Belize: Belize City and Placencia
Our time in Belize was primarily in the southern portion of the country, near Placencia. Here we relaxed at our beachfront bungalow and took a scuba diving lesson.
Guatemala: Tikal
Tikal is one of the major sites of Mayan civilization, inhabited from the 6th century B.C. to the 10th century A.D. We spent three days viewing this and other ruins in the vicinity.
4×4 Off-Road Adventure in Death Valley National Park
Death Valley National Park is known for being remote and harsh. We took a 4×4 vehicle trip in April 2006 that packed in many of the iconic sights of Death Valley with 270 miles of off-road travel to the most remote and varied parts of the park.
Death Valley: Badwater, Artists Palette, Zabriskie Point
We spent the first day of our 4×4 off-road trip through Death Valley National Park in the south side of the park. After visiting Saratoga Springs, we joined the main road to see Artists Palette, Badwater from Dante’s Peak and Zabriskie Point.
Death Valley: Scotty’s Castle and Eureka Dunes
Our visit to the north portion of Death Valley National Park included a tour of the historic Scotty’s Castle and a 4×4 drive to Eureka Dunes. We enjoyed the solitude and beauty of the sand dunes as we explored them and camped there at night.
Death Valley: The Racetrack and Hunter Mountain
The last portion of the trip to Death Valley was spent in some of the most remote parts of the national park. We visited The Racetrack, exploring the rocks that move across the dry lake bed. After a beautiful drive through Hidden Valley, we spent the night on Hunter Mountain.
Across the USA by Train
Traveling across the USA by train is an unique way to see and experience the variety and scale of the country. We broke up the journey, stretching it into a 17 day trip in August / September 2004, by stopping at Glacier National Park for five days and visiting Chicago before reaching New York City.
Trans USA Train: Travel to Glacier National Park
To begin this cross country journey, we went north by train to Oregon, where we had to resort to taking a replacement bus to meet our connecting train that left Portland before we were due to arrive. Once on the next train east, we made our way toward Glacier National Park.
Trans USA Train: Glacier National Park – West Side
The first few days of our time in Glacier National Park were spent on the west side of the continental divide. Here we enjoyed our lakeside hotel room, drove along scenic roads and took several day hikes to beautiful lakes.
Trans USA Train: Glacier National Park – East Side / Canada
The east side of Glacier National Park was no less spectacular than the west side. We continued our day hikes in the area and stayed in one of the historic lodges. A day trip to Waterton National Park in Alberta, Canada was a highlight.