West Coast Road Trip! from Atlantic ocean to Pacific Ocean
This post was a long time coming. Somehow in the chaos of recent events I was not able to write any posts. So here goes Our road trip to the west cost and our experience.
Our wanderlust led us all the from Atlantic ocean to Pacific Ocean during the week of Labor Day of 2015. We had made all our booking well in advance, probably 5 months before the trip. This saved us a lot of money as we are budget travelers. We flew from PA to Las Vegas where we had booked a car for rent for the next one week. Soon after we landed we drove all the way to Grand Canyons National Park with a stop at Hover dam.
Hover Dam:
Let me start off by saying that it is extremely hot during this time of the year! The dry heat at 104 degree Fahrenheit licked and coiled around us but the dam made us stand in awe. It truly is an engineering marvel. Also it is worth noting that the water level in the dam has drastically reduced. You can see the clear markings on the surrounding rocks. It does make you think about ground water depletion. After about an hour in Hover dam we drove further to the grand canyons national park.
Grand Canyons National Park:
We had a room booking at Yavapai lodge in Grand Canyons. The rooms here are very clean and well kept.
Tip: Try to get a room on the ground level as you can see a number of Moose grazing at the back of the lodge early in the morning very close to the window.
There are frequent shuttle service which takes you around several view points around the canyons. We waited for the sun to set over the horizon which casts an orange hue over the canyons. A sight so mesmerizing, it cannot be expressed in words.
Tip: Though the canyons are hot in the morning, carry a jacket around as it gets quite chilly in the evening.
Visiting all the shuttle stops usually is an all day event. Though the shuttle tour was beautiful we still had the thirst for a good hike. The next morning we checked out of the lodge, loaded our car and left to hike the Angel Head trail. Oh my God! it was simply breath taking. Since we had to drive back that afternoon to Las Vegas we climbed down for about an hour and climbed back up.
Las Vegas:
Driving back from Grand Canyons to Vegas was very tiresome as the temperature shoots up in Vegas. I am not the biggest fan of Vegas, though this was my first time there. But I can see why so many people enjoy coming to this city. Let's just say I am a party pooper who enjoys being amidst nature more than anything else. We spent the night at Hilton at the strip and saw a couple of shows. My favorite was the Bellagio Musical Fountain and it was free :)
Yosemite National Park:
We drove for about 7 hours from Vegas to Yosemite. The route which we took was almost deserted and we loved it. The road runs parallel to the Death Valley national park and it was scenic. After entering the Yosemite National Park we had to drive almost 2 hours to the Lower Pines Campground.
Tip: If you are camping here, book the campground in Lower Pines with the glorious view Sierra Nevada towering over you.
We reached our campsite by evening and set up our tent to rest for the night. At the crack of dawn, we left to see the Vernal Falls which is about 3 and 1/2 hours hike. Though there was not much water, it was very picturesque.
In the noon we hiked the Yosemite Falls trail and later on went to hike the Bridal Veil falls.
Tip: If you want to see the falls in full force, visit during late spring or late fall.
In general it was a day meant for hiking and we were beat by the night. As we slept the moon hung like a luminous perl from the heaven.
Los Angeles:
We left Yosemite early in the morning and drove up to Los Angeles. We hugged the coast line through out the entire drive on state highway 1. The ocean view all along the way was magnificent. We stopped for lunch at a small restaurant overlooking the Pacific ocean.
We stopped at Pfeiffer Beach where the sand is actually purple in color or rather has a hue of purple. The route is a little bumpy but the location is incredible. We spent about an hour at the beach and continued our drive towards LA.
Tip: It is easy to miss the turn towards the beach from the main road so keep an eye out. The GPS doesn't do a very good job in locating it.
We reached LA, checked in at Wyndham Santa Monica Pierre and got some much needed zzz's... The next morning we took the Starline hop on hop off bus to tour the entire city. As the daylight began to drain away, we longed on the sand at the pierre enjoying the sunset and reflecting on our entire trip whilst listening to the rhythm of the crashing waves. The next morning we flew back to PA, a little sad, yet content and grateful for this adventurous week.
While the mother nature nurtured our anxious minds and hearts, the cosmopolitan cities made us feel like a world citizen.
I hope you enjoyed reading about our shenanigans. I wish I could write about every single experience we had (both fun as well as stressful) but the post will get even longer than it already is!
I hope you are having a great day. Take care.
Our wanderlust led us all the from Atlantic ocean to Pacific Ocean during the week of Labor Day of 2015. We had made all our booking well in advance, probably 5 months before the trip. This saved us a lot of money as we are budget travelers. We flew from PA to Las Vegas where we had booked a car for rent for the next one week. Soon after we landed we drove all the way to Grand Canyons National Park with a stop at Hover dam.
Hover Dam:
Let me start off by saying that it is extremely hot during this time of the year! The dry heat at 104 degree Fahrenheit licked and coiled around us but the dam made us stand in awe. It truly is an engineering marvel. Also it is worth noting that the water level in the dam has drastically reduced. You can see the clear markings on the surrounding rocks. It does make you think about ground water depletion. After about an hour in Hover dam we drove further to the grand canyons national park.
Grand Canyons National Park:
We had a room booking at Yavapai lodge in Grand Canyons. The rooms here are very clean and well kept.Tip: Try to get a room on the ground level as you can see a number of Moose grazing at the back of the lodge early in the morning very close to the window.
There are frequent shuttle service which takes you around several view points around the canyons. We waited for the sun to set over the horizon which casts an orange hue over the canyons. A sight so mesmerizing, it cannot be expressed in words.Tip: Though the canyons are hot in the morning, carry a jacket around as it gets quite chilly in the evening.
Visiting all the shuttle stops usually is an all day event. Though the shuttle tour was beautiful we still had the thirst for a good hike. The next morning we checked out of the lodge, loaded our car and left to hike the Angel Head trail. Oh my God! it was simply breath taking. Since we had to drive back that afternoon to Las Vegas we climbed down for about an hour and climbed back up.
Las Vegas:
Driving back from Grand Canyons to Vegas was very tiresome as the temperature shoots up in Vegas. I am not the biggest fan of Vegas, though this was my first time there. But I can see why so many people enjoy coming to this city. Let's just say I am a party pooper who enjoys being amidst nature more than anything else. We spent the night at Hilton at the strip and saw a couple of shows. My favorite was the Bellagio Musical Fountain and it was free :)Yosemite National Park:
We drove for about 7 hours from Vegas to Yosemite. The route which we took was almost deserted and we loved it. The road runs parallel to the Death Valley national park and it was scenic. After entering the Yosemite National Park we had to drive almost 2 hours to the Lower Pines Campground.
Tip: If you are camping here, book the campground in Lower Pines with the glorious view Sierra Nevada towering over you.We reached our campsite by evening and set up our tent to rest for the night. At the crack of dawn, we left to see the Vernal Falls which is about 3 and 1/2 hours hike. Though there was not much water, it was very picturesque.
In the noon we hiked the Yosemite Falls trail and later on went to hike the Bridal Veil falls.Tip: If you want to see the falls in full force, visit during late spring or late fall.
In general it was a day meant for hiking and we were beat by the night. As we slept the moon hung like a luminous perl from the heaven.
Los Angeles:
We left Yosemite early in the morning and drove up to Los Angeles. We hugged the coast line through out the entire drive on state highway 1. The ocean view all along the way was magnificent. We stopped for lunch at a small restaurant overlooking the Pacific ocean.
Tip: It is easy to miss the turn towards the beach from the main road so keep an eye out. The GPS doesn't do a very good job in locating it.
We reached LA, checked in at Wyndham Santa Monica Pierre and got some much needed zzz's... The next morning we took the Starline hop on hop off bus to tour the entire city. As the daylight began to drain away, we longed on the sand at the pierre enjoying the sunset and reflecting on our entire trip whilst listening to the rhythm of the crashing waves. The next morning we flew back to PA, a little sad, yet content and grateful for this adventurous week.
While the mother nature nurtured our anxious minds and hearts, the cosmopolitan cities made us feel like a world citizen.
I hope you enjoyed reading about our shenanigans. I wish I could write about every single experience we had (both fun as well as stressful) but the post will get even longer than it already is!
I hope you are having a great day. Take care.
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