15 000 km through the USA – part 3


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Hello everyone!

Here’s the third part of my American dream. (You can check out the first part here and the second one right here.)
So as soon as we left Salt Lake City in Utah, the temperature got really low. Instead of nice 30°C (85°F) we suddenly had to heat up the car and put on some sweaters. We drove though Idaho, but had no stops, because (sorry, Idaho) there is literally nothing. Our first stop in this part of the States was Grand Teton National Park. We stayed in this little cute town called Jackson, where everything looked like in the Alps. The mountains were absolutely glorious, not speaking about the waterfalls and lakes. We did some big hikes as well as little ones.

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We also visited a few really old wooden barns. I love the mountains behind them!

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On our first hike we saw a moose! It was about 20 meters away from us and it was the first wild moose we had seen in the States.

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On this hike we also spotted an animal called marmot. Quite cute but scary at the same time.

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This hike was about 6 miles roundtrip and it was the first time we got some rain and storms:( But it was still worth it, we saw a black bear from about 3 meters (yes, the safe distance is 100 m) and it scared the hell out of us (especially me). There was four of us, so he was probably scared as well.

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By this time we were about 2500 meters high, so all the views of the mountains, glaciers and lakes were really spectacular.

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The weather wasn’t perfect and it rained for a few hours, but we were equipped well, so we didn’t mind. At least there were no people on the trails, so we could observe the bears and moose.

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And after a 6-hour hike, we’re back on the road!

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Our second place to stay for a couple of days was Yellowstone National Park.

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As you all certainly know, Yellowstone is known for its springs, geysers , waterfalls, lakes, and muds. It is huge, so we had to spend 4 days here to see the most of it.

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After this amazing national park, we drove straight up to the state of Montana, where we spent most of our time in Glacier National Park. We hiked a lot, because all the glaciers and the turquoise lakes were situated really high in the mountains. The best hike was about 5 hours and got us to this lake. It was freaking cold even though it looks like a perfect swimming lake:)

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On the way back we spotted a female moose. She was standing not more than 3 meters from the path, so we could see her really clear. I almost wanted to touch her, that’s how cute she looked like!

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Another hike, another lake. Glacier National Park seems to be one huge turquoise lake. I guess my pictures are a bit monothematic, but oh my god, even if I dropped my camera and it accidentally took a picture, it would be beautiful!

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I loved how you could always see through the water. Cleaner than anything.

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And this is our Ford on one of the most famous roads in Glacier National Park, it’s called Going-to-the-sun Road and now I understand why. It goes through the whole park and it takes you to the very top of the mountains. Even though the temperature wasn’t lower than 15°C (60°F), there was snow everywhere.

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And one last black bear from the States. Did you know, that even they’re called black bears, their colour can vary from black though brown to blonde? So you never know if you see a grizzly or a black bear. What a mess.

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From Glacier we drove straight to Seattle, which was about an eight-hour drive (yea, exhausting). We spent the 4th of July here and did some more shopping for our further adventures in Canada. The fireworks were amazing!

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So this is about it. Our road trip around the States. I hope you liked at least the photos, but they of course don’t catch the atmosphere and nature as WE had a chance to see it.
When I was planning this journey, I thought how recreational it was going to be, but when I came back, I slept for almost two days. This is something huge for people who like action, who don’t mind walking the whole day with a heavy backpack, who would die for a good picture of a bear and who hate lying on a beach. This is what I call the best vacation, even if it’s not a vacation at all hahaha 🙂
Anyways, we said good-bye to my mom and Jane at the airport in Seattle, and me and Vojta continued to Canada!

So, STAY TUNED FOR OUR SUPER-ADVENTURES IN CANADA!
Next post coming up!

Love,
E.

<3