Everyone who slept on the tarp under the skies last night just disappeared in a massive exodus to the bus in the middle of the night. Why? It was raining. I was quite warm and sleepy so when I realised it had stopped as quickly as it started, I just went back to sleep. This was after I had to readjust the rocks holding the tarp down. It was pretty windy too. Eventually even I was defeated and I moved in under the covered picnic area when it started pouring stead...

This is what I love about the Tortoise bus. I went to sleep on the bus at the hot/lukewarm springs and woke up at Arches National Park. Brilliant! Arches is incredible and is almost more impressive from the outside than inside, until you reach the trails. A good group of us chose the Primitive Loop trail and it was really nice walking through the desert looking at the amazing rock formations, even though the weather was a little cloudy. Our small group consisted...

I think I would have struggled to take a bad photo today when we visited Bryce Canyon and the Fairyland Trail. The weather was nothing short of perfect and the views were spectacular. A lot of us set out on the Fairyland Trail with the goal of being picked up by the Tortoise bus at Fairyland Point. When a thousand group photos were being taken, I decided to go ahead with Noemie, Justin and Maureen. The scenery was fantastic and the company great. I even had an op...

I'm surprised I stayed awake today. I'm incredibly thankful though, as any sleepiness may have led to me plunging to my death from Angel's Landing in Zion National Park. I wasn't exactly the most sociable soul on the way to Zion from Vegas. I basically threw my stuff onto the bus and went straight to the back to sleep. We stopped quite a bit so I only managed about 20 minutes before we got to Zion. I was starving as I'd had breakfast really early, so I grabbed s...

The correct answer to the question "medium or large?" is "small". I must remember this. In a country dominated by fast food joints, this is their way of making sure they squeeze an extra dollar or two out of you for a few more fries (chips). Since drink refills are free, that is literally all you're paying for. Anyway, with that lesson learned again, let's talk travel. I had one full day in Vegas, and I packed it with a lot of things. I actually arrived at midni...