MOD – Palm Springs weekend

When our good friends from Las Vegas invited us to a MOD weekend in Palm Springs, we didn’t know what a MOD weekend was! Anyway this is why we travel, to experience something new, so of course we said yes and made reservations. Palm Springs is a desert city in California and is a Mecca for its mid-century modern architecture and design, or so we learnt. What is MOD you may be thinking, it is a weekend to celebrate all things mid century modern. The event runs from Thursday through to Sunday focusing on fashion, art, music, cocktails and architecture. The weekend featured special events with renowned artist SHAG (aka Josh Agle). Most people dress in the fashions of the period so we visited some thrift stores looking for suitable clothing for the event, which in itself was great fun.

The weekend consisted of great music, room parties, a fashion show, meeting new friends, a relaxed atmosphere and fun times. We would highly recommend MOD and we are thankful for the opportunity to experience something a little bit different, we are hoping to return in 2017.

San Diego – Too many glorious beaches and not enough flip flops

La Jolla

San Diego has the perfect climate, but you may find the locals reaching for a sweater if the temperature gets down to 60 degrees. We have been to San Diego in January, during the summer months and in October, the weather has always been sunny and warm. San Diego is very spread out and it’s difficult to recommend one area to stay for your first visit so I will just list a few of our favourite places.

Downtown and the Gaslamp district is home to many hotels to suit every budget, numerous restaurants, bars and rooftop bars. It’s a great place to spend an evening, we enjoyed Shout House and Moonshine Flats but there are many more to try out. We have stayed downtown a few times over the years and always enjoy being close to the entertainment. Within a few minutes walk of the Gaslamp is the waterfront Embarcadero, this is a great place to go for a run or to walk around the bay. You can explore the former battle ship the USS Midway or spend an afternoon browsing the cute little shops at Seaport Village. Movie fans will love the Kanas City BBQ Grill which was used for some of the bar scenes in the movie Top Gun, sit in the corner at the same table where Meg Ryan and Tom Cruise sat. Balboa Park is also close by and is home to the San Diego Zoo, museums and beautiful gardens.

Just a few minutes from downtown are Mission Bay, Mission Beach and Pacific Beach. One of our favourite things to do is to run along the 3 mile boardwalk by Mission and Pacific Beaches; you might see dolphins playing in the waves. It’s also a great place to go for weekend brunch (try World Famous, good food and nice view of the ocean) or try one of the rooftop bars to watch the sunset. We would like to stay at Crystal Pier next time we visit, you have amazing ocean views but you have to make reservations at least 6 months ahead.

You have to spend at least one afternoon in La Jolla, the coastline is made up of small rocky coves and un-spoilt beaches and the area has been used as a backdrop for many weddings. It is also a good place to watch seals relaxing in the sun and swimming in the waves. La Jolla village is home to art galleries, shops, hotels and good restaurants. We would recommend Brockton Villa for breakfast and George’s for lunch/dinner or a sunset cocktail.

Coronado Island is situated across the bay from downtown; it is home to the famous Hotel del Coronado. The hotel was built in 1888 and designated a National Historic Landmark; the hotel was featured in the movie Some Like It Hot with Marilyn Monroe and has hosted a number of celebrities over the years. If this is out of your price range, you can still walk around and even go for brunch.

I don’t think that we need to tell you that we love San Diego, it is a destination that we will always return to in the future and I already have our next trip planned out in my mind. We never seem to have enough time here as we are always sad to leave this special place.

The Crumps San Francisco Top 10

Golden Gate BridgeI Left my Heart in San Francisco and San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair) are just a couple of songs about the city. It’s one of our favourite cities on the west coast, the Golden Gate Bridge stands proudly across the bay connecting the Golden Gate National Recreation Area/Sausalito with San Francisco.

Here is a list of our top ten things to do in the city.

1) A trip to the once notorious Alcatraz prison which housed some of the most infamous criminals in history such as Al Capone, Machine Gun Kelly and Robert Stroud (The Birdman of Alcatraz) is a must. If you can, book your tickets in advance for the first boat of the day in order to avoid the crowds and experience the cell house with relative peace and quiet. You will want to allow at least 3-4 hours to take the cell house audio tour and to walk around the grounds. You also get great views back across to the city and of course the Golden Gate Bridge.

Alcatraz Island

2) Bike the Bridge, if you have enough time take the full day to do this. We picked up our bikes from Blazing Saddles near Union Square and biked all along the Embarcadero to Fisherman’s Wharf, through Aquatic Park, Fort Mason, the Marina and  the Presidio. We stopped for a coffee at the base of the bridge and enjoyed a fantastic view of the bridge and the ocean. We biked across the bridge stopping to take pictures and taking time to appreciate our surroundings. We arrived in the small charming town of Sausalito, parked our bikes (our butts were sore) and picked up a sandwich and sat watchin’ the ships roll in, then I watch em roll away again yeah, I’m sittin’ on the dock of the bay (as Otis Redding sang). We caught the ferry back and had a glass of wine on board watching the sunset over the bay, a perfect day.

3) Rent a little Yellow ‘Go Car’ and do your own city tour, the car has a GPS guide that talks to you with over 200 points of interest loaded into it. You can decided which points of the city you want to visit, you can even drive down Lombard Street, the car can go where buses and cars can’t go and you can even park the car and take a break.

4) A San Francisco tradition, you must ride a cable car and stand on the footplate as you go up and down the crazy hills in this city. We took the car from the Powell & Hyde turnaround point all the way to Union Square, try to do this early in the morning as the lines are long later in the day and you can wait up to 40 minutes.

5) Go and have a picnic on Baker Beach, you can sip your wine while watching the waves hitting the shore and you have a great view of the Golden Gate Bridge. Just be aware that the northern part of the beach is considered a nudist beach!

6) Take a drive up to Twin Peaks for an unobstructed and panoramic view across the city.

Downtown view from Twin Peaks
7) Spend an afternoon walking around the North Beach neighbourhood, head to Coit Tower to watch the sunset over the bridge, then go for dinner at one of the many restaurants in the area.

8) Pier 39 is very touristy but you have to spend an hour here, check out some of the shops, grab a coffee and watch the Sealions sunbathing and sitting on each other to find the best spot in the sun, very funny to watch them.

9) Haight-Ashbury is known for the hippie culture back in the day, Janis Joplin and the Grateful Dead lived here. It still has several vintage shops which are all worth a visit.

10) If you are a movie buff, a movie tour is the way to go as so many movies have been filmed in the city from Dirty Harry, Mrs. Doubtfire, The Rock, Bullitt and many many more.

Enjoy San Francisco, make the most of your time in this great city, take time to just sit and people watch.

Visiting Bend, Oregon

What does Bend Oregon have to offer?

Bend wasn’t on our list of places to visit but we met a great couple from Bend on our rafting trip back in May and decided we had to catch up with them before we headed back to the UK. Well if you haven’t been to Bend you should add it to your list of places to visit, but ssshh we don’t want everyone going and spoilng this special place.

Bend is a picturesque city, the outdoor parks and areas are all maintained to a high standard. There are no high rises, which gives Bend a very laid back, homely, calming feel. The area is surrounded by great outdoor options including hiking, mountain biking, kayaking and many more.

Bend offers a good choice of restaurants and bars, if you like whiskey you have to stop by the Stihl Whiskey bar and try a cocktail, oh and the sweet potato fries are to die for!

Another unique thing about Bend that we were introduced to was a house concert, I don’t know if this happens in other places but we hadn’t heard of this before. It is exactly as it sounds, a host opened up her home to locals/neighbours on a Saturday night to hear some music and make some new friends. Everyone donates $20 and takes food and a bottle of wine (like a pot luck). After dinner everyone sits down to listen to an artist perform their music, what a fantastic idea, it was a lovely evening. It’s a great way to meet new people and to listen to some new music.

Save the Goondocks

View from Ecola State Park

Goonies in Astoria and Cannon Beach – Goonies Never Say Die!

‘Hey you guys!’ doesn’t everyone love the Gooines? Well it’s one of my favourite movies and I couldn’t wait to get on the Goonie trail in Oregon. Our first stop was the old Clatsop County Jail (now the Oregon Film Museum) this is where the jail break scene was filmed at the beginning of the movie. The Museum wasn’t worth the $6 admission fee, there was only a couple of Goonie props and not much movie memorabilia, shame they haven’t got more exhibits from the movie. If you are on a budget save your money and just take your pictures outside the jail and by the Fratellis SUV parked outside complete with bullet holes. Across the road is the Flavel House museum where Mikey’s dad worked in the film.

Next stop the Goonie house, but unfortunately due to vandalism, trespassing and other issues visitors are now not allowed to walk up the driveway to the house, but you can still see the house from the riverwalk.

The highlight for me was a visit to Ecola State Park where the restaurant hideout set was built and you have an amazing view looking back at Haystack Rock and Cannon Beach. We then headed down the Hwy 101 to Cannon Beach to get a closer view on Haystack Rock and the beach where the Fratellis joined the beach race.

Visiting Seattle

Our first stop in the US was Seattle, Washington, wow the hotels were expensive here, so we decided to stay outside the city and take advantage of the excellent public transport the ‘Link Light Rail’ which took us right into downtown and a day pass was only $6.

Seattle has a great history and a great way to learn about the city’s past is to take the Bill Speidel’s Underground Tour. The tour takes you underground to view the city’s old streets and store fronts, the tunnels are full of history and character, you feel like you have gone back in time.

Another good way to get your bearings of the city is to take the free walking tour, this will give a good overview and you can decide where you would like to go back and spent some more time. You can spend hours walking around Pike Place public market, this is home to the very first Starbucks and there are great restaurants, so many stores offering everything you can think of from Cheese to souvenirs.

 

 

Las Vegas on a Budget?

 

Viva Las Vegas

Can the Crumps do Las Vegas on a budget?

We have visited Las Vegas many times over the years but never on a budget, we have enjoyed the expensive restaurants, the $20 cocktails in one of the many exotic lounges in Wynn and Bellagio. Could we go to Vegas and not blow the family nest egg?

This was the challenge for us, we would always book a nice hotel and of course the room had to have a strip view, this is Vegas after all. The first challenge is to find a hotel that isn’t charging you the resort fee, which is the biggest con in the history of Vegas! When the mob ran Vegas they didn’t charge a resort fee (Resort fee is a charge for wi-fi, gym, local calls) Translation ripping off the customer.

A hidden gem is the Royal Resort hotel, the hotel is just off strip, has a great restaurant, no resort fee and it doesn’t have a casino, which also helps if you are on a budget.

Now food and drink can be expensive in Vegas, we had a cool box so we were able to buy some food from Walgreens and stock up. Now me being me I just happened to have a blender with us to make Suzy’s special cocktails, he he. Instead of buying a Fat Tuesday slushy, make your own in the hotel room and wander around the strip with IMG_0999your frozen concoction in your red solo cup!! Also if you have a vehicle you can drive off the strip to a cheaper restaurant, places to try are Ellis Island Brewery and Lotus of Siam. If you fancy trying one of the buffets, I would head to the buffet 30 minutes before they stop serving Breakfast, pay for breakfast and wait for them to put the lunch out, or have breakfast and lunch. I would also recommend Earl of Sandwich in Planet Hollywood and Stripburger at Fashion Show mall.

If you like to gamble make sure you sign up to the players club in whichever resort you like to gamble in, it’s free to sign up and you will earn points on slots, table games, retail and food purchases. Your points can go towards free night’s accommodation or a free meal. You will also then receive email offers with discounted rates for future stays.

Now we always spend at least one night downtown, everything is cheaper down there from the drinks to the gambling. The Fremont Street Experience is a free light show and there is normally a good band playing. We used Uber to get around instead of paying for taxis, Uber was cheaper and each hotel has a designated pick up/drop off point for Uber so it’s hassle free.

Here’s a list of some websites I would use for discounts on meals, trips etc.

Restaurant.com
Groupon.com
Travelzoo.com

Jackcolton.com will tell you everything you need to know if you want to go clubbing, pool parties etc while you are in Vegas.
If you are a little crazy like us you may want to watch a Vegas movie before you head out to throw the dice, here’s a few of our favourites.

IMG_1003

Vegas Vacation
Hangover
Oceans 11
Honeymoon in Vegas

Remember the house always has the edge, only gamble what you can afford to lose and don’t get blinded by the glitter and the almighty dollar.

If you have any questions on Las Vegas, please contact us.

Canadian Rockies & Beyond

Canadian Rockies and beyond.

Peyto Lake

Canadian Rockies and beyond.

We started in Calgary and headed to Banff and the Icefields Parkway which has been referred to as “the back bone of the Canadian Rockies”. There are too many points of interest along this magnificent drive for us to list, but here are some of our favourites. Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Maligne Lake, Peyto Lake, Athabasca Falls, Mount Edith Cavell and Columbia Icefields. Mount Edith Cavell was my favourite, it was a short hike from the parking lot and you arrive at the lake where icebergs are floating (yes icebergs in August) they have fallen from Cavell and Angel glacier high above the lake. We used GyPSy guide while driving the parkway which is a talking GPS guided tour app of the area, it was like having your own tour guide in the car with you. The guide gave you history on the area and points of interest.

If you happen to visit in the peak season like we did be prepared for expensive accommodation and a lot of tourists all visiting the same areas, don’t let this put you off going in peak season just bring your patience with you. Banff and Jasper are cute little towns, great to spend an afternoon walking around the quaint shops and grabbing some lunch. If you have time take a look inside the iconic Fairmount Hotels at Lake Louise and Banff, they are grand hotels. If you can I would suggest you camp, it gives you a chance to feel immersed in the beauty of the Rockies. There are plenty places on route to stop and have a picnic too.

To escape the crowds try one of the many provincial parks on offer, Wells Gray Provincial Park near Clearwater B.C. is home to several waterfalls, lakes and hiking trails. Another great area was around Lillooet B.C. we had 3 bear sightings (didn’t see Goldie Locks though) in the area, and it was very exciting to watch a bear cross the road in front of our car! In Lillooet we camped at a free campground which was provided by B.C.Hydro, one of 7 free campgrounds that they have set up in the province. Anyway back to the parks, Joffre Lakes Provincial Park is 70km from Lillooet and the highlight is the trail leading to lower, middle and upper lakes. All 3 lakes are turquoise blue and have a backdrop of a glacier, great hike.

If you plan on heading to Vancouver, Whistler is a nice little town to visit and the Sea to Summit highway is a scenic drive.

Another town in B.C. we liked was Hope, it is surrounded by hills and the Fraser River runs through the town. It is also where the movie ‘First Blood’ was filmed back in 1981 and the local visitor guide has a map with the filming location used round the town, Richard had to visit every one of them and then watch the movie to compare his photos.

 

Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks

Lower falls on the Yellowstone river

Yellowstone National Park was the first National Park in the USA and you can see why. The park is huge; it spans an area of 3,468.4 square miles. Yellowstone is famous for the geysers, with Old Faithful and the Upper Geyser Basin being the most popular feature of the park. The park is full of wildlife from Elk to Bears; the park is truly a special place. You need at least a week to explore the different areas of the park and then you have the hundreds of hiking trails to get out on. We camped at Lewis Lake campground which is one of the first come first serve campsites. Yellowstone is a very busy park; it was like feeding time at the zoo in the cafes, I was happy to get back to our campsite at night to enjoy the quiet. Try to visit the park outside the busy summer months to get down on some of the crowds.

 

Lake McDonald – Glacier National Park

Our last stop in the US was Glacier National Park, now you might be thinking another National Park aren’t they all the same? Well I was thinking the same, after Yellowstone what else can Glacier offer? Glacier is absolutely stunning, the mountains still have snow on them, there are waterfalls streaming down the hills everywhere you look. The lakes are a turquoise colour and shimmer in the sunshine. You must travel on the Going-to-the- Sun Road, the views are stunning in every direction, but you will need to drive slowly the road twists and turns around the mountains. We did the Iceberg Lake hike, which is 9.8 miles round trip; the lake still has icebergs in July. We saw a grizzly bear and her cubs on the hike, amazing to watch them and a little scary too. Make sure you carry bear spray and send the husband first, he he. We loved Glacier National Park, what a great way to end our 3 months in the USA. Wow the USA has so much to offer if you like the outdoors.

The Beautiful Blue-Green Waterfalls of Havasupai

Havasu Falls
Havasu Falls

Havasupai means people of the blue-green waters. The waterfalls have been named in several magazines as one of the must see places in world and we would definitely agree with this statement but they forget to mention how remote this area is. Just to obtain a reservation for the campground is a tough task, you have to start ringing at the beginning of February, we had to enlist the help of my mother-in-law Barbara to call for us as we were in Brazil at the time, Barbara called 15-20 times a day for at least 1 week until she finally secured us a reservation. Calling from the UK also racked up an expensive phone bill!!!

At the Trailhead

From Peach Springs the trailhead is 66 miles away at the end of highway 18; it’s just a car park with restrooms and no water supply. We spent the night before the hike at the trailhead trying to sleep in the car, now when we first arrived we were worried that we were going to be the only crazy people sleeping in the car but over the next few hours several other cars pulled up. I was sat in the car in my penguin pj’s trying to go to sleep, madness! We didn’t get much sleep as people were coming and going till midnight then they start to get up from 3.30am to start their hike. We were up at 4am, a little grumpy from the lack of sleep but ready for the hike down.

The hike is 10 miles to the campground through Havasu Canyon which is subject to flash flooding. The hike down is an easy but long hike although you don’t get the vistas to entertain you like you do on the trails in Grand Canyon National Park. To be honest it was a boring hike, the only excitement was when the mules coming running by you or looking at some of the very unprepared hikers struggling along the trail. We arrived in the Supai village at 9am and checked in to the tourist office to obtain our camping pass and wristbands.

Your first views of the blue-green waters blow your mind, it really does look like you see in the pictures, they haven’t been enhanced. We passed Little/New Navajo Falls which were remodelled by the flash flooding in 2008 and then you are rewarded with Havasu falls, you have to see them to believe them; it’s like something out of a fairytale.

The hike down to Mooney falls is like an obstacle from the Tough Mudder course but it’s worth the effort, just take your time and focus on where you put your feet and hold on to the chains. We enjoyed swimming and cooling off in the waters, some people had inflatables to play on in the waters.

The time went by far too quickly and it was time for the 10 mile hike out, I can tell you it was a tough hike out, I could have done with checking in to a spa for a couple of days after this one! You can arrange for a mule to carry you and/or your pack in and out and there is an helicopter that will bring you out in 4 minutes which is a little quicker than the 5 hours it took us to hike out, but we are travelling on a budget so our poor legs had to carry us out, packs and all.

Was it worth the effort? Oh yes, this is one of most beautiful and remote places we have visited over the last 6 months. If you have this on your bucket list then start planning early and enjoy every second. Please show respect to the Havasupai Tribe, this is their land and they don’t have to let tourists visit.

Hiking Rim to Rim in Grand Canyon – North Rim to South Rim

At the Trailhead
At the Trailhead

This was our first backcountry experience and we were both a little bit nervous about it. You have to have a permit to camp in Grand Canyon and we faxed our request back in February while we were travelling in Brazil. When I received the congratulations email to confirm that we had secured camping spots my stomach turned over with excitement and fear. We weren’t confident that we could do Rim to Rim on our own but after doing the rafting trip and several other nights camping we felt we had to give it a shot, it’s hard to get permits and it was an opportunity too good to pass up. We purchased a small tent, sleeping mats and enough food for the 4 days and we looked like we were professional hikers/campers!

We spent the night before the the hike at De Motte campground which is a great little site about a 20 minute drive from the entrance to the parks north rim. The north rim of Grand Canyon is a world away from the south rim, it’s so much quieter and smaller but you still get the fantastic views.

Day 1 – We were up at 4am and on the trail at 6am, it was 6.8 miles down Roaring Springs Canyon to Cottonwood campground. The North Kaibab Trailhead starts in forest and you could think you were in the Rockies not the Canyon. Hiking downhill is tough on your joints so we took it slow and admired the views as we went. We arrived at Cottonwood at 10.30 and spent the afternoon cooling off in the creek, we were ready for bed by 8pm!

Day 2 – All packed up, we hit the trail at 5.45am, today’s hike was relatively flat walking along the Bright Angel Creek the entire way. We stopped off at Ribbon Falls which was like being in an enchanted forest. We arrived at Bright Angel Campground at 10am and set up camp right by the creek. It was so bloody hot at the bottom of the Canyon; it was still 100 degrees at 8pm at night! Time to visit Phantom Ranch and sample some chilled lemonade, which tasted like expensive champagne after the hike. Phantom Ranch is air-conditioned and is a great place to escape the heat, you can also send postcards from here and they are carried out by the mule train, a fun thing to do. We then head to the Colorado River and spent a couple of hours at Boat Beach watching the river, washing our socks and cooling down. We got chatting to a group of river guides at the beach and we relived our rafting trip for a while, one of the guides gave us a couple of beers. Great afternoon by the river, we headed back as we had our steak dinner booked at Phantom Ranch. The steak dinner is served at 5pm and is served family style dining, the dinner tasted amazing after eating trail mix and freeze dried food for 2 days.

Day 3 – Up at 4.30am, moving a bit slower today as we  didn’t get much sleep due to the heat. Hit the trail at 6.20am and followed the river for the first 1.8 miles, I love being by the river, there is something very special about being at the bottom of Grand Canyon by the mighty Colorado river. We took our first break at Pipe Creek beach which was where the rafting company dropped us off a few weeks ago. Great to be back at the beach, we spent 50 minutes here, again reminiscing over our rafting trip. Time to start hiking out of the Canyon; it was 4.5 miles to Indian Garden campground, we arrived at 9.30am. Our pitch was in the shade and it was about 20 degrees cooler than Bright Angel Campground, yeah it was time for a nap and a well earned rest.

Just after the sun had gone behind some rocks Richard walked up to the toilet block which was only about 50yds from our tent, he heard a hissing/rattling sound which stopped him dead in his tracks and yes he was 5ft from a Diamondback rattlesnake, it raised up and looked at him so he turned around and reported the sighting to the ranger who went over to look with some other campers, the snake circled around and then went back into the bush, after this we were more careful when we were walking around. At around 6pm we did the 3 mile roundtrip hike to Plateau Point, wow the view from here, you get a 360 degree of the canyon, including the river. What a place to watch the sunset, breathtaking.

Day 4 – Final day of our Rim to Rim hike. Time for the hardest part of the hike 4.5 miles (3040ft elevation) up the Bright Angel trail. We started at 5.30am trying to beat the sun; we rested at each resthouse on the way up and made it to the south rim at 8.50am. The last 1.5 mile is a killer, carrying a backpack in the sun you are like one of the mules. The Crumps had completed rim to rim, how did that happen, very impressed with ourselves. Time to find a shower, ice cream, pizza and wine in that order. The trans-canyon shuttle picked us up at the Bright Angel Lodge at 1.30pm and transported us over the 200 miles back to the north rim to collect our car.

Where the movies are filmed – Moab, Utah

Dead Horse Point at Dead Horse Point State Park
Dead Horse Point at Dead Horse Point State Park

Moab is in eastern Utah and is home to Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park and Dead Horse State Park. Driving along I-70 you wonder if you are still on planet earth or if you have landed on Mars, the road twists and turns through the red rocks for miles.

Moab has a lot to offer from hiking, biking, raftering and off-road adventures. We visited Canyonlands National Park and Dead Horse Point State Park, my favourite spot is Dead Horse Point overlook, it’s like a mini Grand Canyon.  There is a long list of movies that have used Moab has a backdrop and you can see why, it’s like being in a western movie and you expect to see John Wayne riding by on his horse, the movie ‘Rio Grande’ was filmed at Red Cliffs Lodge (formerly Whites Ranch).

Red Cliffs Lodge is a great place to stay or if you are travelling on a budget, just visit the movie museum. We went for dinner overlooking the Colorado River and the atmosphere and service was outstanding.

CMA Festival 2016 – Nashville

Fun in Tootsies
Good times in Tootsies

Why are 2 brits at CMA fest, well we started listening to Country music around 10 years ago now and it all started from us visiting North America on holiday and hearing different country songs playing in bars or on the radio. Our first songs were ‘Friends in Low Places’ by Garth Brooks and ‘I love this bar’ by the one and only Toby Keith, this was the start of our love for Country music. I have played and talked about cowboys so much to my two brothers Steve and Stuart that they have finally given in and started listening to some country music and they even went to see Kip Moore a few months ago, see nagging does work!

Nashville is one of my favourite cites and CMA fest was on my bucket list, we arrived in Nashville 2 days before the official start of the festival and already there were several events taking place, our first event was held at the Marathon Music Works hosted by Pandora Country. We lined up from 5pm waiting for the doors to open at 6.30pm, hoping to be in the 1500 to get free admission, yeah we made it in! Kip Moore one of my favourite artists was playing and to make the night even better it was open bar all night, are you freaking kidding me right now, to say I was excited was an understatement! Kip and Tyler Farr rocked the house and we took full advantage of the open bar, what a great start to the festival. I was happy enough already I could go home now and feel like I had a great festival!

As newbie’s to the festival we were overwhelmed and sometimes a bit lost as to what was going on and where or if you need separate tickets for meet and greets etc. Each day the music starts around 10am and finishes up with the nightly concerts at Nissan Stadium, 2 full days in and we were exhausted but you have to make the most of your time here. Highlights for us were of course Kip Moore, Eric Church, Tyler Farr, Sara Evans, Chris Young, CAM singing with Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, Keith Urban, Nitty Gitty Dirty Band singing Fishin’ in the dark and much more.

It was nearly 100 degrees in the sun some days and some afternoons we headed to the bars along ‘Broadway’ to enjoy the air-conditioning, you didn’t feel like you were missing out on the music because each Honky Tonk had a band playing our favourite country songs. At the end of the festival even though we were exhausted and needed a rest we were both sad that it had come to an end and it was time to leave Music City behind. Nashville is a fun city, great atmosphere, great people and the best country music.

Living in England you don’t walk into a bar at the weekend and hear Kip Moore, Toby Keith, Garth Brooks or any other country songs being played so to visit somewhere like Nashville where you get to hear all your tunes blows us away. Nashville will always be in our hearts and we will always return to this city. Now we just need to listen to some of the older traditional artists like George Jones, Merle Haggard and all the other greats that really set the bar high for all the new country artists. Thank you CMA fest we had a blast, our trip just seems to be getting better and better by each destination, now it’s time to hang up our cowboy boots and get out our hiking boots for the next few days.

Camping in Yosemite National Park

The famous Tunnel View
The famous Tunnel View

Yosemite National Park is in California and covers an area of 747,956 acres. We spent 6 wonderful nights camping at ‘Camp 4’ in the Park, which is a first come first severed campground. Your spot includes your own Bear proof locker to store all your food, there are no showers on the campground but you can head over to Housekeeping Camp to use the showers there for $5.

To get the best experience of what the park has to offer you need to get out on the trails and lose the hordes of tourists that visit the valley on a daily basis. Our favourite hike was the Mist Trail which was a 7 mile round trip hike following the river and hiking by Vernal Falls to the top of Nevada Falls, depending on the wind direction you can get a free shower, which is a bonus for us campers! Another great hike is to the top of Upper Yosemite Falls, this is a strenuous hike but great views from the top. You could spend weeks exploring the park; there are so many hiking trails, heaven for people that like the great outdoors.

There is nothing better in life than being sat around a campfire at night, surrounded by large pine trees and looking up the granite rock shining in the moonlight. Everything you need in life is right there, nothing materialistic, just back to basic nature.

Now rant time, national parks are there for everyone to enjoy, which yes is a good thing, but should idiots be in the parks? Idiots that throw rubbish out of their car window as they drive through the park! Idiots that drink too much and then throw up all over the floor of restrooms! Idiots that feed the wildlife and then the idiots who drive above the speed limits through the park endangering the lives of wildlife that may be crossing the roads. We saw them all so if you are one of these people please don’t visit the parks until you have learned some respect!

Rafting the Upper 89 miles of Grand Canyon

 

I don’t know how best to describe our experience in the Grand Canyon, my words and pictures will not do it justice so here’s a poem to set the stage. Steve our guide read this to us before we started one of our days’s on the river.

Go There
Anything you have read about the Grand Canyon is a lie
Language falters and dies before the fact
The experience is inexpressible in words
The Grand Canyon is its own language
Written across space, causality and time
See how puny these words are
Do not believe them
Go there

– Amil Quayle. Grand Canyon and Other Selected Poem

In 2007 the first time that we did a small hike down the South Kaibab Trail to Skeleton point I knew that I wanted to be on the river and before I had even got home I was already researching how to get onto the river!

We finally booked our trip over 18 months ago, we decided to do the 5 night/6 day rafting the upper canyon. At the time of making the reservation we had never camped or been white water rafting before, this was going to be a tester of what the outdoors has to offer to us newbie’s.

The days leading up to the start of our trip I started to feel nervous and excited, I was nervous about the rapids and falling out of the boat but it’s just like being on the log flume at the fair right? I was excited to be on the river and to be surrounded by the canyon.

May 14th, a Saturday morning we arrived at Lee’s Ferry which was our launch site. Our 6 boats were lined up waiting to go, Richard commented “I thought we were on bigger boats” Oh yes so did I. The boats did look small compared to the bigger motorized boat lined up next to ours,  I do remember when we booked that I didn’t want the motorized trip, I wanted more of an adventure, I really should pay more attention to these details!

Over the next 5 days we had the best adventure of our lives! Each morning we would be woken at dawn with the coffee call, it was such a magical time of the day in the canyon, the sun was just coming up, it wasn’t too hot and the river was right there just doing it’s thing. We spent the days lazing on the boats through the calm parts of the river looking up in amazement as the canyon seemed to reach for the sky. Then you would hear the thunder of the white water ahead, here we go, there is a rapid around the corner, we would hold on as we prepared to go down/through the white water. It didn’t matter if you were in the front or the back of the boat, the water would smack into you, it was exhilarating and bloody freezing.  Just watching the sheer power of the water hitting the surrounding rocks and bouncing our boat around was thrilling, this is Mother Nature at its best.

We had time to do some side hikes, this is when you start to realise the massive scale of the canyon and how dangerous it can be out there if you don’t know what you are doing, luckily for us we had a great team of guides. Each evening we would set up camp right by the river, the guides would prepare dinner while we had a bath in river and then sit with a glass of wine chatting with our new friends about our day on the river. One of my favourite times of the day was falling asleep and waking up listening to the sound of the river. I feel emotional writing this, I already miss being by the river, the new friends we have made and I know we will be back to do the lower canyon or even the full canyon. Grand Canyon is a special magical place it captures your heart and changes you. For the true experience see it from the river, we did our trip with AZraft and we would highly recommend them.

On day 6 it was time to say goodbye to our new friends and the river, we were hiking out of the canyon up the Bright Angel Trail to the south rim. We were dropped off at Pipe Creek and at 7.30am and we started up the trial, it was a tough but rewarding hike and we made it out just after 1pm. I guess now we can call ourselves hikers and campers because we survived and loved our time in Grand Canyon.

Historic Route 66 – The Mother Road

IMG_0187Route 66 originally ran from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California and covered 2448 miles. Route 66 became one of the most famous roads in the USA, we all know the song (get your kicks on) Route 66!!

When Highway 40 was built Route 66 was bypassed and local family businesses lost passing trade. Many businesses closed and some even moved closer to the new highway in order to survive. Now Historic Route 66 is making a comeback, more and more people are coming to the US to travel this iconic road. Some of the motels, mom and pop diners and strange but funky things that make Route 66 are still open and others are being restored.

We haven’t really got the time to travel the whole of Route 66 but we are dipping in and out where we can. Some of highlights along the Mother Road that we liked are the Worlds Biggest Rocking Chair, The Blue Whale, Cadillac Ranch, old gas station and of course you have to visit the Big Texan for a steak! We will be back on Route 66 throughout the trip and will add more pictures as we go.

 

 

Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas

On our road trip South into Texas a stopover in Dallas was a must for me having been intrigued by the events that happened that day in Dealey Plaza back in 1963 since I was at school.

The assassination of President John F Kennedy has fascinated the public for over 50 years, was Oswald the lone gunman as first thought, was there a second shooter from the Grassy Knoll, the conspiracy theories and questions are still being discussed today.

We took the DART light rail train to downtown and got off at Union Station which is only a short walk away from Dealey Plaza, and as we approached it the infamous former Texas School Book Depository Building on Elm Street came into view and it was a surreal feeling to finally see it in person, I started to get Goosebumps and I sort of had a WOW feeling come over me as I looked up towards the 6th floor corner window. To the left was Dealey Plaza, we stopped and looked over at the Bryan Pergola and the Grassy Knoll which although it was the first time seeing them they seemed so familiar, we were early for our tour so we spent 15 minutes taking some pictures and just taking in where we were and the events that had happened that day.

The tour of the museum is on the 6th floor of the book depository building, it’s a self guided audio tour with information of the Kennedy presidency, the events of the fateful day and the following investigations and conspiracy theories. The corner of the 6th floor where Oswald was positioned was behind glass screens to preserve the area but the window was clearly visible and amazing to see and I sneaked a photo which is not allowed.

After the tour we went back out into Dealey Plaza to take some more photos from every angle to try and fully capture the experience, sometimes just standing and looking around in amazement that I had finally managed to visit this historic place.

I was even able to stand on the same concrete pedestal where Abraham Zapruder stood and take my own video footage along Elm Street of the route the Presidential motorcade took.

 

Nashville

Our first stop in the USA was one of my favourite cities, Nashville also known as Music City. This is the place to visit if you love music, yes a lot of it is country music but you can also find Blues, Bluegrass, Rock n Roll and more. The Honky Tonks on Boardway have around 40 live bands playing each day from 10.30am till 3am the following the day, you could be watching the next big thing.

Away from the downtown area there plenty of other attractions such as the Bluebird Cafe which hosts twice nightly intimate shows by some of Nashville’s new and established singer songwriters. We were lucky enough to attend the show, In The Round with Erik Dylan, Kristen Kelly, Jimmy Stanley and Danny Myrick. We loved Erik’s new single Pink Flamingos and we got to meet him after the show.

We spent one day visiting Loveless Cafe which offers great value typical Southern food, famous for its biscuits and the Belle Meade Plantation and stables founded in 1807, it was one of the largest thoroughbred horse farms in the South covering 5400 acres where 13 of the last Kentucky Derby winners can be traced back to.

Along with the Country Music Hall of Fame, historic RCA studio B and the Grand Ole Opry, Nashville is a must on any music lovers bucket list. We will be back in June for the 4 day CMA Festival, very excited!!

The Crumps final thought

As our 3 months in South America come to a close, we look back with happy memories of our adventure. It was more than I had hoped for and we will be back sometime in the future.

Some Statistics
6 countries visited
8570 miles travelled (all by bus)
220 hours in transit (all by bus)

Things we will miss about South America
– Waking up to a new adventure everyday
– Summertime in January
– Learning about new cultures
– Pisco sours
– Tasting local wines and food
– Meeting new interesting people
– Walking around local markets

Things we won’t miss about South America
– Showers, do we have hot water or not? 1 minute it burns your arse the next its freezing!
– Smelling of sulphur after you have had a shower
– Stomach cramps – is it the food, the water, who fricking knows!
– Overnight buses
– Lost in translation, you order an omelette and get a fried egg!
– Touts trying to sell you everything and anything
– The smell of piss on some of the streets
– South America breakfast – bread that is like cardboard!

Classic Inca Trail Expedition to Machu Picchu

Hiking the Classic Inca trial had been on my Bucket list for over 10 years and it didn’t disappoint, it was the highlight of our 3 months in South America.

We picked Alpaca Expeditions to do the hike with, they were recommended by a friend, have great reviews on Tripadvisor and they care about their porter’s welfare. The night before our trek we had a briefing at the office to go through the logistics, meet the other hikers and meet our guides.

We felt excited but nervous at the same time, we haven’t done this type of adventure before, and we aren’t really campers or hikers! Anyway our green duffel bags were packed and the alarm was set for 3.45am, yes that’s correct they were picking us up at 4.20 in the morning. We were awake before the alarm, not sure if that was the excitement or the fact that my stomach was not so good. I won’t go into too much detail about the hike, but here’s a link to our itinerary.

The hike was tougher than we thought it would be, there were a lot of bloody steps and you are hiking at altitude. The views all the way along the hike through the Sacred Valley were spectacular, as Ferris Bueller said Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it’

Our guide Rosel Calderon has a true passion for his country and that of his ancestors, a huge smile would appear on his face every time he spoke to the group about the history and meaning of the different sites along the trail, our chef Walter and team of porter’s (nicknamed The Green Machine) were amazing. We had some of the best food during the trek, better than we had had throughout South America. The porters were running past us up the mountain carrying 25kg each and some of them were just wearing sandals. We arrived at our campsite’s each evening to our tents and sleeping bags already set up and our dinner not far behind.  We were all in bed by 8pm, 2 mornings we were up at 5am and the last morning we were up before 3am. Needless to say we were exhausted at the end of our trip and needed a few days to recover and sleep!

I was emotional when we reached the Sun Gate and got our first look at Machu Picchu, this enchanting site was home to between 700-800 people and it’s one of the largest Inca sites to be discovered. It’s strange to think that there could be more Inca sites hidden under the vast forests that overgrow the terraced hillsides.

We spent the day walking around the ruins, trying to image how they lived on this site. I didn’t want to leave, I didn’t want this adventure to be over, it had been a true ‘once in a lifetime experience’ and considering we weren’t hikers or campers we had conquered the 42 km hike and survived without showers for 4 days. Now what will the next adventure be? We have a few things up our sleeves. Hehe.

Lake Titicaca – Copacabana and Puno

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The lake straddles Bolivia and Peru; it is the largest high altitude body of water in the world at an elevation of 3812 meters above sea level, 284 metres deep and more than 8500 square kilometres in area.

We spent 3 nights on the Bolivian side in Copacabana, staying at the fantastic Hostal Las Olas. We had a suite overlooking the lake and I’m little ashamed to say that we didn’t even visit Isla del Sol, all we did was chill out and enjoy the best accommodation we have had during our journey through South America.

However during our 2 nights in Puno on the Peruvian side we did visit the floating island of Uros and Amantani Island on a very touristy boat trip. Uros is a group of around 44 islands made from floating reed beds, the island we visited had 7 families living there. The original purpose was defensive and they still have the watchtowers on the island made from the reeds. Amantani is a fixed island and home to Quechua speakers. Around 4000 people live on the island and still wear traditional dress and follow ancient local customs. There are no cars on the island and all the agriculture is done by hand.

Tips – In Copacabana go to El Condor and The Eagle for a great breakfast and travel tips from Barry the owner.
In Puno try the restaurant Balconies de Puno for great food and a free traditional dance show.

Interesting, Weird and Wonderful La Paz

La Paz is the highest capital city in the world; it is situated at 3500 metres above sea level and lies in a bowl like canyon. It is a city with a colourful side, it looks like a normal busy city but when you start to explore you realise there is a lot of weird and wonderful aspects to La paz.

San Pedro prison is ran by the inmates for the inmates, there are no guards inside and only 15 guarding the perimeter on the outside. The prisoners are producing some of the best cocaine in South America and ironically drug production and trafficking are why they are in San Pedro in the first place!  The prison was built to house 600 inmates but now houses over 2000 prisoners and their families, the prisoners have to buy their cells; the wealth ones have cells like a studio apartment. They also run businesses, ranging from cafes and hairdressers to shopkeepers.

There used to be tours of prison and I’m sure they still exist if you find the right contact, the book ‘Marching Powder’ written by Rusty Young describes the experiences of the British inmate Thomas McFadden who became known for offering prison tours to tourists.

Next up is the Witches Market, we were told not to take pictures unless you buy something or ask permission and of course you abide by these rules, these are witches remember and not the fun ones like in Bewitched!! Anyway locals buy everything they need for offerings to Pacha Mama (Mother Earth). For a new building, a dried llama foetus should be buried in the foundations. Apparently these llamas aren’t slaughtered in the womb, but are ones that die of natural causes early after being born or are miscarried due to the cold weather in the mountains.

Ok so if the Witches Market didn’t freak you out let me tell you about the urban legend where Pacha Mama requires a human sacrifice for large new constructions. The story goes that builders will befriend a homeless person, get them very drunk until they pass out and then bury them alive in the foundations, so no alcohol for me tonight, home to bed early is the safest option. Apparently human remains have been found while excavating old building sites.

We only had 2 short days in La Paz but we would have loved to have had more time to explore, it’s a city is full of colour and everyone we met was friendly, even the witches. La Paz is the kind of place that makes you glad you are a traveller, to learn different cultures and embrace other beliefs is a truly magical experience.