Back from the road

I am back from THE ROAD TRIP. When I left California last Saturday, somebody asked me when I would be back. My answer was "clear": I did not know. I only knew my way headed West, to Utah. I had heard stories and seen photos of extraordinary beauty and I wanted to see it by myself. Everything was short. Utah is THE PLACE. I doubt there are many regions on Earth which are as beautiful as Southern Utah: 5 National Parks -- Zion / Bryce Canyon/ Capitol Reef / Canyonlands / Arches, plus many National Monuments and State Parks, may sound like a lot... but actually, all the region should be a huge national park!! Driving there is a pleasure. Miles and miles of uninhabited and pristine deserts. Wild nature in pure state. After admiring the geological wonders of Utah, I felt my trip was not over. I wanted to see the first National Park in the world. The place that made human beings started considering we had to protect certain areas in the world, worth preserving for future generations. Such a place must be a nice place -- I thought... The place is the world-famous Yellowstone. Again, the place was much more awe inspiring than I could have possibly ever imagined: wild life (bears, bison, moose...) + brutal nature (geysers, boiling pools...) + beautiful scenery (Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Yellowstone lake...). It simply has it all... and MORE!! Finally, on my way back to California, I stopped by Great Basin NP, an alpine ecosystem in the middle of the Nevada Desert!! with beautiful caves included!

This is my trip on the map:



In total, I drove 3550 miles (yes... 5713 km...), visited 8 National Parks, 3 National Monuments, 2 State Parks, 1 Navajo Nation Monument; slept 4 days in Camp Grounds, 2 days in my car and 1 day in a hostel (my only bed in 8 days!!); took 1600 photos (after deleting many...); and hiked around 5-6 hours every day... NOW, I AM DEAD> But I still have nice images in my retina. ;)

Some nice panoramas to show to you what this blog will be about in the coming days, weeks... Photos of absolute beauty of the American West:

- Canyonlands (Island on the Sky region):



- Driving in Utah:



- Monument Valley:



- Me at Delicate Arch, one of the symbols of Utah:



- Grand Teton NP in Wyoming



- Unnatural colors in Yellowstone pools



- Geysers in action


And strange animals only to be found in North America:


And last but not least, some wonderful caves in the middle of the Nevada desert!



That will be it!! It is going to take a while to describe these places, but I can guarantee you will like them! ;)