Day Nineteen and Twenty - San Francisco

On Monday we started the day off with a short walk down the road to a bakery we had people raving about online for brunch and it didn't disappoint. From there we headed to Golden Gate Park. When we left the hotel there wasn't a cloud in the sky and it was lovely and warm but by the time we arrived fifteen minutes later, it was completely overcast and very chilly - that's how quick the weather can change here which didn't give us the best view of the Golden Gate Bridge.

We had a little walk around the park but weren't really sure what was there until we came across the California Academy of Sciences. We weren't sure whether it would be worth the entry fee or not but we went for it and unintentionally spent all afternoon in there until it closed at 5pm. There was a vast and diverse aquarium (not our thing, for the same reasons as zoos) which actually looked very well cared for and there was some fascinating and unusual sealife throughout. The larger planetarium was full of beautiful butterflies enjoying the habitat, though we found ourselves ducking and diving on a few occasions as we walked through.

We learnt about the San Andreas faultine, a lot about earthquakes and how there are over a million every year around the world, with many being too small for us to feel. There were various interesting exhibits about wildlife, human history and natural wonders as well as many interactive activities to do with dinosaurs, the universe and colour in nature. It was a great way to spend the afternoon and was a chance to use our brains and learn a bit about the world. We had a quick dinner at a cafe called Nourish - vegan and very healthy (Emily's idea) before heading back to the hotel.

We started the day a lot earlier on Tuesday as we had tickets for an early ferry to the notorious island prison of Alcatraz. We had only just managed to book a space on the tour the night before with there only being one time available and only five tickets left in total. The queue was massive but it all went pretty smoothly and we made the quick journey to the island which is just over a mile off the coast of San Francisco Bay.

The eeriness of the place immediately hit you as you stepped on 'The Rock' and even more so when we entered the shower block to wait in the queue for our audio tour headphones. Once we were in the main cellhouse, the significance and history of Alcatraz was overwhelming and it was fascinating to hear about the various escape attempts and how the day to day life of the prisoners unfolded. The tour was narrated by former prison guards and prisoners which added to the realism and a former prisoner was there doing book-signings too. He'd been in and out of prison all his life (now in his 80's) and served time at Alcatraz in the 1950's for fraud and robbery. Overall it was a memorable and very insightful experience and a must do if ever in San Francisco. 'Break the rules and you go to prison; break the prison rules and you go to Alcatraz' was a quote from the day that we'll remember.

We also did a short tour of an island known as Angel Island, the biggest in the bay. It was a lot warmer than Alcatraz and we had a pleasant tram ride around the perimeter of the island before some lunch and getting back on our ferry to head back to Pier 33. Once we were back we made the short journey up the road to Pier 39 and got lost in the disorientating Mirror Maze before heading to the end of the pier for a '7D experience' which was actually better than we expected it to be. Our final stop was visiting the sealions that have made a home by the pier. They were loud, very confrontational with one another (including pushing each other off the barges) but the most noticeable thing was the smell. They smelled like wet dog but a bit worse! The ones who had been sunbathing and fully dried out looked to have a light brown furry coat which we were surprised to see. They are fascinating creatures and we stood and watched them for about half an hour, though we couldn't work out why they are called sealions and not seadogs.

We got back to the hotel this evening and completed our online check-in for our flight to New Yrok tomorrow. We've both enjoyed San Francisco and really another day here would have been ideal to enjoy a bit more of what the city has to offer.

Day Twenty Highlight - Visiting Alcatraz

Alcatraz

Sealions by Pier 39

Golden Gate Bridge as seen from Crissy Field

Alcatraz from the ferry with a glowing halo in the clouds above

Cloudy Golden Gate Bridge as seen from the ferry

Day Seventeen and Eighteen - Yosemite National Park and San Francisco

We needed a lie-in yesterday after such a long day on Friday and it was nice to have an extra hour or two in bed. At around 12 noon we made the two and a half hour journey to Yosemite National Park. It's a pretty big place (1200 sq miles) and it was absolutely packed with people enjoying what the park has to offer. Four million visitors descend on the place every year which is around 11,000 people a day and we think we saw most of them. We headed for Yosemite Valley, the main tourist spot and after a quick lunch we had a short hike to the Lower Falls and then on to Bridal Veil Fall. We got a few nice pictures before heading for the main Yosemite Falls - one of the top twenty tallest waterfalls in the world, though being in the middle of a very dry Summer, it wasn't as impressive as it could have been.

Tunnel View was our next stop and the views of the valley were amazing. There was so much going on in every corner you could see but it was nothing compared to our view from Glacier Point and Washburn Point. We had to drive for a good half hour up some steep mountain roads but it was well worth it as you looked down upon the entire valley in all it's glory. On the descent, the sun was beginning to go down and we made one final stop for a quick moment to enjoy the sunset before heading back to our hotel. On the drive back, we decided to put the roof down and enjoy the stars as we were going along as we were in the middle of nowhere and it was a really dark sky. At 9pm it was still 33 degrees and driving around twisting, turning roads with a warm breeze in the pitch black was a really nice way to end the day.

This morning we had breakfast at the hotel - waffles with loads of syrup and cinnamon rolls before packing up our things and heading for San Francisco. We dropped off our Mustang which had been a pleasure to drive, to read on the onboard trip recorder that we had covered almost 2000 miles in a space of 40 hours driving, all in six days. Our epic road trip across Western America was at an end but it had been a brilliant adventure. We arrived at 3pm and after a quick lunch just down the road we are having a quiet Sunday evening planning what we are going to do over the next couple of days. Our bank balances are taking quite a hammering but it's all for a good cause!

For those interested, there is a great video about the Yosemite National Park here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fJEFi3ccwI

Day Seventeen Highlight - Driving in the 33 degree heat at 9pm with the roof down

Lower Falls

View from Washburn Point

Emily at Glacier Point (7200ft)

A very tame squirrel

Emily at Lower Falls

Tunnel View

View from Washburn Point (2)

Sunset over Yosemite

Day Fifteen and Sixteen - Grand Canyon and Death Valley

In the last two days we have travelled 860 miles on the road (roughly the same as John O'Groats to Lands End) which was a total of 16 hours behind the wheel. Dan has been doing all the driving as Emily couldn't get on the insurance being only 20 years old (minimum age 21) We've seen some epic sights on the way to our current location, north-west of Yosemite National Park, which we will be visiting tomorrow. We've come so far back west that we are now back to being eight hours behind the UK, 150 miles away from our final destination in San Francisco where we will be heading on Sunday morning.

Yesterday we visited the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. It was scenic drive down from our hotel in the town of Kanab and it took us around an hour and a half before we parked up and had a little hike along a few of the less taxing trails. We got some nice pictures but slightly regret not doing a helicopter tour, though at $399 each it would have made a bit of a hole in our budgets - can always come back and do that another time! We didn't actually spend too much time there, only a couple of hours, but we got a good brunch to set us up for the day and enjoyed the view.

It was then a case of driving six hours to our acommodation for the night - a motorhome in an RV park. It was very different but cosy all the same and it was nice to have our own kitchen - overall it was very good value for what we paid. A good sleep took us through to this morning ahead of what was to be a full day's driving. We left the RV park at 9.30am and arrived at tonight's hotel near Yosemite at 6pm, though we did have a few brief pitstops along the way. It actually went surprisingly quickly; it seems to when there is so much to look at.

We had chosen a route through the hottest place on Earth - Death Valley, starting in the south-east corner of the park and coming out on the north-west to join the road that took us to our hotel. The temperature was already in the high 30's by the time we had entered the outer rim of the park at the visitor's centre. We topped up with water, educated and prepared ourselves in the interactive museum and topped up our fuel before heading out on our own.

By lunchtime it was 46 degrees, the highest temperature either of us had ever seen or experienced. Inside the car with the A/C you don't notice, but we spotted an opportunity to spot at a collection of sand dunes and the heat that hit you as you opened the car door was extraordinary. It's hard to describe unless you experience it yourself but it's not a temperature that the human body is used to - a quick few pictures and Dan had to get back in the car while Emily lasted a little longer and managed to read a few information boards before we drove on.

We didn't stop again in Death Valley but some of the roads and the views were like nothing either of us had ever seen before. It was an incredible drive and a brilliant experience. The roads varied from tight mountain turns at high altitude to gun-barrel straight roads stretching out in front of you as far as the eye could see. There was so much to look at in all directions and we got as many pictures as we could. Dan says it was the best thing we've seen so far and it's somewhere worth visiting again in the future for sure.

After we left Death Valley, we still had a four hour journey to our hotel. The last fifty mile stretch was through Stanislaus National Forest which was a spectacular road through the mountains, ascending to just shy of 10,000ft - we were almost amongst the clouds and level with the ice and snow near the top of some of the peaks. It was much chillier at that altitude - 15 degrees, around 30 degrees less than what we had been through earlier in the day.

We were desperate for a hot and proper meal when we arrived this evening, so despite being pretty exhausted, we checked in before heading out for a meal at a nearby Italian which happened to be very good and it was a nice relaxing way to end what has been a long day.

Day Sixteen Highlight - Driving through Death Valley

The Grand Canyon as seen from the north rim

Death Valley

Stanislaus National Forest

Day Thirteen and Fourteen - Las Vegas to Zion National Park

Yesterday was a chilled day with a walk around the main strip in the afternoon and lounging by the pool at the hotel. It reached 42 degrees on Wednesday which is pretty close to unbearable. We had an early night and ordered room service before watching a film or two - a nice relaxing evening to end our stay in Las Vegas. We weren't there all that long but we are trying to do and see as much as possible so we were quickly on to our next location earlier today. We loved our little insight to Vegas and Dan will definitely be coming back one day.

This morning we left the hotel around 10am ahead of another long drive, this time into Zion National Park which is a few hundred miles north-east of Las Vegas. We made a detour on the way to visit Hoover Dam, another place checked off our list, but it was pretty much exactly how you would expect it to look and be. We made a quick stop for a few pictures, avoiding the parking fees before getting back into the car for a three and a half hour journey onto Zion.

We drove through a timezone on the way, so we are now only seven hours behind the UK rather than the eight we have been used to. The park itself was quite pricey to enter but there were some stunning views. We opted to stay in the car and pull over at several spots along the way rather than pay for parking and we didn't really want to do any strenuous hiking in the 35 degree heat. There was a twelve mile ascending drive through the valleys including a mile stretch in a tunnel straight through the mountainside and there were plenty of photo opportunities on the way. It's a very diverse environment and we saw plenty of mountain goats running around in the roads and up the hillsides. You can read more about Zion here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zion_National_Park

After we'd stopped for an ice-cream on the way out, we headed for our hotel which was about an hour's drive away, but in the direction of the Grand Canyon which is where we are heading for tomorrow.

Day Fourteen Highlight - Driving through Zion National Park

Checkerboard Mesa

Zion National Park

Mountain Goat

Two Mountain Goats looking for a way up

Zion National Park

Quick stop in Zion

Day Twelve - Los Angeles to Las Vegas

After dropping off our LA get-around, we headed to get our convertible Ford Mustang for the next stage of our journey. Stage one was getting to Las Vegas from LA and the route we had chosen went through a few mountain areas and along a part of historic Route 66. In total it took us just over six hours, covering over 400 miles in the process, taking in some spectacular views along the way. Our car isn't the most efficient in the world but US petrol costs equivalent to 60 pence per litre and even less depending on where you are, so you can forgive a machine like ours with a thirsty appetite. With it being in the high 30's we didn't let the roof down and it was nice to get back into the air conditioned car after refuelling. While passing through a small town called Oatman, we saw several donkeys lining the streets, walking in the roads and generally having the time of their lives. They all carried plenty of condition so are clearly well fed and looked after and one even stuck his head in the window for a quick fuss too. It wasn't what we expected at all but a bit more wildlife added to the list! It was a long but satisfying drive and we eventually arrived at our hotel at around 4.30pm local time.

The hotel we are staying in is massive. It's 25 storeys tall with over 2000 rooms as well as it's own casino, eleven restaurants, a bowling alley, a 4000 seat equestrian centre and arena, cinema and spa as well as plenty more. It's a fascinating place but we are on the outskirts so we had a drive down the strip this evening for a look around with the roof down. It was incredible. The lights, the unbelievable buildings, the buzz and atmosphere, nothing quite like it. Tomorrow we plan to visit the Hoover Dam which is only 20 minutes down the road before doing a bit more exploring in the city.

Day Twelve Highlight - Driving down the Las Vegas strip with the roof down

Our Mustang

Donkeys roaming around Oatman

Route 66

Our journey in numbers (not the best mpg!)

Day Eleven - Los Angeles (3)

We've had a very quiet and relaxed day today but we've still been out and about. We headed to Glendale at lunchtime for a quick look around before lunch at 'Lemonade.' We had seen really good reviews and the venue was noted down as a place to eat while we were here. They are well known primarily for their different variations of lemonade but they also serve a wide variety of freshly prepared hot and cold dishes to choose from. You pick up your tray and rather like in school, you move along the line and ask for a portion of anything you like. You can have as many as can fit on your plate and each dish is priced per portion. Once you've got your food, you head to the lemonade section and pick which one you would like with your meal - we had strawberry/rhubarb and blood orange, both amazing. For just $20 each, we had a big plateful of healthy and delicious food as well as freshly made lemonade to go with it. We also picked up a couple of desserts to take away and these were great too, well worth a visit if ever in Los Angeles.

We'd found a great spot to park which was only $1 an hour and once we'd got back in the car we headed towards Beverly Hills. We drove along Sunset Boulevard and Mulholland Drive as well as various little roads around the town and it was pretty much what you expected - ridiculously oversized and lavished mansions with various expensive cars parked outside each one. We didn't see any celebrities and opted not to do an organised tour but it was worth having a little drive around.

Once we got back to the hotel around 5pm, we started sorting our things out for tomorrow. We'll get breakfast here before checking out and driving to LAX to pick up our next car, a convertible Ford Mustang, before heading to our first port of call on our Western USA roadtrip - Las Vegas - a 400 mile journey on the route we are taking (a detour on Route 66). It will be nice to do some driving on some open road rather than stopping and starting at every set of traffic lights in a busy city!

Day Eleven Highlight - Eating at Lemonade

Lunch

Beverly Hills

Day Ten - Los Angeles (2)

Today we woke up in time for breakfast and the first job after that was to visit a local laundrette to wash our clothes. We didn't really have a clue what we were doing but we managed to eventually get them all washed and dried.

Once we'd got that sorted we headed towards the Hollywood sign for a hike. We chose the shortest but steepest one which was 3.5 miles long and in the near 30 degree heat it was pretty tough going. On our way up we had to stop for a moment, along with plenty of other hikers while a rattlesnake crossed the road. Snakes are some people's worst nightmare but for us it was really cool to see and he wasn't bothered by any of us gawping at him. I managed to get a little video on snapchat but sadly no pictures. We saw plenty of little lizards on the way too and we eventually reached the top which was just behind the Hollywood sign. The view of the city was well worth the climb and it was something we were really glad we did.

When we got back to the car, we noticed one of the rear tyres was quite flat. We had parked on the road on a housing estate and whether a local was unhappy that a tourist had parked near his house or not, we don't know, but we did suspect foulplay as we've had no issues whatsoever until then. We also needed fuel so we headed to a garage (going the wrong way twice on the way there) and got the tyre reinflated before getting fuel. The machine at the pump didn't accept either my debit card or my travel money card so we had to go in and pay cash - not realising you have to pay before you fill up in the States. After about ten minutes trying to achieve what should have been a simple exercise, we finally got sorted and were on our way.

We got back to the hotel around 8pm after a quick stop in Walmart, which literally sells everything including a plug adaptor after ours broke and we also made a quick stop by the biggest Krispy Kreme store known to man. Inside, hot doughnuts were on offer as the doughnuts were being made in a mini factory in front of our eyes and the queue was literally out the door. We didn't buy any as we were hungry for dinner (pizza) and didn't have the time to wait, but we aren't ruling out going back!

Day Ten Highlight - View from the Hollywood Sign

View from the top with the LA city skyline in the distance

From behind the sign

On the way up

Behind the sign

Day Nine - Los Angeles (1)

Our first full day in Los Angeles and we missed the hotel breakfast as we didn't wake until nearly 10am this morning after such a long day yesterday. We had planned on going to Universal Studios for the day but as we woke late and after seeing the extortionate ticket prices we changed our plans and headed to Venice Beach and Santa Monica Pier for the day instead.

On the way we had a delicious brunch at 'Toast' - somewhere we had been recommended to visit. A typically rich American milkshake of banana and peanut butter helped wash it down and it was a nice pitstop on the way to Venice Beach. We arrived around 2pm and after walking up and down the pier seeing some very odd people and things, we found a nice spot on the beach and stayed there til nearly 6pm. It was lovely to lie down and do nothing in the sun for a few hours.

Instead of coming straight back to the hotel, we took a detour and visited the iconic beach-side town of Malibu. We saw the pier and some pretty big waves with a few surfers packing cars with their surfing kit after a day at the beach. After a quick stop at the local grocery store, we got back at around 8pm for an earlyish night before plenty of hiking due tomorrow.

Day Nine Highlight - Relaxing on the beach

Exploreberry living up to his name

Santa Monica Pier

Day Eight - Calgary to Los Angeles

Our alarm went off at 3am this morning for our early flight to Los Angeles. We took off at 6.30am and had got through to the LAX exit doors at 10am, though we did gain an hour in the process. Our hotel is 50 mins away from the airport and we made a last minute change of plan to avoid excessive taxi costs by renting a car for the four days we are in LA - it will save lots of money and be an added convenience in the process. We got the choice of a group of cars and we went for a black Dodge Charger. Dan has been doing the driving - we've had no real issues whatsoever and it's a good opportunity to get some practice in before picking up our Mustang for our road trip across Western USA next week.

We had a little nap when we checked in to our hotel before heading out this afternoon to Madame Tussauds on Hollywood Boulevard. We'll be spending more time there later in the week so we didn't stay on the walk of fame for too long but we got a little taster and we enjoyed the waxwork museum and having a little look around.

As the sun was setting (very early in LA) we headed up a mountain road in the North into Angeles National Forest with some lovely views of the city. We got a few nice pictures and there were plenty of locals up there enjoying the scenery too. We've been to the local grocery store and picked up some bits and tonight we enjoyed some cheese and biscuits with a few dips and some red grapes.

Day Eight Highlight - Mountain road drive

Typical tourists on Hollywood Blvd

Emily and Will Smith

Dan helping Tiger line up his putt

Emily and Zac Efron

Our get-around

View from the mountain road

Day Seven - Exploring Calgary

Today was our final day in Canada as we are getting up in the early hours of the morning for our flight to Los Angeles. With that in mind we wanted to do as much as we could in the beautiful city of Calgary, so we've been out all day keeping busy.

We started off in Heritage Park Historical Village. It was like we had travelled back to the early 1900's with an old motoring museum by the entrance before we went into the 'village' itself. All the buildings are as they were a hundred or so years ago and it was a great atmosphere and experience. It bills itself as a 'living museum' with actors, a working ranch and plenty of interactive activities around the site. We spent a bit more time there than we had planned to but it was so interesting and unique and was well worth the small entry fee.

After that we headed for the Military Museum in the south-west of the city. We both really enjoyed this and saw some amazing things - tanks, spitfires, submarine torpedos and a variety of old weaponry. It was really interesting as well as being educational and with such a vast amount of memorabilia on display, we couldn't believe the admission fee was only $5. Highly recommended.

Our next stop was Prince's Island Park which was a really lovely spot right on the edge of the main downtown area. With plenty of wildlife on show as well as a picturesque little river running through the middle of the park with a great view of the city skyscrapers, it was the perfect spot to sit down and relax after a long morning's walking. After a little break and a quick call home to our parents it was time to head into the city centre. We were running out of time but wanted to see the Devonian Gardens which are housed at the top of a huge shopping center. Unfortunately the majority of the area was closed for maintenance but we'd had a nice time walking through the city in any case.

We came back to the hotel to get showered and changed before heading back into the city for dinner at the top of Calgary Tower in the rotating restaurant. Every hour the restaurant completes a full 360 view of the city and the views at the top were even better than we could have imagined. The food was very good too and it was a lovely way to end our time in Canada, a country we have thoroughly enjoyed exploring. The people have been absolutely brilliant, so caring and welcoming and some of the nature we have seen will stay with us forever. We will definitely be coming back here one day and Calgary is such a thriving and exciting place which we will really miss.

Day Seven Highlight - Dinner and the view from the top of Calgary Tower

1935 Austin Seven at the Motoring Museum

Tank outside the Military Museum

Memorabilia in the Military Museum

Hand-painted mural representing the three branches of the Military

Emily on Peace Bridge

Calgary Tower

On the viewing platform at Calgary Tower

Downtown Calgary

Heading for a cool down in the river