Underdressed and Over-warned - hiking in America!

Like anyone who knows us can testify, getting up early is not something we do very well. However, hot hot hot days (i.e. 42 degrees Celsius!) in Arizona and Utah coupled with gorgeous hiking opportunities made early mornings a necessary reality... so recently we've been woken by Apple's sweet tones at 4.30 and 5am in order to finish all hiking by 11am. 

Thankfully the hikes have made the mornings well worth the effort! The scenery tends to have great dramatic names - i.e. Angel's Landing, Leap of Faith, Ooh Aah Point, The Emerald Pools, Weeping Rock and The Three Patriarchs. We also hiked up Observation Point which was way cooler than it's dull name implies! For those of you not trained in American hiking geography, we have had a seriously fun last week exploring the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park. 

Before we crack into the photos, here's a couple of things we've noticed about hiking (and hikers) in the US.

1.) Americans love their snazzy hiking gears. To give you an idea of some hiking equipment musts:

• Whilst walking through a river canyon, carbon fibre poles were all around us; we had a sturdy branch each.
• We were totally out of place by not dressing in khaki, beige or moss green. *Note to self, must blend into surroundings more.*
• We sipped from the rather unfashionable drink bottle as opposed to the super cool Camelpacks.
• Expensive hiking boots? Overrated. We prefer running shoes of intriguing shape and consistency, after Jess's literally melted in the Phoenix sun. A word of warning - don't leave your shoes in the car!

2.) The scariest thing about hiking in America? The posted pre-hike warnings.

"This is a strenuous hike. Do not attempt if you are scared of heights, there have been fatalities. Do not attempt if you are not of reasonable fitness. Beware of mountain lions. Do not attempt if you are not dressed in khaki, there have been fatalities."

OK, so maybe the last point was exaggerated, but you get the idea. 

Underdressed and over-warned, we have had an absolutely fantastic last week. The Grand Canyon is large and impressive beyond description and photographic justice, whilst Zion National Park is pretty much the coolest place ever, extremely beautiful and wonderfully varied. But enough writing - we'll let the pictures speak for themselves!

GRAND CANYON

Well named!

'tis Grand indeed...

Resting before we climb back up to the canyon rim. Hiking in the Grand Canyon involves going down first...the hard bit comes in the second half!

The man works on making me a widow

ZION NATIONAL PARK

Exploring 'The Narrows' canyons

Chris capitalising on a chance to take his shirt off... Typical. 

These two owls were perched on a nearby tree... too cool.

  

Camping is fun...for about 3 nights. It is quickly losing its appeal!

This step was called the 'Leap of Faith'. We were a bit underwhelmed by the size of the "leap" so tried to make it look more impressive...

Hiking up Angel's Landing with  plunging cliffs on either side.  Fun!

  

Conquered!

Chipmunks are everywhere, and they are cuuuuute.

The Wild West

Since we last posted, we have driven down historic Route 66, stayed in a teepee motel, seen the cars that inspired the movie Cars, shot some massive guns and driven through an Arizonan sandstorm. Obviously it's been too long since we last updated!


After leaving Memphis we did a few days of serious driving, charging through Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico before arriving in Arizona, our temporary home for the last few days. On the journey we had the chance to drive on part of the old (and pretty run-down) Route 66. One night we stayed in a motel that consists of big ol' teepees. We figured this might be our only chance to stay somewhere so ridiculous, yet so cool :) The motel has a bunch of cars that we discovered were part of the inspiration for the movie Cars, which greatly appealed to our inner child! 

"In New Zealand you have sheep and in Arizona we have guns". 
Since arriving in Arizona we have discovered that nothing illustrates the differences that exist between New Zealand and America quite like the attitude towards guns! Here in Arizona we have been assured that there are six guns for every person in the state. SIX! So that means that there are approximately 30 million guns in this state. Holy cow. In true Arizonan form, our host and two of his friends took us to a local shooting range to try out some of their "toys". They are certainly doing their bit to uphold the state average... One of them owned 14 weapons! "Are any of those for hunting animals?" we inquired. "Only the ones with two legs" was the reply! Note to self: don't get smart with people in this part of the world! We had a great time at the target range, getting the chance to shoot .45s, a .308 rifle, a shotgun.. the list goes on! Jess and I both have bruises on our shoulder today, the sign of a good time and questionable technique!

Kids, don't try this at home

We also had a seriously fun day in Sedona - a town framed by spectacular red rock cliffs. We went offroading in a 4 wheel drive with our host, which was GREAT! We recommend! We spent a few hours interchanging between nervousness at where he was about to drive and being in wonder at the beauty of the nature around us!

An example of some of the red rock magnificence in Arizona

We figured we'd leave our Toyota Corolla back at the house.... 

Speaking of great scenery, we have purchased a card which gives us unlimited access into national parks all over the country - yay! So today we explored some serious cacti action at Saguaro National Park - an area in the desert which has no trees but approximately one gazillion cactus plants. We also visited a place called the Petrified Forest National Park...which was eerily, unbelievably quiet. There was absolutely no sound at all - no people, no animals or insects, no wind. Just dead silence. It was unlike anything we've ever experienced before - Jess and I had a full conversation talking in our normal voices at a distance of 100 metres. It really showed us how noisy our world is and what a great feeling it is to spend some time in silence!


In unrelated chatter, we've been amused by many American's concept of a "healthy meal". Here, the inclusion of one fruit/vegetable can promote an entire meal into the healthy category. At one fast food joint I ordered the "healthy option" combo -- burger, chips and soft drink! But unlike the other options, my burger had lettuce and tomato in it, deeming it healthy!


Our next week is what I have been looking forward to most in the US - camping overnight in various amazing national parks! Grand Canyon National Park, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park are all on the itinerary; 7 nights of living in a tent. And then one slightly luxurious night in Las Vegas! Can't wait!

Any day that starts with Elvis and ends with Fried Chicken is OK with me!

We have emerged this morning unscathed from our first USA tenting experience, in Memphis, Tennessee. We are staying across the road from Graceland, Elvis Presley's home. We spent half a day there, and it was so much fun! There were far too many touristy shops, but seeing his house was just incredible. Elvis had style. We've picked up some style tips from his home decor that might help:

• Green shaggy carpet is in. Especially when you have it on the floor and roof.
• Your living room MUST have a minimum of three adjoining televisions.
• Speaking of minimums, you must have at least 10 golf carts for riding around the backyard in.
• Every chair in your living room must resemble some sort of wild animal.
• That waterfall you always dreamed of? It needs to be indoor. 

The piano where Elvis worked his magic. Can we just say, his house was pure 70's glory.

Elvis' lounge. This fails to capture the fact that the walls are covered in green carpet also

Elvis' mucho famous pink Caddy

After the retro awesomeness of Elvis, our day took a more sombre but equally interesting turn when we went to the National Civil Rights Museum. They have transformed the hotel where Martin Luther King was shot into this awesome and informative museum. Very cool. A statue of Rosa Parks sits inside a replica bus, where she refused to move from her seat for a white passenger. And when you sit down in a seat near her, a speaker from the busdriver starts to play, addressing you as if you are a black person in a white seat. So intimidating! Go Rosa.

The hotel (now museum) where Martin Luther King Jr was shot

We had to rush but we made it to the famous duck walk at the Peabody Hotel. For the un-informed, hundreds of people crowd into the hotel lobby of this big ol' hotel to watch a man in uniform (the Duckmaster! no joke) lead 5 ducks out of their pond, down a red carpet and into a waiting elevator. It's part of a tradition that's been going on for like 70 years. Maybe you had to be there, but.... it was awesome.

One of the ducks sprints down the aisle

Then, as luck would have it, there was a 5km road race on in central Memphis. We had just enough time to go back to the campsite, get the running gear and make the start line. My use of "we" is a strong word - Jess was worried about getting too sweaty - so cheered me on instead. I got to the start line just in time, in a horrible position in the starting grid. Thankfully though, right before the starting gun (and I'm not kidding) everyone closed their eyes and put their hands over their hearts to sing the Star Spangled Banner. Far from being patriotic, I saw this as my perfect opportunity to sneak up a few hundred places in the starting line. Apart from my confusion through the entire race as to whether I was running 5 miles or 5 kilometres, it went pretty well.

Then to finish the night we went to one of those rare places that lived up to both its name and reputation - Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken. Previous looks on the menu had shown some rather over the top options - the 37 piece chicken meal or the 1 gallon (approx 4 litre) coke drink. We shared a comparatively tiny 5 piece meal to finish the day in true Southern style. It was deeeeeeelicious!

Best chicken EVER.

Going with the flow in Florida and...giving high tens in Tennessee?

Gather around little ones - it's travel highlights sharing time!

We started our Florida time in Orlando, with the sole intention of getting our adrenaline fix at a theme park. We went to Islands of Adventure - part of Universal Studios - for a day of awesome thrills, an AMAZING rollercoaster and endless movie references. One of the highlights of my day was (for the first time in my life) being able to share and mutually enjoy a glass of cold beer with Jess. Admittedly, the beer was called Butterbeer and it can only be purchased in Harry Potter World, but I'll take what I can. The main Harry Potter ride was an epic motion master/dangerous train ride where we chased Harry Potter on his broomstick. You will be pleased to know he saved our lives on numerous occasions.

Unfortunately our Orlando motel was a bit of a dud. They wooed us in with "Free Contintental Breakfast". It consisted of six mini donuts which we had to share with an Indian family of five. Not satisfying. However, the day only improved from here. 

Butterbeer! Tastes like creaming soda mixed with ice cream. Mmm.

The Hulk Ride - probably the best rollercoaster we've been on!

I survived the Jurassic Park ride...just

From Orlando we went on to Miami. ("Party in the city where the heat is on, all night on the streets til the break of dawn..." Any other Will Smith fans out there? No? Ahem). In short, to live in Miami I think there is a law that states you have to be ridiculously good looking, or incredibly ripped. Or so it seemed! It was so hilarious walking around. The general thinking of most Miami males seemed to be: "Ok, I admit I am four blocks from the beach and the weather is decidedly overcast; however, I have so much muscle and so little body fat that it would be such a pity to cover my well-defined and hairless chest by putting a shirt on. Now move out of my way and let me swagger."

After the catwalk of Miami we then ventured down to the southernmost tip of our USA trip - the Florida Keys. We have a fantastic time staying on Marathon Key with Michelle's (my old flatmate's) mum, Beth. Beth totally schooled us on to be a good host...we felt utterly welcomed and at home! The Keys are a beautiful place, very relaxing and full of fantastic FRESH seafood! We had a day trip down to Key West which as totally novel. People describe that when America was formed, the country was shaken and all the nuts fell to the bottom (Key West). The town is an amusing mix of drunk Americans, incredible street performers and every kind of musician. We went to a fantastic place called the Duelling Piano Bar, where two men faced each other on grand pianos and played a huge array of Country and Rock hits. So much fun!

Cycling in the Florida Keys: bliss.

The awesome fun of the duelling piano bar

A Keys sunset

Speaking of great music, we are now in Nashville, Tennessee. Music City! We actually had some rental car plans implode and were meant to be in New Orleans at this point (with several hundred more dollars than we have now). However, it has turned out to be a a really positive turn of events. We are staying with a lovely young couple (friends of a friend who is the sister-in-law of friends of my parents! How's that for a connection!) who are country singers trying to establish themselves in the Nashville music scene. They are super friendly! Also, it turns out to be the week of the CMA's (Country Music Awards), so it's Nashville's biggest week of the year. Cowboy boots, cowboy hats and great country music abound. We turned up in jandals and were told with absolutely no hesitation that we would have to borrow some boots in order to function in this town!

After another two nights here in Nashville we'll head west to see Elvis in Memphis. We'll be camping next to Graceland...yeyah! 

Prerequisite cowboy boots for Nashville