The Big Apple, the City that never sleeps... this is New York. Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Hudson River, Wall Street, Times Square, Ground Zero, Fifth Avenue, Chinatown and Little Italy, Grand Central Station, Madison Square Garden, Broadway and 42nd Street... this is New York.
We are on the way, exploring the City. Day after day. North to south, east to west. We have the weather on our side and the sun shines in a blue sky.
This is the happy start of sixty days 'on the road', crossing the USA. There is no better City to start with.
Central Park
Times Square
City's skytop terrace in front of the Empire State Building
Statue of Liberty
Washington DC |
June 23rd |
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We are on the road! We got the rental car on JFK Airport New York three days ago. Since then we ride down south.
Our first stop was Philadelphia, home of the "Liberty Bell", way smaller than we had expected. Mark and Kelly hostet us again in Margate (Atlantic City) and we spent a day on the beach and checked the casinos.
We went to Baltimore after a short stop in Ocean City. We spend some hours, walking at Baltimore harbour before we reached Washington DC, Capitol of the United States of Amarika in the early evening.
We went to a chinese restaurant for dinner, celebrating Lindas' birthday.
Washington is hot! We walk a marathon distance every day. Unfortunately, Wasshington is just another City. "The only white thing in Washington is the White House" (Linda). Can't comment that!!!
We look forward leaving the City area and going down south.
Baltimore harbour
"The White House"
"Reflecting Pool" and "Washington Monument"
"The Capitol"
Miami Beach |
June 29th |
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Some days are gone since the last entry and we are some hundred miles further south. After leaving the capitol we passed Richmond on our way into the Appalachian Mountains. We followed the "Blue Rich Parkway" for one and a half days before returning to the coast.
I tried myself as Tarzan and climbed up a palmtree (50 cm) It took some hours to find all the small spires, drilled in my feet and fingers.
We survived most of the dangerous animals along the way (Warnings: Bears, Snakes, Crocodiles), the moskitos almost killes us while pitching the tent near a river.
We crossed the nature reservoir of "Cape Canaveral" but didn't get close to the airbase. We did get close to the "Kennedy Space Center" but our budget stopped us at the gate.
Going south, we crossed some of the worlds' most famous beaches: St. Augustine Beach, Daytona Beach, Cocoa Beach, Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale.
With entering Florida after more than 2000 Miles (over 3200 km) we arrived in the ninth State. With night temperatures up to 22°C and five nights of camping we are happy to stay in a beachhotel with pool.
Swimmingstop in Richmond
Beachcamping
Welcome to Miami
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Walt Disney World, Florida |
July 5th |
The most southern Point of Continental- USA is in Key West. It is just 90 miles ( 144 km ) to Cuba. In tropical temperatures we prefered a hostel instead of camping.
The Everglades are an unique ecosystem. If you think of the Everglades, you think of "Airboats" (flat bottom- boats with a big fan in the back). The truth is: These boats ar forbiden in the "Everglades Nationalpark". Outside the park there are different spots to take a ride. We went to the "Alligatorfarm" where you can also find snakes and Alligatores.
Arriving in the "Everglades Nationalpark" fences were gone. There are more than 700 animal species living here. After meeting a lazy turtle, a Alligator crossed our trek. I've never seen someone running as fast as Linda did in this moment.
After a night at a truckstop we entered the "land where dreams come true".
The Walt Disney Park is the Worlds biggest resortpark. You can find four themeparks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom) two waterparks, six golfcourses, a bunch of hotels and a "Downtown Disney" Entertainmentdistrict.
For me, the fun already ended at the tickecentre but this is the point it starts for Disney.
We expected a lot by buying daytickets for 120 US Dollar per person. We did three parks in 14 hours. Terror of Tower, Indianer Jones Stuntshow, Disney Parade, Future World, and, of course Cinderella Castle were some of the stations of that day.
After another day at "Blizzard Beach" waterpark our pockets are empty and the disire for fun is covered. We are going west.
Airboat, Everglades
Alligator, Everglades
Cinderella Castle, Walt Disney World
Dallas, Texas |
July 10th |
A bad news: There is no "Greenbow" in Alabama. So, we cancelled a meeting with Forest Gump.
Crossing the swamps to the west, we stayed near the 'Gulf of Mexico'. After allogators and turtles we can add small watersnakes and pink pelicans. Taking a ferry, we were guarded by three dolphins.
The coaststreet brought us right into the wild west. The stay in New Orleans was a little bit short. We had a problem in Housten, the Space Center was already closed by the time we left downtown.
Dallas, two events changed the history. We went to both spots.
John F. Kennedy was shot on November 22nd 1963. The shot was fired out of the sixt floor of a warehouse in elmstreet. Today, it is the JFK museum.
Who shot J.R.? The orginal 'Southfolk Ranch' is 20 miles outside Dallas.
Baseball: Dallas Texas Rangers - Los Angeles Angels
Southfolk Ranch, Dallas
Elmstreet, Dallas
El Paso, Texas |
July 16th |
What is the wild west without a Cowboy Rodeo? We went to a Rodeonight in Fort Worth/ Texas. Two hours of Cowboys, horses, cows and a clown.
On "Route 66" we went to Amarillo and Santa Fe.
The first Atomic Bomb was invented in Los Alamos and tested on "Trinity Site" in the desert of New Mexico.
Lincoln is famous for "Billy the Kid". He broke out of jail and killed the sheriff in 1881.
We met Paul Price who told us some storys about the region and the night of july 4th 1947. We found his name in the Rosswell UFO museum.
In Rosswell, the legend became true. You caqn find souveniers, UFO Parking lots, ect.
In the Calsbad Caverns we joined 2.5 million bads at their nightly flight. The next morning we discovered the caves in a three kilometer hike.
Back on the surface, Linda found a skunk, wich made here running into a cactus field. You can imagine the results :-)
In El Paso we are close to the mexican border. Time to leave the country for the first time.
Oldest house in the US, Santa Fe
Cadilac Ranch, Route 66, Amarillo
Las Vegas, Nevada |
July 23rd |
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The Grand Canyon... awesome!
After one month in the car we took our hikingshoesand went down, exploring the Grand Canyon. The first leg is a 4.5 miles trail, going 4380 feet down, into the Canyon.
After 9.5 miles (15 km) on the first day we reached the Colorado River.
With nightly temperatures over 40°C the tent becomes an oven.
We started at 5:30 o'clock the next morning to be faster than the sun. ... But don't forget, it goes uphill.
Cruising Route 66 from Colorado to Nevada we had 50°C in the desert before entering Las Vegas.
Grand Canyon and Colorado River
Break at bei 40°C (100°F)
Route 66
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming |
August 6th |
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Time went by since my last entry...
The Hoover Damm, more than 210 meter high, is located outside of Las Vegas. A stopover to the highly secured "Area 51" in the Nevada desert.
In the North, San Diego is the worlds' busiest border and we crossed to Mexico, again.
After cruissing Route 66 now we did highway 1, better known as Pan Americana, the main connection between Alaska and Chile.
We went up to Los Angeles. Unfortually we didn't become a Movi Star.
We decided to follow the Pan Americana to Alaska, wich a a detour of mor than 1000 miles (1600 km).
I sadly had to cancel a meeting with my extrawheel sponsor because we ran out of time.
The Pan Americana between LA und San Francisco is like a bicycle mainstreet. We met more than onehundret cyclists.
San Francisco clocked with Cable Cars, Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge (also Hgw 1).
Cruising along the wild pacific coast brought us right into the Redwood Forest with trees of a hights of one hundret meter.
Seattle was the last US stop before crossing the border into Canada near Vancuver. To Alaska were more than 1500 km more to go.
It took two days. ALASKA, we made it. After passport stamp, some pictures and one night we went back, 1500 km.
Crossing the Rocky Mountains we went to Jasper, Banff and Calgary befor returning to the USA. Crossing the border was not easy this time. Two borderguards didn't belive our travelstory and searched our car before opening the gate.
Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas
Area 51, Nevada desert
Welcome to Mexiko
World famous!
Drive- Thru Tree, 105 meter, 2400 years
The 49st State
Rocky Mountains Canada
Black Bear, Rocky Mountains Canada
Niagara Falls, Canada |
August 13th |
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We have been to Yellowstone Nationalpark, home of Yogi bear. beside bears, bisons were our next neighbours.
Next, we crossed a very long stretch of grasland with very few highlights. Little Big Horn and Mount Rushmore were on the way.
We spent a night at the biggest trucksop in the world in the car, of course.
Next stop was Chicago, just 350 km away. The Sears Tower is with 527 meter the highest building in Northamerica (highest in the world until 1996). Seen from above we can say: "it is high"!
We are back in Canada, again. This time we cruise the Niagara falls. There are 1000 km more to go back to New York City in the last days of the trip.
Hot Springs, Yellowstone Nationalpark
Bison next to the street
Mount Rushmore
Chicago
"In" the Niagara Falls
New York City |
17. August |
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WE are back in the City where everything began. After two month of travelling we stay at JFK Airport New York.
In 60 days we did more than 25.000 km/ 16.000 miles throught 28 US states (incl. Alaska), three kanadian states and Mexico.
It is the last call for Linda, she's flying back home. I'll change the four wheels to two and cycle down south.
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