We were a bit apprehensive going through USA given the presence of guns and many unhappy citizens. But it was a fantastic experience. The people are all very friendly and helpful. Just do not talk about politics and you will be fine. It is not up to us bypassing travers to give advice. 

We wanted to travel as much as possible through the Rocky Mountains going South towards Mexico. The start was Glacier National Park, an extension of Waterton Lakes NP in Canada. The road “Going to the Sun”, which crosses the continental dived, closes on 1/10. We were just in time. Busy but awesome (to use an American expression). Just as impressive is the Beartooth Hwy going via Cody towards Yellowstone NP. The autumn colours in the otherwise green valleys are a sight to see. In fact, along our whole trip the red and yellow leaves of trees stand out in the pine dominated forests. Before reaching the Beartooth Hwy we made a memorable stop at the Missouri headwaters where in 1807 Lewis and Clark started their treacherous climb over the mountains (with assistance of the local first nation people). Since Rudy read their travel book, he had to pay homage to this place. 

What really made our trip through the USA stand out was the availability of fantastic, mostly free, campsites in the many National and State forests. They all have a clean pit toilet and picknick tables. Given the time of year (October) most were empty. Thank you for this. The mountains and valley are as beautiful as you see in the movies. The roads are good so no need for the 4×4.

We stopped in Bolder to stay a few days with our friends Robbin and Rich. They treated us with nice walks in the nature surrounding Bolder/Denver and healthy food.  They are both nature lovers and gave us invaluable advice on parks to visit outside the main tourist routes. Such as the “Royal Gorge Bridge and park” and the even more impressive “Black Canyon of the Gunnison River NP”.  Further along at Grand Junction the combination of the Green and Colorado river carved out the Colorado National Monument. Though a steep climb and a tunnel you reach the top of this plateau with great views down into the carved-out valleys with many stand-alone rock structures. Again, we were lucky to get a campsite in the NP. Further South in Utah is the well-known Arches and Canyon land NPs around the tourist town of Moab. These are impressive but well known. Based on advice of the local tourist office we stopped at Gooseneck NP where the San Juan River carves out a deep canyon where you can camp on the rim and look down. Only a few other campers were present on the windy plateau. After Mesa Verde (First Nation houses underneath overhangs) and the Grand Canyon North Rim, we drove further on South though Sedona to Tucson. We were invited to stay with David and Sam, a couple we met months before in Canada. Such a hospitality. After that it was only a short drive to the Mexican border at Yuma into Baja California.

Of al our trips around the world the nature and campsites in the USA make it one of our favourites. We hope this video compilation triggers you to a visit.

Jamaliah and Rudy Welling

10/1/2024 

please press on the picture to see the video.