USA WEST COAST 14 DAY ROAD-TRIP

Dates: 05.09.2024 – 23.09.2024

RIX-IST

05.09.2024: Is it really possible that after four years of marriage, our honeymoon trip is finally happening? It certainly looks that way. On the third attempt, it seems we’ve finally made it work. The first two tries were derailed by the COVID pandemic, when travel was heavily restricted and long-distance trips were more of an idea than a plan.

This time, we’re heading to the west coast of the United States — San Francisco. It’s still a bit hard to believe, but here we go! Trip planning felt relatively relaxed, mostly because about 70% of it had already been done nearly five years ago, back when we first planned this journey as our honeymoon. With limited time this time around, we decided (I decided) to drop Los Angeles and stick to a San Francisco / Las Vegas combination paired with national parks.

In earlier versions, the plan stretched to three weeks. This time, we’ll be on the ground for two full weeks, which meant some optimisation was necessary. The itinerary promises to be ambitious and fairly packed — but without a doubt, also epic: the Golden Gate Bridge, the world’s largest tree — General Sherman, blackjack at the Bellagio Casino, the Grand Canyon, Angels Landing hike, Horseshoe Bend, and more, and more, and more…
Here’s to everything finally going according to plan!

ISTANBUL, TURKEY: GALATA KULESI

05.09.2024: The flight to Istanbul, shared with Latvia’s Minister of Health, Hosam Abu Meri. We were seated in the emergency exit row, which meant plenty of legroom. On the way, I watched the Marvel movie Venom. Sleeping wasn’t particularly comfortable, but there wasn’t much need
for it either.

Since our original evening flight to Istanbul was cancelled, we arrive in Turkey a full 14 hours
earlier than planned. So, straight off the plane, we head for the Havaist-16 bus to kill some
time in the city. The plan is to wander around the old European side of Istanbul — the part
where, during our spring visit here, we felt that we did not give enough attention to this
district. This time, Galata Tower should finally be free of scaffolding after renovations. We
won’t go up, though — better to save the money for America.

We get off at Taksim Square and slowly, somewhat aimlessly, make our way along Istiklal
Street toward the tower. An incredible number of people on the streets. First priority: food.
Turkish lunch disappears somewhere into our stomachs. Drinks and shopping can wait until
after that.

Galata Tower and the surrounding streets are absolutely flooded with tourists. That doesn’t
really do it for me, so we take a few quick photos and move on — or rather, turn back toward
Taksim. Altough I have to admit that, from Büyük Hendek Street the tower does look
impressive. Wedged between buildings, Galata Tower was the tallest structure in Istanbul
when it was built in 1348, rising to a height of 66.9 metres. It has been shaken and rattled by
earthquakes many times over the centuries, yet there it still stands.
By the end of the day, we’ve clocked around 20,000 steps and head back to the airport with a
small haul of Turkish fashion. I pick up a couple of fake branded T-shirts and leather shoes for
Las Vegas. Madara buys a green summer outfit. At least the long, unplanned layover wasn’t
entirely pointless.

Back at the airport, it turns out we actually could have gotten a hotel from Turkish Airlines
after all — but realistically, we probably wouldn’t have slept much during the day anyway, so
it’s fine as it is. At least we get food vouchers for the airport. Breakfast at around five in the
morning and a night at the airport awaits — but at least it’s the world’s best airport of 2024!

IST-SFO

06.09.2024: The breakfast voucher turns out to be quite decent. We warm up our stomachs with
burgers from the Californian fast-food “restaurant” Carl’s Jr. Not bad at all. It ends up
saving us around €30. As it turns out, you just need to know where to go and what to ask
for – to get these food vouchers.

Even though the flight feels relatively smooth, it’s still brutally long. I eat, watch three
movies, sleep for about an hour and a half between them — and still end up with another
four hours of flight time left at the end. As we approach San Francisco, we’re greeted by
“Karl the Fog,” the thick fog so characteristic of the city. Just as quickly as it appears,
though, it disappears. It still feels unreal that we’re finally here. The first thing we do at the
airport is hunt down a “San Francisco” sign for a selfie, to mark the obvious but still
unbelievable moment in the family chat.

Before baggage claim, we brace ourselves for a long immigration line. Surprisingly, we’re
through in just 15–20 minutes. That makes it our third time entering the U.S. — and this
time, they don’t even stamp the passport. Security feels noticeably quicker compared to
New York, even though San Francisco is still the 14th busiest airport in the country,
handling around 20.4 million passengers a year.

Time to stop daydreaming and figure out how to get into the city. From the airport, we
take the metro straight to downtown. We enter tunnels wrapped in fog and emerge into
blue skies with no trace of it — conditions changing literally minute by minute.
Even though we manage to get some decent sleep both at the airport and on the plane,
two days of travel still take their toll. But the excitement of finally being here more than
makes up for it. Before heading further into the city, we also make a FaceTime call to
Grobiņa, my hometown — a casual call 9,000 km away.

SAN FRANCISCO: GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE

06.09.2024: At the Bartlett Hotel, we’re allowed to check in two hours earlier than scheduled. A chance to catch our breath, wash off two days of travel grime, and FaceTime our parents, who have driven to Riga to pick up our cat They’re currently living ten hours ahead of us. There’s no time to lounge around for long, though — today we need to push through until evening to properly adjust to the new time zone. With good weather on our side, there’s really only one place to go: to see San Francisco’s main culprit — the Golden Gate Bridge.

We take the 38R bus to the upscale Sea Cliff neighbourhood. Luxurious villas overlooking the Pacific Ocean and the Golden Gate Bridge come with eight-figure price tags. Some homes honestly have a better bridge view than several tourist viewpoints. The front-row houses right on the Pacific coast reportedly go for up to $26 million!

Walking through the neighbourhood brings us to Baker Beach, where the Golden Gate Bridge finally reveals itself in all its glory. Before the trip, we watched a documentary about the bridge’s construction. As usual, I can only admire how people managed to design and build engineering marvels like this a hundred years ago. The bridge was completed in 1937, connecting San Francisco with Marin County. Structural engineer Joseph Strauss planned it with remarkable foresight, designing six traffic lanes even though the traffic of the time hardly demanded it. How
many cars were there in the city a century ago, really? The main span stretches 1.6 km across the aggressive Pacific waters, rising 227 metres above them. It’s painted bright orange to make it more visible in San Francisco’s famously thick fog — although when the fog really rolls in, visibility disappears entirely anyway. (Something we’ll test ourselves later on this trip.)

Back at the beach, there are a few people around, but not many. Some are sunbathing, others strolling along the shore. Pacific waves crash powerfully against the sandy beach. There are no swimmers — except for a few seals (actual seals, not brave humans), occasionally popping out of the water in tandem. After a photo session, we head back into the park and continue toward the Lands End viewpoint, where the bridge’s towers line up perfectly one behind another.
We finish at the Golden Gate Bridge Welcome Center, stopping for a break at Equator Coffees. As promised, San Francisco weather is wildly changeable — within just 30 minutes, temperature, wind, and fog can shift two or three times. Layers are essential. When ordering drinks, the barista asks for a name to call out when the coffee is ready. I usually show my ID to make my name easier to understand. The barista replies: “Oh, a Latvian name!” Apparently, they have a friend named Jānis from Latvia. Small world.

On the way back, we hop on the wrong bus — but it’s heading in the right general direction, so we stay on. We end up going to the Patagonia store to pick up my birthday gift that my mum had arranged remotely – a Patagonia cap! Madara starts eyeing a backpack. She doesn’t buy it today, but surely tomorrow or the day after she’ll cave. (She didn’t, in the end.)
We wrap up the day at our hotel bar, Bartlett Hall. Two beers, a cocktail, tomato soup, and tacos add up to an $85 bill. San Francisco is definitely not cheap — but the first day has been excellent. By 10 p.m., though, I can no longer keep my eyes open, so we call it a night and look forward to tomorrow.

SAN FRANCISCO: COIT TOWER

07.09.2024: We start the morning with breakfast at Café Encore. Two breakfast sandwiches and cappuccinos set us back $33. At least it was tasty. Next on the plan is a nearby grocery store to pick up something for later lunch and possibly tomorrow’s breakfast as well.
After that, we head along Market Street toward the Financial District, where there’s a free bus to Presidio Park. Perfect timing — we arrive at the stop literally a minute before it pulls in. It doesn’t run very frequently, so we’ll call that luck. We sit for a bit in the park with a view toward the bridge, but today it’s hidden in fog. So we don’t linger long and head toward the Palace of Fine Arts instead. Thank goodness we managed to see the bridge in all its glory yesterday — otherwise today would feel like a much bigger disappointment, since there’s basically
nothing to see in that direction. Everywhere else, though, the sky is bright blue over the city.

Along the way, we notice some kind of festival happening at the Little Marina Green Picnic Area and decide to check out “what’s on offer.” It turns out to be a pulmonary fibrosis awareness event. Good thing we didn’t get too involved — this one isn’t really our scene.
The Palace of Fine Arts is an impressive structure, though it’s not immediately clear what it’s actually meant for. It was built in 1915 for the Panama–Pacific International Exposition to house art exhibitions. Essentially, a 49-metre-high reinforced-concrete “canopy” for displaying paintings. After a short break at a bar, we realise that a ticket to Coit Tower costs only $10 — not the ~$40 we’d read earlier. The catch turns out to be that the elevator isn’t working, so you have to climb to the 13th floor on foot. We figure we’ll manage. From the top, there’s a panoramic view of the entire city. Sunshine and blue skies everywhere — except above the Golden Gate Bridge, which still has a cloud stubbornly hanging over it.

The 64-metre-tall tower was built in 1933 on the very top of Telegraph Hill, and from here you can see all of the city’s main landmarks: both bridges, Lombard Street, the Ferry Building, Alcatraz Island, and much more. To give our legs a bit of a break, we decide to take a taxi — but this time, something truly futuristic. A self-driving car. No driver. And it’s a Jaguar. An empty car pulls up, we get in, and off it goes. Absolute sci-fi! The future isn’t coming — it’s already here. A 15-minute ride costs $22. Not cheap, but also not outrageous, considering where we are.
We walk past San Francisco’s second-tallest — but probably most famous — building, the Transamerica Pyramid. You can’t go inside, so we just admire it from street level with our necks bent at unhealthy angles and move on. We also stop by the Ferry Building before heading back to the hotel to rest.
Today brings a strong wave of nostalgia from the video game GTA: San Andreas, where much of the action takes place in a fictional city closely based on San Francisco. A very strange and very enjoyable feeling. I like it!

SAN FRANCISCO: LOMBARD STREET

07.09.2024: We continue adding steps as we make our way toward the famous winding section of Lombard Street — the so-called most crooked street in the world. On the way, we also pass through one of San Francisco’s steepest streets: Filbert Street at the intersection with Hyde Street. Absolutely brutal. If this were winter, it would be an adventure for sure. Even in the rain, walking here would probably be a challenge. The street has a gradient of 33.5 degrees — the first
floor of the buildings effectively “disappears” some 10–15 metres down the slope.

The iconic section of Lombard Street is an eight-turn downhill stretch between Hyde and Leavenworth Streets. This part of the street is only about 400 metres long, but the tight switchbacks were deliberately designed to reduce what would otherwise be a dangerously steep 27% grade for direct traffic. Even now, traffic moves extremely slowly — partly due to the tourists, many of whom are hanging out of car windows trying to film something. In reality, when you’re actually there, it’s surprisingly hard to see much at all. The best way to appreciate the street’s unique charm is probably via Google Maps or a YouTube video. An interesting point of interest to
walk by, but not to make it as main attraction.

SAN FRANCISCO: ALAMO SQUARE

07.09.2024: After a short rest and lunch at the hotel, we head out to see the famous Painted Ladies at Alamo Square Park. This neighbourhood is full of the colourful wooden houses so
characteristic of San Francisco. I’m not entirely sure why these particular Painted Ladies are
considered so iconic — there are similar houses elsewhere in the park, not to mention all
over the city — but we had the time, so we went. And yes, they do look nice. From the top of
the park, you can see the financial district in the distance, with skyscrapers piercing the
clouds.

Next, we make our way to check off another classic spot: the house from the 1990s sitcom
Full House, located fairly close by. Nothing from the show itself remains today — just the
street façade and a sign asking tourists not to cross the fence — but that’s enough for us.
Madara was a big fan of the series.
The plan was to spend the remaining hour doing a bit of shopping at Macy’s, but between
all the impressions and 25,000 steps already logged, fatigue catches up with us. After a rather unproductive hour in the store and a strong urge to go fully horizontal, we call it a day.

SAN FRANCISCO: ALCATRAZ ISLAND

08.09.2024: Today starts with getting up and rolling straight into it. Our first tour is scheduled for
8:40 a.m. — a visit to the famous former prison island, Alcatraz. Tickets need to be booked well in advance — at least two months ahead — and cost $45 per person.
The morning greets us with hopelessly thick fog — the kind where you can barely see the end of the boat. As we approach the island, we manage to photograph the rocky shoreline with the prison walls looming behind it. Appropriately bleak images for the destination.
As it turns out, today we also encounter what is said to be the last living former Alcatraz inmate, William Baker. He has written a book about his life and memories from his time in the prison. We decide to buy it — especially since we manage to get a personal inscription from the author himself. An excellent souvenir from this place. We’ll judge the quality of the writing later, once we’re back home.

Inside the main prison building, the Cellhouse, there’s an audio tour narrated by former inmates and prison guards themselves. Walking through these historic corridors while listening to their stories creates a surprisingly authentic experience — despite the fairly large number of visitors.
We’re also selected for a special “Behind the Scenes” basement tour, where around 15 people are randomly chosen from the ferry. This takes us down into the Alcatraz basement, where particularly harsh punishment cells were located for those who couldn’t follow the rules. A space of roughly 3–4 square metres, with nothing inside — no bed, no toilet, no light. The longest stay here was 17 days. Complete darkness! Nothing!
Notably, one prisoner was placed here on September 8th — today’s date. There was a saying: break the rules, you go to prison. Break prison rules, you go to Alcatraz. When we step back outside, the fog has begun to lift, and parts of the San Francisco skyline become visible. The Golden Gate Bridge, however, stubbornly remains hidden behind a band of fog. Maybe it will reveal itself later in the day. For now, we head back toward the city.

SAN FRANCISCO: BATTERY SPENCER

08.09.2024: We make it back from Alcatraz with time to spare and head straight to the bike rental. Honestly, the bikes turn out to be pretty decent, especially considering we went for the
cheapest option. By registering online in advance with a 20% discount, the full-day rental for
both of us comes to $70.
Over the past few days, we’d already noticed that the cycling infrastructure here is at a very
good level, and drivers are generally calm and respectful. That’s probably why so many people
get around the city by bike — at least those who are willing (and able) to pedal up hills.
We ride along Crissy Field toward Fort Point, the building right under the bridge. Once again, it
instantly reminds me of GTA. Interesting how often that game pops into my head here.
Next, we head across the Golden Gate Bridge toward the Battery Spencer viewpoint. First,
though, there’s a fairly steep climb to deal with — but we are friends with cycling, so it’s
manageable. By the time we reach the top, the bridge has already disappeared into such thick
fog that it looks as if it’s not even there.

As soon as we enter the fog, the temperature drops noticeably. Cycling across the bridge,
visibility is maybe 30 metres in either direction. Gradually, a few rays of sunlight start to break
through on the far side, giving us hope that we might actually see something from the
viewpoint.
At Battery Spencer, the wind is howling like it did during our Patagonia trip last year — that
same relentless, cutting wind we remember all too well. Good thing we brought wind jackets,
otherwise this stop would be over very quickly. The first five minutes, the bridge is completely
invisible. Then, every now and then, the view opens up for just a few seconds, revealing the
northern tower. We spend about 15 minutes here, manage to catch a few genuinely nice photo moments, and then continue on toward Sausalito. With the cold wind, staying longer just isn’t an option. After shot lunch break in Sausalito we will head back to SF with ferry to Fishermans Wharf.
If we hadn’t seen the bridge in clear weather on our first day, this moment would feel seriously
depressing — just like last year in Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park, where after a ten-hour hike we never actually saw the famous Torres rock towers because of the fog. Traveling all the way to the edge of the world just to stare into clouds. I can do that back in home town Riga too!

SAUSALITO

08.09.2024: From Battery Spencer, we only have about 20–30 minutes of cycling left before reaching Sausalito and finishing our 18 km ride. This part of the journey, however, reveals that our bike mechanic could probably use a little more practice when it comes to replacing brake pads. A large part of the route is downhill, so the descents aren’t quite as enjoyable as they should be. Still, we make it down safely, and that’s what matters!

We wrap up this part of the day with pizza and a Californian beer at Taste of Rome in downtown Sausalito. It’s really warm outside today — at least once you escape the fog — and the atmosphere here is fantastic.

Sausalito is a small waterfront town in the Bay Area, home to fewer than 10,000 people and offering beautiful views across the bay towards San Francisco. It’s an incredibly cosy and pleasant place. There might not be a huge list of must-see attractions, but that’s not really the point. The atmosphere is wonderfully relaxed and welcoming. People stroll along the main street, cafés are buzzing, and everyone seems to be doing exactly what you’re supposed to do in California — simply enjoying life.

We’ll be heading back to San Francisco by ferry. I paid $29 for the roughly 30-minute crossing – 2 people + 2 bikes. Along the way, we once again cruise right past Alcatraz Island and get a full view of the Golden Gate Bridge, which has finally decided to emerge from its blanket of fog. Well… at least partially. The ferry will drop us off at Fisherman’s Wharf — basically San Francisco’s tourist headquarters. Let’s see what it’s all about!

SAN FRANCISCO: FISHERMANS WHARF

08.09.2024: This is probably the second most famous spot you’re expected to check off when visiting San Francisco — Fisherman’s Wharf, located just beyond the Golden Gate Bridge area.
It’s also the place to see the city’s famous sea lions, which have been lazily lounging and
sunbathing here for around 30 years, happily entertaining tourists.

Since the 1989 earthquake, they’ve been napping on floating platforms in the harbour,
sometimes gathering in numbers reaching several hundred. The pier provides a safe place for them to relax without worrying about their lives, as no predators enter the harbour area that could pose a threat to the sea lions.

I was also determined to try the Californian classic — clam chowder served in a large sourdough bread bowl. It’s a creamy soup, somewhere between cheese and tomato in flavour, with something seafood-related mixed in — though it’s hard to say exactly what. In any case, the soup is genuinely good, but finishing the entire bread bowl is simply impossible. Even the two of us together couldn’t manage all the bread. The soup itself, however, was scraped clean down to the very last drop.

Even though Fisherman’s Wharf is one of the most tourist-packed places in San Francisco, it does have a certain charm — a mini harbour town built along the pier, threaded together by wooden boardwalks. If time allows and the crowds don’t immediately kill the urge to wander, it’s definitely worth stopping by at least to see the sea lions.

FRESNO, CA

09.09.2024: Today is also the day we leave the city behind — the road trip officially begins. Car pickup goes extremely smoothly. I’ve planned it so that the rental office is literally across the street from our hotel, meaning no long morning walks with all our luggage. Until the very last moment, we don’t actually know what kind of car we’ll be getting. In the end, it’s a white 2022 Dodge Challenger.

When planning the trip, I had originally reserved a Toyota Camry. Later, while scrolling through the reservations again, I noticed that a “sports car” option — Dodge Challenger, Ford Mustang, or Chevrolet Camaro — costs only about €70 more with full insurance included. Saving that
money suddenly felt pointless. This calls for a proper, authentic American road trip — with a proper American car under us.

At first, the car takes some getting used to. It’s very wide compared to a normal sedan. Sitting inside feels like sinking into a massive couch — the seats are huge and incredibly comfortable. Driving through city streets initially feels a bit uncertain, but once we get out onto the highway,
everything falls into place. Traffic is intense, though, so there’s no room for complacency.

Our next stop is Fresno, where we’ll stock up on food and water for upcoming hikes at Walmart. That’s about 300 km away — which, by U.S. standards, is basically just around the corner. One thing to watch out for: fuel pumps are colour-coded differently here. Diesel is green, petrol is black — the opposite of what we’re used to. Filling up the tank costs around €55, or roughly €1.30 per litre. For the U.S., that’s considered quite expensive. California, apparently, has some
of the highest fuel prices in the country.

SEQOIA NATIONAL PARK

09.09.2024: Our first fairly long drive with the Challenger is done. After roughly 450 km, we arrive at Sequoia National Park. And honestly — the fuel consumption isn’t nearly as bad as expected. The 3.6L V6 averages about 8–8.5 L per 100 km. And the seats are damn comfortable. A solid choice for a five-hour drive — and for the many more hours we’ll be spending in this car over the next two weeks.

Time to go see the biggest tree in the world. Well — not quite the tallest. General Sherman is the largest tree in the world by trunk volume. Its diameter is an impressive 11.1 metres, and its height exceeds 80 metres. Tourists line up and wait ages for a photo here, seemingly unaware — or unwilling — to walk just 10 minutes into the forest, where plenty of sequoias just like this stand quietly on their own. Trust me, you won’t notice the difference between a tree that’s 11.1 metres wide and one that’s “only” 10.5.

The plan was to walk the Congress Trail — an easy hike of about 11 km. In reality, things got a bit… creative. We wandered slightly off-plan, but we saw everything we were supposed to. The only difference is that instead of a neat loop on the map, our route looks more like a collection of chaotic lines. The park has some wonderfully named groves where several giant sequoias grow close together. The trail we’re on is called the Congress Trail, which leads to a group of trees known as “the Senate.” Catchy names — and oddly fitting.

The trees themselves are simply enormous. Gigantic! There’s really no better way to put it. No photo can fully capture the scale, the age, or the quiet power these sequoias radiate.
California is also known for its massive wildfires, and the evidence is visible here as well. Almost every sequoia has burned at some point. Yet their tree barks are so thick and resilient that they’re not easily brought down. In fact, wildfire is a natural and necessary process in the long run — essential for the health of these forests and their giants. Sequoias are said to burn roughly every 80 years so that their hard cones can open and release seeds.

Many of these trees are up to 3,000 years old. They were already growing here long before construction began on the Great Wall of China. An epic walk! You could easily spend several days hiking in this park alone — but we need to move on. We leave the trail with the feeling that it wasn’t enough… and with a strong suspicion that this feeling will return again and again throughout the trip. We’ll be back among the sequoias later in the journey, approaching from the Yosemite side.

CITRO, CA

09.09.2024: Tonight, we’re staying in a very small town called Citro, in central California. After Sequoia National Park, we felt like pushing a bit farther in the direction of Las Vegas to shorten
tomorrow’s drive. Even so, tomorrow we’ll still have around 600 km to cover from Citro to the
City of Sin.

In the hotel’s 25-year history, we’re only the third guests from Latvia. I pinned our flag on
the world map in Liepāja — the other two were from Riga. I’d say I’m usually very good with
maps, but I was completely confused at first, until I realised the world map was centred on
North America.

LAS VEGAS, NV: BELLAGIO, CESARS PALACE, VENETIAN

10.09.2024: Today brought a frighteningly long drive — almost 600 km — but comfortable American seats and excellent road infrastructure made it doable in just under six hours. There was no need for me to rest at all and put Madara behind the wheel, which made her quite happy too.
The first stop is an obvious one: the “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign. We’re professionals at this by now. Same strategy as in Cannes on the red carpet or in New York by the Wall Street bull. While the line slowly shuffles forward, I quickly snap a selfie of Madara from the side so no one else is in the frame — and we’re off, without spending 30 minutes standing in line under a +40°C sun.

Getting into the hotel parking garage is a bit complicated, but we manage just fine. There’s so much going on everywhere — hotels, signs, billboards, side streets, flashing lights — not easy to orient yourself straight away. We’re staying in a fairly large room in one of the Cosmopolitan Hotel’s wings. The hotel isn’t exactly new, but it’s clean, spacious, and most importantly — perfectly central. That works for us!
Since we’re staying right next to one of the world’s most famous casinos — Bellagio — that’s where we go first. At first, I feel a bit shy and unsure how things work in a casino, so we ease into it by walking along The Strip instead.

Next stop: Caesars Palace, where for a brief moment I manage to turn $10 into $20 in Black Jack — before, of course, ending up back at zero. Walking into this building feels like entering another
dimension. Daylight doesn’t exist here. Neither do clocks. Time itself disappears. There’s only an
endless, artificial day of partying and gambling. Still, each casino has its own distinct “face,” and every one we enter has a completely different atmosphere.
Bellagio greets you with luxury boutiques right at the entrance — Gucci, Dior, Prada, Hermès, and the like. Caesars Palace, on the other hand, starts with elegant bars and lounge areas, where people cool off after the brutal desert heat before heading off to “win big.”
The Venetian feels noticeably more down-to-earth, with shops for ordinary people. That’s also where we grab some food — which still ends up costing a bit over $50 at fast-food places. The indoor Venetian canals and the artificial blue sky overhead are… honestly, just pure fun. I don’t really know how else to describe it.

Las Vegas is just as much an artificial anomaly in the middle of the desert as Dubai is in the United Arab Emirates. Still, it’s definitely a place you want to visit at least once. Would I be desperate to come back? Probably not. That said — we’ll be back in four days anyway.
In the evening, slightly dressed up, we head out to try our luck. The start is promising. I turn $5 into $25, which conveniently translates into exactly one glass of white wine for Madara. The rest of the gambling budget slowly but steadily melts away as the evening goes on.

My favourite casino turns out to be Caesars Palace. That’s also where we buy an upcoming birthday gift for my brother Edgars — an official deck of Caesars Palace playing cards. I’m sure he’ll be happy with that!

HOOVER DAM

11.09.2024: While having breakfast, we see on the news that wildfire smoke has spread into
the Las Vegas region. At first, we barely register it — just background noise while eating. But once we step into the hotel corridor, something already feels off: there’s a noticeable smell of smoke. Stepping outside confirms it — a thick smoky haze hangs over the city, almost like fog.

A bit of concern creeps in about today’s plans, since wide-open natural views are on the agenda — and smoke or haze is the last thing you want for that. Our first stop is one of the world’s engineering marvels: the Hoover Dam, about a 40-minute drive away. Leaving Las Vegas, the smoke layer is so dense that we start to accept the idea that we might not see much at all. We even begin considering coming back here on our second Las Vegas day, because this is
something I absolutely want to see — and I’m prepared to sacrifice something else if needed.

But just shortly before reaching the dam, the sky begins to clear, and hope returns. Parking on the Nevada side costs $10 and is conveniently close to the main attraction. The full Hoover Dam tour isn’t running at the moment due to renovation work on one of the elevator shafts, but for $15 there’s the Power Plant Tour. This takes us down to the generators on the Nevada side, which produce electricity that reaches as far as the California megacity of Los Angeles.

The tour itself is fairly short — just enough to step inside the dam’s tunnels and see the generators up close. Originally, I hadn’t planned to do this tour, but since it was the only one available, we take what we can get. It starts with a roughly 10-minute video about the dam’s history, followed by a 162-metre elevator descent to where the real action happens. What amazes me most here is how the chief engineer, Frank Crowe, and his entire team managed to design and calculate something of this scale, while accounting for the immense natural forces involved. The Colorado River had to be diverted, massive amounts of rock blasted away, and the riverbed excavated down to stable dolomite bedrock to support the structure. And all of this was done nearly 90 years ago — without modern calculation tools or design software. Truly astonishing. No photo really manages to capture the sheer scale of this place.

After the tour, we grab a quick bite at the nearby café and then drive over to the Mike O’Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge, from where the dam can be seen in all its glory. Thankfully, the smoke has cleared, allowing us to fully appreciate this human-made wonder the way it deserves.

GRAND CANYON: SKY WALK

11.09.2024: The entire hour-and-a-half drive here is filled with quiet anxiety about whether we’ll actually be able to see anything at all, as the smoke cloud stubbornly follows us the whole way. Once again, as we approach the western rim of the Grand Canyon, hope begins to return.

A small but unpleasant surprise awaits us upon arrival at the Grand Canyon Skywalk: the ticket price turns out to be an impressive $76 per person — something I somehow missed during planning stage. But what’s done is done; we’re not turning around now. Adding to the sting is the fact that photography on the Skywalk platform itself is forbidden. You can, however, use the official photographer’s services for an additional $50. Still, the 21-metre-long glass platform that juts out from the cliff and hangs 1,200 metres above the Colorado River is enough to make your legs wobble at first — even if you don’t usually have a fear of heights. Impressive, to say the least.
You can’t drive your own car right up to the canyon viewpoints here; instead, you use the park’s
shuttle buses, which run very frequently between the parking area and the Eagle Point and
Guano Point viewpoints.

A light bluish haze hangs over this natural wonder, but visibility is good enough to truly absorb
its scale and power of the canyon. I find myself writing this sentence again, but it’s unavoidable: no photograph can even begin to capture the vastness, depth, and sheer mass of what lies before us. It feels as if the book of our planet Earth is lying wide open in front of our eyes — if only you know how to read it.

ROUTE 66, WILLIAMS, AZ

11.09.2024: Leaving the Grand Canyon Skywalk, I originally wanted to take the most direct route to the town of Truxton, which sits along the historic Route 66. That plan fell apart quickly when the road turned into gravel. I’m not exactly a fan of gravel roads, so we had to turn back and take a small detour via another town — Kingman.

The good road quality and very light traffic allowed for a slightly firmer press on the accelerator to make up for the lost time. Driving in the dark isn’t particularly appealing. It’s already around 5 p.m., so food becomes a consideration to be made. To be honest, after so many experiences and
impressions, we’re not even that hungry — but every now and then you still need to put something in your stomach to keep going.

We reach Route 66 at a very remote roadside diner called Mike’s Route 66 Outpost Saloon. The number of cars parked outside immediately raises our expectations. The first thing that catches the eye is a sign on the door prohibiting firearms inside. Fair enough — noted. Inside, it’s busy, and it’s instantly clear that we’re the only non-locals. But everything feels good and welcoming. The ladies are line dancing, older guys are drinking beer at the bar — exactly how you’d imagine it. We order proper, heavy, real American burgers. Absolutely delicious — and of course we both overeat. Still, a genuinely authentic experience. The ladies are also curious and come over to ask who we are and where we’re from. As expected, no one really knows where Latvia is. Those who at least know that Europe isn’t a country usually try to place it somewhere near Germany or Sweden. Mentioning other countries doesn’t really help much.

It turns out we unknowingly made a perfect choice with the car. The miles and hours behind the wheel pass surprisingly quickly — which is incredibly important on a road trip like this, where you spend a huge amount of time in the car.

GRAND CANYON VILLAGE, AZ

12.09.2024: Today brings an unusually short drive. Just one hour, and we’re already at today’s main — and only — destination: the Grand Canyon South Rim village. The plan is a 13 km hike along the canyon rim to the final stop of the park shuttle bus, which will take us back afterward.
To enter the national park, there’s a fairly long but smoothly moving line of cars. We only need
to show our park pass, and we’re in. We park at the first lot near Mather Point, where we catch our first glimpse of the canyon rim.

This is also where we start our hike. Since walking along the rim means passing through the
entire village first, by the time we reach the official start of the planned trail, we’ve already
covered almost 6 km. That means today’s plan has quietly expanded from 13 km to at least 20
km. No complaints. Let’s go! Along the way, we even manage a live video call with Grobiņa. Might as well use the technology while we can.

The weather today is excellent, and visibility is far better than yesterday on the western rim of
the canyon. We’ve earned this. At times it feels as if the view to the right is some kind of artificial backdrop, because what we’re seeing is hard to fully process, understand, or absorb. Naturally, no photo or video can capture it properly — I said the same yesterday, but today it feels even more true. The trail is very easy to walk along its entire length. We spend just under five hours enjoying these views, finishing at Hermits Rest. From there, we take the park shuttle back to the village.

After the long hike, we relax at the Grand Canyon Beer Garden, enjoying locally produced
beers with a view of the day’s main attraction. Chatting with the bartender, I learn that there’s
also a shop in the village where you can buy various locally made beers. That’s where we head
next. The final bill comes to $130 — but, as they say, it is what it is. For the short drive to our overnight stop in Tusayan, Madara takes the wheel. She finally gets a proper feel for the Challenger. The drive is only about 15 minutes, but it’s a nice way to warm up behind the wheel — and she enjoys it.

HORSESHOE BEND, AZ

13.09.2024: Today is our final day at the Grand Canyon. We stayed overnight very close to the canyon village, in the suburb of Tusayan, because today we’re continuing north along this natural
wonder. We’ll be driving the East Rim Road toward the town of Page.

Along the way, we stop at several more canyon viewpoints. At each one, it’s technically the
same Grand Canyon — and yet somehow different every time. One last deep breath of this
vastness. Madara is once again taking photos like there’s no tomorrow, but honestly, it’s not
really worth it. This is something you have to see with your own eyes. The next natural wonder is about a two-hour drive away: Horseshoe Bend. From the parking lot, it’s an easy 15-minute walk to the horseshoe-shaped canyon carved slowly and patiently by the Colorado River. It’s a popular and easily accessible spot, so there are plenty of tourists, but somehow it doesn’t bother us too much.

The 300-metre-high cliff edge is completely open — you can get as close as your courage
allows. Some people definitely take advantage of that. It’s hard to tell whether they’re brave or
just reckless. One strong gust of wind, and that’s it. Others climb onto rocks they probably
shouldn’t, but that’s no longer our problem. We take advantage of having good signal and call back home to Nīca to say hello to my brother Edgars — and, of course, to show off where we are.
After a few photos, we move on. An epic place. Yet another one. At times, it almost feels like
this trip has made us slightly numb to big landmarks — simply because they come every single
day. Sometimes even several in one day. There are so many impressions that we can’t fully
process them immediately. But it’s important to stop, think about it, and appreciate the opportunity we’ve earned for ourselves. To be here!

LOWER ANTELOPE CANYON, AZ

13.09.2024: We arrive in Page a bit earlier than planned, which gives us some free time before our Antelope Canyon tour. We drive over to the Glen Canyon Dam Overlook. After seeing the Hoover Dam, this one naturally feels smaller — but today its spillways are open, and water is literally blasting through the overflow channels. So at least we get to see something different.
We also make a quick stop at Walmart before heading to the tour. I had planned to buy a wristwatch I’d been eyeing beforehand — it costs about three times less here than ordering it online back home — but unfortunately, this particular one isn’t available.

The Antelope Canyon tour lasts about an hour. From the outside, there’s no indication that such an incredible natural formation lies hidden beneath your feet. The canyon has been shaped by wind and rain erosion over time. The tour begins with a descent down into the canyon — roughly the depth of a four- to five-storey building. If you’re claustrophobic or on the larger side, this probably isn’t the place for you. The passages are extremely narrow and deep, yet absolutely stunning. Sunlight dances along the yellowish-red sandstone walls, creating an almost mystical atmosphere. Photography once again spirals out of control. Our guide is a member of the local Navajo community, who explains the canyon’s formation and maintenance in a clear, easy-to-understand way. He also shows us striking videos of what happens here during heavy rainstorms — situations you definitely wouldn’t want to experience in person. When it rains, water funnels rapidly into the canyon, creating aggressive torrents that sweep everything in their path.
Even if a rain cloud is 10 km away, the canyon must be evacuated immediately, as floodwaters can reach this low point with incredible speed.
The hour flies by. Beautiful photos, unforgettable impressions. This marks the farthest point of our journey — from here on, we’ll begin heading back in the direction of San Francisco.

KANAB, UT

13.09.2024: After Antelope Canyon, we head toward our sixth U.S. state — Utah — where we
have to set the clock one hour forward. Effectively, we’re giving one evening hour of today to tomorrow, knowing that when we later return to Nevada, the clock will be turned back again. Time zones at work. We spend the night in the small town of Kanab, located right on the border
between Arizona and Utah.

The peak tourist season is already starting to wind down, but it’s obvious that the town lives almost entirely off tourism — hotels seem to occupy every other building. Kanab is just a 40-minute drive from one of the country’s most popular national parks, Zion National Park, which we’ll be visiting tomorrow. Around five million people visit the park every year. For today, it’s just dinner at a local pub with a glass of beer from a local brewery, and then straight to bed. Tomorrow is a big day — the infamous Angels Landing hike awaits.

ZION NATIONAL PARK: ANGELS LANDING

14.09.2024: We set off a bit later than originally planned, but still early enough. We arrive at the park parking lot at 8:00 a.m. and are ready to go. Even at this hour, the parking area is already quite full, but we manage to find a spot. From there, we head to the park shuttle, since during peak season private vehicles aren’t allowed inside the park. Luckily, the shuttles are free. Our starting point is the stop called The Grotto.

To hike this trail, you have to enter a lottery, and only about 40% of applicants receive a permit. The final section of the trail is so narrow and exposed that it becomes dangerous if too many people are on it at the same time. We were lucky enough to get permits with a time window of “start before 9 a.m.” We begin hiking around 8:20 and immediately start wondering what exactly “9 a.m.” means — is it the moment you turn onto the Angels Landing spur, or the moment you leave the shuttle stop? Slightly panicked, we power through the famous Walter’s Wiggles switchbacks at record speed. There are 21 tight zig-zag turns in total. When we reach the checkpoint where permits are inspected, it’s 8:57. In just 37 minutes, we’ve climbed 340 metres of vertical elevation. As it turns out, the time listed on the permit applies from the Grotto Trailhead, right next to the shuttle stop — so we’re safely on time. From here on, we can take the hardest part of the trail at a relaxed pace and actually enjoy the views!

After the permit check, things get serious immediately. Even steeper climbs, small footholds carved into the rock, and chains to pull yourself upward. At times, the trail is barely a metre wide, with extremely steep drops on both sides — around 400–450 metres down. And yet, the views along this section are absolutely incredible. As I’ve written before, this is another place where you need to stop, take a breath, and really process where you are. The nervous system starts to dull from the constant overload of spectacular places, but you have to consciously slow down and appreciate what’s in front of you. That said — first priority is still watching where you put your feet.

At the top, we take a short lunch break together with a few chipmunks, who diligently clean up crumbs left by tourists and happily pose for photos while doing so — especially for those who’ve successfully made it to the summit.
The descent, as expected, is much harder and slower than the climb. But unlike the ascent, you now have the vast Zion Canyon unfolding in front of you the entire way down. On the way up, all you really see are rock walls, chains, and your own boots.
Most descriptions say this hike takes around 4–5 hours on average. I had planned for 6 hours, allowing time to rest at the top and stop along the way for breaks and photos. In reality, including all stops, it takes us just over 3 hours — largely because we practically sprinted the first section out of fear of missing our time window. Looks like we’re in good shape — and that early sprint bought us a very comfortable time buffer for the rest of the hike.

LAS VEGAS, NV: NEW YORK NEW YORK, MGM

14.09.2024: After the hike, we stop for a proper lunch right there in the park town of Springdale.
Stuffed pancakes. Very stuffed pancakes. One portion would easily have been enough for both of us — but it’s too late now. The filling is so generous that the pancakes themselves almost disappear into the background. We then begin our 2.5-hour drive back to the City of Sin — Las Vegas. About 30 minutes in, I realise I’m completely crashing and need to hand the steering wheel over to Madara. While she pushes the Challenger forward, I manage to nap for about 30 minutes to recharge a bit for the evening and the rest of the journey.

Back in Las Vegas, the plan for tonight is to visit New York-New York and the legendary MGM Grand casino, which we didn’t manage to see earlier. The New York replica is genuinely interesting. Outside, there’s the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, and the Chrysler Building. Inside, recreations of famous Manhattan streets and façades typical of New York architecture. And threaded through all of this, of course, are countless slot machines — with
elderly ladies rolling up in wheelchairs, ordering beers, cigarette in hand, hammering buttons while waiting for their jackpot. Quite an amusing sight from the sidelines. We also try our luck at a one-armed bandit. This time, the $20 stays with the machine.

Next, we head toward MGM. We do a full loop inside, but by now there’s simply no energy left for entertainment. We grab a slice of pizza and make our way back toward the hotel. These casinos — the swirling lights, massive crowds, and guys shoving flyers into your hands on every corner — drain energy incredibly fast. Las Vegas is a strange city like that. I’m sure it has a lot more to offer, but that can wait for another visit. This time, we call an Uber. Carlos, our driver, takes us past Las Vegas’s newest attraction — The Sphere. A massive spherical building whose entire exterior surface is a screen projecting all kinds of visuals. At night, it looks spectacular. At
first, it almost feels like Photoshop — it’s hard to believe a screen that big can actually exist.

THE DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK: DANTE’S VIEW

15.09.2024: Before heading into Death Valley today, we make a short detour through Red Rock
Canyon. It’s only a small deviation, but it offers striking views of red rock formations sitting surprisingly close to Las Vegas. A quick 10-minute stop, but well worth it.
Another important stop is the town of Pahrump, where we fill the tank completely. Fuel options inside Death Valley are very limited, and even when you do find a gas station, prices are significantly higher. Better to be prepared.

From there, we head to our first stop inside the park — Dante’s View. A place where you can see the lowest point of Death Valley from one of its highest viewpoints. The elevation difference between these two extremes is 1,699 metres. The vast white salt flats of Badwater Basin stretch out before us in full view. Even though the temperature up here isn’t as extreme as down below, it still feels like a hot hairdryer constantly blowing straight into your face.
After the past few days, this ultra-dry air has thoroughly dried out every internal breathing passage imaginable. Lips cracked like dried clay, and it feels like sand is coming out of my nose. No amount of water helps, and lip balm barely makes a difference.
That’s just the climate — you adapt.

THE DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK: ZABRISKIE POINT, THE DEVILS GOLD COURSE

15.09.2024: On the way to the next viewpoint, we take a 5 km detour through Twenty Mule Team Canyon. It’s a well-maintained gravel road that winds through historic borax mining sites. This is the very material that made Death Valley “work” — more precisely, that led to the establishment of Furnace Creek. Without the possibility of extracting something valuable here, it’s hard to imagine anyone choosing Death Valley’s extreme conditions as a place to live. About a hundred years ago, borax was mined here year-round and transported by mule teams over a distance of 32km to the nearest railway station. The material had a wide range of uses: in glass and ceramics, metallurgy, and in the 19th century even as an antiseptic in medicine and as an ingredient in certain cosmetic products. A surprisingly versatile resource.

Just nearby is Zabriskie Point. A harsh, otherworldly panorama where no living creatures or plants are visible — except for tourists. And even they barely seem alive once outside their air-conditioned cars. Even the short climb to the viewpoint demands serious effort when temperatures in the shade exceed +40°C. There is no shade here. No trees can survive. As a result, sightseeing stops are brief and efficient even tough what we see before our eyes are
truly amazing. We move on.

By now, we’ve descended below sea level and arrive at Devil’s Golf Course. Salt formations stretch all the way to the horizon. It’s difficult to put into words what we’re seeing. These strange, lumpy “balls” formed as water evaporated rapidly, leaving salt crystals behind. Walking here is tricky — it turns into a kind of hopping between and over the jagged salt formations.

THE DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK: BADWATER BASIN, ARTISTS DRIVE

15.09.2024: Badwater Basin is probably the most famous attraction in Death Valley National Park.
A vast former riverbed that, by late summer and autumn, dries out completely, leaving behind an enormous white salt flat. At 85.5 metres below sea level, temperatures here climb well above 40°C. The wind is unusually strong too, making it feel as if a hairdryer set to maximum heat is blowing straight into your face. After about five minutes of walking — and another five minutes of taking photos — we’re already drenched in sweat and more than ready to move on. Still, it’s absolutely worth it. Back in the car, all the floor mats are white with salt.

Next, we take another detour on our way to Death Valley’s only town — Furnace Creek. We drive along Artists Drive, a narrow one-way road winding through the park’s mountain ridges. The drive itself is beautiful, though our enjoyment is slightly diminished by two cars crawling painfully slowly in front of us. Overtaking isn’t possible — the road is barely as wide as a single car. I understand that there’s no need to rush and that the views should be enjoyed — just not this slowly. Still, since the extreme heat has already forced us to skip the planned hike through Golden Canyon, we can afford to “enjoy” Artists Drive at their pace. The scenery is nice, but it’s definitely not a must-see if you’re short on time.

LONE PINE, ALABAMA HILLS, CA

16.09.2024: Today we were supposed to drive a bit back toward Death Valley to check out Mosaic
Canyon, but mentally we just really didn’t feel like going “against the direction of travel.” On top of that, hiking in +40°C heat isn’t exactly the brightest idea, so we decide to scrap the plan and instead take things slower on the drive toward Bishop.

On the way we pass through the very interesting town of Lone Pine, which is historically famous for the sheer number of films shot in the surrounding area. At its peak in the 1940s and 1950s, around 300 movies were filmed in this region. Mostly American westerns, which were wildly popular at the time. We start the day with breakfast at a classic American diner, where coffee is poured endlessly from a giant pot while you sit in sofa-style booths. The breakfast is epic in
the most American sense. Madara gets three pancakes, made so thick that it would easily be enough for ten pieces of thinner pancakes, topped with another half-kilo of strawberries. I go for a solid and tasty omelet.

With some time to spare, we head to the film museum, where entry is $8 per person — officially a donation. It starts with a 15-minute film explaining how and what kinds of movies were shot in this area, particularly in the Alabama Hills. As mentioned, most were westerns from the 1920s to the 1950s, but there are also some very famous modern films. For example, Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained, the first Iron Man, Man of Steel, Star Trek episodes, and many, many others. Various pieces of movie memorabilia from all these films are on display in the museum.

After the museum, we go hunting for some of the actual filming locations along Movie Road in the nearby Alabama Hills, where all of these cinematic works were created. MapsMe application even has the exact filming spots nicely marked, showing where specific scenes were shot. And honestly, the landscape itself is mysteriously impressive. In the background, bare rock mountains rise well above 4,000 meters above sea level; closer in are piles of rounded, egg-shaped boulders; and right up front, sandy, rocky plains cut through by a steep, winding gravel road. For creative directors, this place is an absolute playground.

BISHOP, CA

16.09.2024: We arrive in Bishop nice and early. A small town at the foot of Yosemite National
Park, but a cozy one. First, we do a small reconnaissance loop around town by car, then top up on fuel and swing by a car wash to rinse the remains of countless flies off the bodywork. We’re staying tonight at the California Hostel — a small, centrally located place with a homey feel. On the world map where guests pin their hometowns, I stick a pin into Grobiņa. We turn out to be only the third guests from Latvia.

After a short rest, we head back out to explore the town on foot. We wander through local shops, though without much success. Eventually we settle into a bar for soup and a few locally brewed beers. In the evening, in the common lounge area, together with other guests (all Americans from different states), we somehow end up playing Twister. Denim shorts were not exactly my best outfit choice for this activity, but the evening turns out to be quite entertaining. Naturally, once again I have to explain where the Baltic states are on the world map — and just how tiny these countries are by American standards. But it usually is interesting conversation.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK: LEMBERT DOME

17.09.2024: On the way to Yosemite National Park, we stop in the town of Mammoth Lakes.
Today the temperatures are noticeably lower, so Madara needs to buy a warmer sweater for the coming days. Yesterday in Death Valley it was +42°C, today in Yosemite it’s barely above freezing, with snow. Quite a temperature swing within 24 hours.

From here we also send a postcard to my Grandma back in Talsi, Latvia. Another postcard goes to the ours friends family for their wedding anniversary, to their new house — which, as it later turned out, didn’t yet have a mailbox and the postcard was stuck in a gap in the fence. Along the way, I also receive birthday video-call greetings from Grobiņa. It’s pretty amazing that while driving along a highway in California in the morning, we can video call Latvia, where our parents are already watching that evening’s news.

Entering Yosemite National Park, we drive over the Tioga Pass mountain road, which reaches an elevation of 3,045 meters above sea level. That’s our altitude record so far. The snow has mostly melted, so we can continue safely. Outside it’s only +4°C for our first hike of the day. Thankfully, it’s a short, warm-up one — about a 60-minute outing to reach the summit of Lembert Dome. An approximately 85-million-year-old rounded dome of white rock, about 1.3 km long and roughly
450 meters wide. Lembert Dome is named after George Lembert, a naturalist and musician who lived in the Tuolumne Meadows area in the late 19th century. We don’t climb all the way onto the very top, as it’s a smooth slab of dolomite that doesn’t look like the safest idea. But even so, the views are breathtaking. It’s fascinating how each national park has its own completely different feeling and atmosphere. Along the way, we also run into some chipmunks.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK: OLMSTED POINT

17.09.2024: Just nearby, there’s already the next sightseeing stop. In fact, these stops never really end. Basically, wherever there’s a small parking area, that counts as a viewpoint. Especially along the Tioga Pass, since this is one of the highest areas in the park and you can see everything clearly from up here.

This spot is called Olmsted Point, offering a view over the rocky Yosemite Valley and the park’s most iconic rock formation — Half Dome. The viewpoint is named after Frederick Law Olmsted and his son, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., both influential landscape architects and strong advocates of nature conservation. The elder Olmsted was one of the designers of Central Park in New York and a major supporter of protected natural areas. A short 15-minute stop — and then we move on.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK: MARIPOSA GROVE

17.09.2024: To reach the second hike of the day, we have to drive almost two hours. The distance itself isn’t that long, but there’s quite a bit of traffic and some seriously winding roads, which don’t really allow for rushing. On top of that, there are plenty of warning signs about bears possibly being on the road. Apparently, 17 bears were hit by cars here last year. Makes you
wonder whether we’ll see one ourselves.

Today’s second hike is in the Mariposa Grove valley, where the granite cliffs of Yosemite slowly give way to the giant sequoias. A bit further on, Sequoia National Park begins. We’re doing the Grizzly Giant Trail — not a long one, around 3.5 km, and not supposed to take much more than an hour. Along the way, we pass an old fallen sequoia known as the Fallen Monarch. The main attraction on this trail is the roughly 2,500-year-old Grizzly Giant sequoia, which, judging by the name, is indeed larger than the others. Its base circumference is nearly 30 meters — roughly
comparable to the height of a 20-story building. We also come across a sequoia growing right in the middle of the road, so a tunnel has been cut straight through it. The tunnel has been there so
long that the tree is slowly trying to grow it shut from the inside. Which raises the question: why not just route the road around a single tree? I seriously doubt the road was here before the sequoia.

This trail wasn’t quite as impressive as the one by General Sherman. Here, access to the trees is restricted along the entire route, and the area has clearly suffered more from wildfires. There are many fallen and cut giants. That said, it doesn’t take away from the sheer power of the sequoias that are still standing. At some point, the phone and the photography have to be put aside, and you just look with your eyes. And nothing seems to slow down the little crew of chipmunks — they keep darting through the trees, minding their own business.

MARIPOSA, CA

17.09.2024: Our accommodation for the next three nights is located south of Yosemite National Park. By American standards, it’s basically right next door — but on a Latvian scale, it’s like driving across 1/3 of the country. It’s close to the small town of Mariposa. Since we’re staying in what’s essentially a countryside homestead, dinner has to be eaten in town. We choose a pizzeria. One ~30cm pizza and one ~20cm pizza. We don’t manage to finish either. Tomorrow’s lunch is sorted – pizza leftovers. But the pizzas are genuinely good.

The town itself feels like very authentic small-town America. At a gas station, two old American cars are filling up — the kind you usually only see in movies. On the main street, some building façades and shop signs look like they’re straight out of a western. It’s refreshing to see these small towns too, not just huge megacities. Founded in 1849, Mariposa became an important center for California’s gold rush and a trading hub for those chasing their fortune. Today, only about 1,700 people live here, making it a small, friendly community with a strong historical harm.

Another 20-minute drive from Mariposa and we reach our homestead. Total American ountryside. The guesthouse itself is quite nice. Cats are wandering around, a dog is running about, and there are even some ostriches grazing in the yard. Works for us. Madara made friends with one of the local cat.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK: TAFT POINT, SENTINEL DOME

18.09.2024: Simple but tasty breakfast at the guesthouse gets us ready for the day. A two-hour drive to the hike ahead. The road is basically nothing but switchbacks the entire way. Considering we’ve already covered around 3,500 km on this trip, there’s naturally a bit of fatigue — but driving on roads this good, and in a car that still feels exotic to me, is something I genuinely enjoy. I like it. The driving itself becomes part of the experience. There’s a short wait at the ranger station to enter the park, but no more than 15 minutes. A bit of stress about parking at the trailhead since we arrive around 10 a.m., which is a late start by hiker standards. But we get incredibly lucky and grab the very last parking spot. Clearly meant for us.

Today’s route: Taft Point – Roosevelt Point – Sentinel Dome. Finally, a trail that isn’t paved! Almost the entire route follows natural terrain, but it’s fairly gentle, so the elevation gain adds up without really being noticed. For much of the hike, over my left shoulder on the far side of the valley, we can see the mighty 914-meter-tall El Capitan. We also spot the place where the iconic Bridalveil Fall of Yosemite Valley should be — but after the dry summer period, it’s currently dried up, waiting for winter snow to bring it back to life. There aren’t too many people on the trail, so we run into quite a few chipmunks, gracefully posing against the mountain backdrop while being deeply occupied with solving their own pressing issues (cones). We reach the first viewpoint — Taft Point — after about 30 minutes of walking. This cliff, sitting at 2,280 meters above sea level, opens up a view over the entire Yosemite Valley, with El Capitan directly opposite. Down below, cars look like tiny ants rushing in and out of Yosemite Valley Village. You have to be careful here — the cliff edge isn’t fenced. One step over the edge and you’re met with a 1,067-meter free fall.

Next, we head toward Sentinel Dome, which takes us up to 2,477 meters above sea level. It’s
one of Yosemite’s ultimate panoramic viewpoints, offering a full 360-degree view of the valley’s
largest, most impressive, and most iconic landmarks — Half Dome included. We stop here for a
small snack before heading back toward the car. It’s hard to sit for long, as the cold mountain
wind bites at our cheeks. Plenty of people around, but it feels like we’re the only ones who aren’t American.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK: GLACIER POINT

18.09.2024: Just like we were lucky enough to grab the last parking spot when we arrived at Taft Point, we now pass that luck on to the next person who pulls into the already full lot. The driver clearly appreciated the gifted spot and, without wasting any time, immediately started
squeezing in.

Next, we drive on to Glacier Point, which offers another set of indescribable views over
Yosemite Valley. It’s probably the park’s most popular and most accessible panorama.
Similar to Sentinel Dome, just with about a hundred times more tourists — mainly
because you can drive almost all the way up. Maybe from Glacier Point it feels like you’re a
bit closer to Half Dome than from Sentinel Dome, but if I had to choose just one, I’d still go
with Sentinel. There’s a sense that you’ve earned that view by climbing the rounded gray
rock dome, rather than simply driving up. After the hike, a bit of fatigue has built up, and
we’d really like to sit down somewhere and eat — but that’s not really an option here. So we’ll
drive down into the valley and go look for some happiness for our stomachs there.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK: NEVADA FALLS, VERNALL FALLS

19.09.2024: Today is planned as the long and final national park hike. We’re heading out to find the only two waterfalls in Yosemite that haven’t dried up after the summer season — Vernal Falls and Nevada Falls. The hike starts with a very steep but paved climb uphill. At the moment, one section of the trail — the Mist Trail — is closed for repairs, which instantly adds about 5 km to today’s hike. We head toward Clark Point, following an endless series of zigzag switchbacks. After two weeks on the trails, the fatigue is definitely noticeable in our legs, but we keep moving. After about 2.5 hours, we reach the furthest point of the hike — Nevada Falls, where the park’s remaining water plunges down from an impressively large height.

It snowed the previous day in the higher parts of the park, and today even Tioga Pass is closed due to bad conditions, so the water supply has been slightly replenished. Good thing we got lucky and drove the pass two days earlier — otherwise that would’ve been a sad story. If the pass had been closed, we would’ve had to drive all the way around the mountain range, adding roughly 6–8 hours to the trip.

After the first waterfall comes a massive descent over deceptively slanted rocks, which takes
quite a bit of time. We reach the second waterfall — Vernal Falls. A short rest and a picnic. In the distance, we hear a thunderstorm approaching, and it starts to rain lightly where we are as well. Nothing serious yet, so we quickly get moving. Now we have to take the detour since the Mist Trail is closed — back up to Clark Point and then back down the zigzags we climbed earlier.
We complete this trail in about 5 hours. We also want to stop by Mirror Lake, from where you
can see Half Dome’s vertical face from below. In this dry season, there’s nothing left of the
lake itself, but at least we get to admire the cliffs.

All that’s left is to refuel at a valley restaurant after a 26 km walk surrounded by squirrels, and
then head back to our accommodation. In the evening, we take the opportunity to warm up in the jacuzzi and swim in the pool at our countryside guesthouse. A very pleasant way to recover after long hikes. I top it off with two local beers, and total softness sets in. Still, we have to pack our bags tonight to make the most of tomorrow – last day in San Francisco.

SAN FRANCISCO: BATTERY SPENCER, RUSSIAN HILL

20.09.2024: After a good breakfast, we get ready for the drive to San Francisco. Along the way, we wash the car and somehow end up refueling twice, just to get the fuel level as close as possible to the half-tank mark required for the return.

Our first stop is Battery Spencer, the viewpoint overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. Second
attempt — but once again, the bridge stubbornly hides beneath San Francisco’s signature fog.
Visibility might be just a touch better than last time, but we still can’t see much beyond the first
tower. Looks like we truly hit the jackpot on our very first day in San Francisco, when we saw
the bridge in all its glory under a perfectly blue sky.

On the way to the hotel, we take a few detours through the city and also drive down Filbert
Street — the steepest street in San Francisco and one of the steepest in the world, with a
31.5% gradient. Quite a sight to experience by car. We manage to check into the hotel three hours early, which is great — otherwise we’d have had to figure out what to do with our bags. Even though there’s thick fog near the bridge, from our hotel window on the opposite side of the bay the sun is shining and the sky is completely blue.

Next task: returning the car. Just three blocks from the hotel — basically next door. The return
process is super quick and easy. The only thing they check is whether the fuel level is where it
should be. Perfect.

This marks the beginning of our last free evening on the U.S. West Coast. We take a short
walk through Chinatown. Nothing really grabs us, and we pass through fairly quickly. Then we
head toward Russian Hill — an exclusive San Francisco residential area where, thanks to the
city’s dramatic terrain, houses enjoy fairy-tale views over the bay and the city skyline, with the
Bay Bridge and Transamerica Pyramid in full display. The walk up here involves a serious
climb, so we take a short break before moving on.
Before starting a bar crawl, we stop at a café. The first genuinely good espresso I’ve had this
entire vacation. Then a couple of beers at two bars in the Marina District before heading back
toward our hotel area. Madara still wants to make it to Macy’s before calling it a day.
By evening, the city is completely wrapped in thick fog. From the hotel window, even in the
dark, you can see how the tops of the skyscrapers disappear straight into the fog bank.

SFO-IST-RIX

21.09.2024: In the morning, we ride one of the old cable cars through San Francisco’s steep streets. A bit of confusion with buying tickets, but in the end we just pay the conductor in cash and that’s it. A ride in these historic cars costs $8 per person.

Once we get on the metro, we receive a message that our first flight is delayed by four
hours. Arriving at the airport, we find out that we’ll most likely miss our connecting flight
and end up spending a day in Istanbul, since the planned layover was just under four
hours. There’s nothing we can really do about it, so all that’s left is to go with the flow and
hope that somehow we arrive a bit earlier than expected.
The only real regret is that we received the delay notification already on our way to the
airport — otherwise, those four hours could have easily been spent wandering around the
city a little longer.

BÜYÜKÇEKMECE, TURKEY

22.09.2024: The flight somehow passes very quickly. Madara sleeps through almost the entire journey again, while I try to stay awake to adjust to the new time zone. I watch three good movies and then eventually doze off a bit myself.

After landing, we immediately rush to the screens with the naïve hope that maybe the flight to
Riga has been delayed. But no luck… At the information desk, we also try to get onto a flight to
Warsaw, which would have taken us to Riga shortly after midnight. But that plane is full. At
least Turkish Airlines makes the effort — credit where it’s due.

We accept that we’ll be flying home tomorrow. On the bright side, the Turks provide us with a
hotel and meals. At least we’ll get some proper sleep. The hotel is about an hour’s drive from
the airport and isn’t actually in Istanbul, but in the town of Büyükçekmece.

RIGA, LATVIA: HOME

23.09.2024: We set off for home on Saturday at 9:00 a.m. from San Francisco Airport and arrive back home on Monday at 8:00 p.m. That was one long journey back. Even though the Turkish care for delayed passengers is excellent, the whole process is still incredibly exhausting. But anyway — we’re home!

As we talked about on the way back, the entire trip was accompanied by a surprising amount of
luck in all sorts of situations. On both long-haul flights, we ended up in what we jokingly call
“budget business class” — two people across three seats. On key days, we were able to check into hotels several hours earlier than standard. The day after we arrived in Yosemite National Park, the Tioga Pass was closed due to bad weather — that would have been a disaster for us. It would’ve meant at least a 6–8 hour detour around the mountain range. And most importantly, despite San Francisco’s famously oppressive fog — “Carl the Fog” — we still got one perfect day where we saw the mighty Golden Gate Bridge in all its glory under a blue sky. We were just missing one last luck coupon to get home on time. After long e-mails and 13 months we even managed to get the compensation for the delayed arrival from Turkish Airlines. So there’s that.

The trip itself was absolutely epic. Even though we covered 4,140 km by car in two weeks —
roughly the distance from Riga to Faro in Portugal — our little Dodge handled the task perfectly
and carried us everywhere efficiently and without sore backsides. The enormous distances
between sights in the U.S. leave no other option than racking up serious mileage on the odometer.
To put it in Latvian terms: if Yosemite National Park were Riga, then staying overnight while visiting the park would mean sleeping in Skrunda. And that’s considered completely normal — even a relatively short distance to drive every day.

Over the course of the trip, we hiked more than 100 km in national parks alone. If you add up all the walking, I’m sure the total would exceed 200 km. On average, that means about 300 km driven per day, followed by a 15 km walk.
There were so many impressions and emotions that toward the end they almost started to blur
together — but still, you have to enjoy and process what we saw. Trips like this don’t happen very
often!