Day 6 brought us to Twin Falls, Idaho before we made our way to Reno. Idaho also known as the "Potato State" produces one-third of the potatoes grown in the United States! Other than yummy potatoes, Twin Falls is building its reputation as a place for adrenaline junkies - BASE jumping from the spectacular Perrine Bridge. BASE jumping is a sport ( Read more... )

With elks abound it is no wonder that dear husband had the wish to savour elk steak since he has had elk burger before. When we decided on dinner at Old Town Cafe his wish came true and he was thrilled. Old Town Cafe has the cowboy-town feel to it and I enjoyed the new experience. In fact it was lovely taking a stroll in the cool evening as the ( Read more... )

We've arrived at the midpoint of our tour. Today we will finally reach Yellowstone National Park and be impressed by its splendour. We have one more attraction to check out before Yellowstone and that is the Devil's Tower located at Wyoming. Rises dramatically 1,267 feet above the surrounding terrain, Devil's Tower is a monolithic igneous intrusion ( Read more... )

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One of the things that I love about America is the incredibly beautiful national parks. We've been to a handful and each trip is so refreshing and rejuvenating. There is something truly magical and mysterious when you are in close proximity to nature and its splendour. Given that Yellowstone National Park is the oldest park in the U.S and we've ( Read more... )

The third day saw us making the long journey back to the Bay. En route we made 3 stops - a vista point for Mount Shasta , Lake Shasta Caverns and Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay. Somehow snow capped mountain has a magnetic attraction that draws one in. To get to Lake Shasta Caverns, we endured a bus ride up the winding dirt road after which we took ( Read more... )

The main attraction for this tour is the beautiful Crater Lake located within Crater Lake National Park in southern Oregon. The lake is 1,949 feet (594 m) deep at its deepest point, which makes it the deepest lake in the United States. This park encompasses the Crater Lake caldera, which rests in the remains of a destroyed volcano of Mount Mazama. ( Read more... )

In end July we finally made it for the tour that Stvn had been keen to join. Such tours are usually quite good if one is not keen to do all the driving. It suits our needs and we have to learn to accept the downsides that come along with it. For examples, eating at MacDonald or some chinese buffet places during the trip as well as spending lots of ( Read more... )

When the last day rolled by we were disappointed to discover a threatening sky. Undeterred we decided to go to Hetch Hetchy Reservoir when the map informed us that it was relatively near to our lodge. Turns out it was a brilliant idea because personally I enjoyed that hike the most. It is a glacial valley and the scenery there is out of the world ( Read more... )

Day 2 started early because the drive to Mariposa Grove took about 2 hours from our lodge. That gives you an indication of how massive the park is. On the way, we had much fun listening to Chinese pop songs and our companion J kept reminding me to take it easy for the hike that we were going to do. Even though it was spring, some roads were still ( Read more... )