science. Unfortunately it's 4WD only, so I couldn't see this marvel.

Further North lies Scotty's Castle, a luxurious mansion built by millionaire Albert Johnson, convinced by con man Walter Scott to invest in his bogus gold mines. Johnson loved Death Valley more than money, and built the "castle" on government land (inside the park) by mistake. After his death, the Park Service decided to buy it back and restore it. The area is now an oasis of green non native trees and plants, with this big mansion in the middle. I didn't visit it though, which the one-eyed coyote I ran into seemed to approve.

[GPSGuided]

Oh, I love the above coyote photo! You two seemed to have an understanding of sort.

[Hallu]

Time now for the big daddy. The precursor. John Muir's nature's cathedral. Before Yellowstone was made the first National Park in the world, Yosemite was the first natural area protected by law in the US. But it was "only" made as a State Park. To be clear, they would also have made Yellowstone as a state park but they couldn't because Wyoming wasn't a state at the time, so the first National Park was born by mistake. Yosemite back then didn't have any rules or funding : you could do anything in it. Log, mine, litter, graze cattle, build hotels you name it. The only thing you couldn't do was claim land for yourself basically. It was also the only National Park where a dam was built (in Hetch Hetchy valley), to quench the thirst of people in San Francisco. This broke John Muir's heart, the fundator of the National Parks, and set a precedent that would be used as an example against any other dams proposed in the future in parks. Unfortunately countries such as France or Australia don't care much about Hetch Hetchy, and build dams in their parks as they see fit.

I entered Yosemite through its Eastern border, not before checking out Mono Lake though, and its famous "tufa" towers, weird limestone spears towering out from the water. Tioga Road is the only road crossing Yosemite from East to West, and luckily (for me not for Californians) the famous California drought meant that it was already open by early May for lack of snow. This looked like a classic French Alps scenic route : huge snowy mountains, pine trees, lakes, and slow moving tourists. The best sight of the day was a half frozen lake near the park's entrance. But all that snow meant I couldn't really walk the long day walks in the area, I didn't bring my snowshoes. So instead I continued and went down the main course : Yosemite Valley. Not entering via Tunnel View, my first view was from the ground. Still, Yosemite falls are very impressive. After hiking the lower falls, I went up to Vernal Fall. That's when my right calf muscle decided it didn't want to be silent anymore after walking on average 15 km a day for 2 weeks. The pain wasn't unbearable but it looked like I couldn't walk it off. So I decided to skip going further up to Nevada Fall. This meant I could drive to Glacier Point in the afternoon, which I did. And later I thanked fate for that calf pain, as I wouldn't have seen Glacier Point the next day, the road being closed again because of recent snowfall. Glacier Point is undoubtedly the best view you can get in the park. It is soul lifting, I had never seen anything like it. The huge bulk of half-dome in the center, Nevada and Vernal falls on the right, Yosemite falls on the left, snow capped mountains in the distance, and the thick forest almost hiding the buildings in the valley. I was a bit disappointed by Yosemite valley at first because it wasn't much more than what we have in Europe, but Glacier Point is just something else.

[Hallu]

Oh, I love the above coyote photo! You two seemed to have an understanding of sort.

Well I saw him on the left side of the road, at which point I just stopped. He then proceeded to cross the road, to walk alongside my car and to check me out from the passenger window (which is when I took the photo). I don't know if he was scared or just curious. I was definitely curious as I had never seen one before, I thought it was a feral dog or something at first.

[Hallu]

Second day in Yosemite : the snow storm in the night meant that Glacier Point is closed, and so is Tioga Road. My only option ? The famous Mariposa Grove, a grove of giant sequoias. Since a good chunk of it is gonna close for two years in July, I'm lucky to see it. The reason it's closing ? It used to be crossed by ugly trams for lazy tourists, and they want to restore it to its former glory : meaning get rid of the tram, get rid of the road the tram used, and repair the current walking track. Sequoias are beautiful trees who need the right conditions to grow : almost no undergrowth so regular fire, a rich, drained soil but with good rainfall, and no grazing or human activity nearby as their shallow roots are fragile. Which is why there is no "forest of sequoias". You'll see a forest of firs and pine trees, with some sequoias in them. This makes them even more special, as their orange trunks stand out even more in the forest, their bulk being plenty enough already to notice them. Another cool feature is that they merge together when growing too close to one another, such as the aptly named "faithful couple". After seeing the biggest trees, I climbed further up in the grove. Then it started snowing, so much that I couldn't see very far. But it made it even more special. Rendering it in photos is tough though, especially when vertical panoramic photos don't really work, they tend to deform the canopy as you see on the 4th pic. I was drenched, cold and happy, a typical walker feeling.

[Travis22]

Incredible Hallu, very enjoyable read and the photos!

Travis.

[Hallu]

You expect the Kings Canyon/Sequoia National Park area to be pretty similar to Yosemite. Same rocks, same trees. In some ways it is, but it mostly isn't. First of all, it's quite a drive up there. Especially from the South Entrance with a LOT of boring switchbacks, with a 30 miles/h speed limit... So enter from the North if you can. The area is a bit of a mess too : for decades the Department of Agriculture "managing" National Forests (basically making a profit off of them by logging) and the National Park Service have been at each other's throat. The former wants to keep its areas for logging, the latter wants to expand the park and merge Kings Canyon and Sequoia plus Sequoia National Forest into one single protected area. It's been like that for a century now. So don't be surprised if, as you drive to Kings Canyon, you alternatively go through Sequoia National Forest then Kings Canyon, while geographically, you're always inside Kings Canyon... The canyon is nice, like Zion without the colors. I walked to Mist Falls in an area that is apparently heavily populated by black bears. I was both excited and afraid to see one, but I guess it wasn't meant to be. The walk was nice, on sandy soil surrounded by tall trees and the canyon walls, but the Falls were pretty small. So I didn't stay in the area for long and drove to see the 2nd largest tree in the world, General Grant. It's an even more impressive collection of sequoias than Mariposa, and even more covered by snow (and ice). In the end, I even prefered General Grant to the biggest of them all, General Sherman. It's in a more dramatic setting, and less crowded. Sherman is a selfie spot, and the paved walk down to it feels a bit wrong. I think they learned from that mistake once they discovered the tallest tree in the world, in Redwoods National Park, North of San Francisco : its location was never reveiled, to avoid it becoming a tourist spot. Indeed, people stepping near sequoias shortens their lifespan : their roots are shallow and very long (horizontally), so you should never walk to the trunk of a sequoia to have your picture taken next to it, you're disturbing the soil, and chocking one of its roots.

[Hallu]

Last day in the Sierra Nevada. Still covered in snow, still grey. So the view from Moro Rock, towering above the rest of the park, wasn't exactly open. It's a nice fun and safe walk to test your fear of heights though. Next I explored creascent meadow. More sequoias, and bear tracks : some people told me they've seen them, but I didn't. Only their tracks in the snow. Later I checked out the aptly named "Giant Forest". More people walking to the sequoias to have their pictures taken despite the sign that said not to at the start of the walk. Tired of it, I pointed that fact out to a couple of German tourists. They told me they thought it was only for the first tree, thinking I was an idiot or being idiots themselves. Nevertheless my firm and persuasive voice made them stop. First time in history a Frenchman told some Germans what to do ? Anyway, all was forgotten once I saw a yellow bellied marmot on a sequoia. Bigger than the marmots we have in the French Alps, they're just as playful and curious. I saw more on the way to Tokopah Falls, less famous than Mist Falls in Kings Canyon and yet 10 times more impressive. A marmot playing peek-a-boo wedging itself between two rocks tried to steal its thunder though. Decided to drive home after this last nice walk, I suddenly came upon people parked carelessly on the side of the road. About to shout at them, I realized it was what the locals call a "bearjam". No it's not stewed bear meat with a ton of sugar, it's a traffic jam caused by the sight of a bear : bears more specifically, a mother and its 3 cubs. They were tagged and collared, but who cares, I watched them for 15 min trying to get the best shot. Which was impossible, with the snow falling, and the bears being a bit too far on the meadow. But still that's quite a sight. The mother seemed used to humans, or being a black bear, they're a lot less agressive than grizzly bears. The perfect ending to my time in the Sierras.

[Hallu]

Last day in America : in 2 days I'd seen everything there was to see in Sequoia/Kings Canyon. The only thing I missed was Mineral King Road and its long day walk in the wilderness, but it would only open on the 25th of May to my disappointment. So the only options left were Pinnacles National Park, a dry park between Sequoia and the coast, drive the coast itself on the Pacific Highway (which meant an 8 hour road trip), or go to LA and back visiting it, knowing I had to come back to it the next day at the airport, my hotel being near Sequoia. So I chose the Pacific. It had been a while since I'd seen the ocean, so what the hell. Plus Big Sur is supposed to be one of the most scenic highways in the world.

But first I had to drive to what the locals call the new "Dust Bowl". An area utterly destroyed by the stupidity of man, and not by congress or by drought like the farmers claim. When you log to the ground a forested area, remove all shrubs and native plants to farm thirsty crops like mad, don't expect it to end well... As many scientist are saying, we are not so much seeing a drought in California as we are seeing this state returning to its original dry desertic climate after a couple unusually wet decades. But do industrial farmers plan for the long term ? No, they suck the ground dry and then blame it on others. Sorry for the sudden outburst of rage, but the future of agriculture is forest farming : you create a balance between crop farming, and nearby native trees and shrubs who will stop erosion and retain moisture. For decades we thought crops needed only sun and water. But some scientists are showing you can get a higher yield with nearby trees : sure they shade the crops a bit, but they protect them from the wind, retain moisture both in the air and the ground, and provide mulch which give both nutrients and insulation for the crops. The idea isn't to plant inside existing forests, but to use existing farmfields and add lines of trees to them. You can plant less crops, but also lose less due to storms or drought, or even animals.

That out of my chest, I passed the dust bowl and slowly approached the ocean. Many of you are probably thinking if that coastal road is similar to the Great Ocean Road ? In many ways it is : it's cliffs with the occasionnal beach, sweeping views, scary drops sometimes, some parks (only state parks here), and a few small towns. I couldn't stop to the state parks because it was Sunday, late morning, so the carparks were full, plus they limit the number of cars allowed to go in per day to limit pressure on tracks, plants and wildlife. So be it, I just kept driving this beautiful roads and stopping for pictures. It's longer than the Great Ocean Road though, and you can drive faster. The cliffs are higher too : it's the US, everything is scaled up. Even the seals, which I kinda expected to see. But here it was litterally a beach covered with Elephant Seals. You can smell their stench from kms away, and there's a nice boardwalk to observe them. Like sea lions, the males fight and are very noisy. It was a beautiful surprise, especially since most brochures say you only see them in winter.

In the end, I tried to wonder which was my favorite park or favorite area, and I couldn't decide. Like John D. Rockefeller Jr., who ultimately helped with his wealth to create iconic parks such as Acadia or Grand Tetons, said : "they're like your sons, you love them all for different reasons". The joshua trees and the cactus garden were amazing. The giant saguaro cactus and the endless views of desert plants will stay with me forever. The petrified forest was nothing like I'd ever seen and would probably never see again. The canyons in Utah and Arizona were all different, and all unforgettable. Add some arches, snow, eery rocks and hoodoos : every park stayed unique. When I thought Yosemite was about to disappoint me, the view from Glacier Point transcended me. When I thought Sequoia was only about the trees, I saw bears. My only regret is not having enough time to do some long backcountry walks. But it wasn't the right time for it : the deserts were already too hot in May, the mountains still too snowy. The perfect time of the year to sample everything, not the best to see its backcountry wildness. The parks also feel mostly like a well oiled machine : they can handle the crowds, thanks to shuttle systems, big carparks, and paved roads. But I saw them in the shoulder season : remember that Yosemite or Grand Canyon have awful bumper to bumper car traffic all summer long. My original plan was to do all of this in autumn, but I'd have missed on the snow so I'm glad I didn't. Next trip ? For once I have no idea. Maybe a quiet cheap one with my mates this time, it can feel a bit lonely 20 days by yourself. But let's digest that grand American trip first.