The continuation of the journey and the end of the road trip...

The drive to YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK was already impressive as you approach a huge mountain range. After a 2-hour drive, we tried to find the Visitor Center, which proved more difficult than expected due to detours caused by flood damage. After finally finding it, the ranger gave us some tips and places to visit for the day. Then we watched the introductory film about the park and its formation. We hiked various trails, starting with the Nevada Falls. The ascent was challenging and steep, as some parts of the trail were still slippery due to crushed ice on the rocks. With the amount of ice, we could have opened a bar up there, which would have been quite popular with the number of people out that day. Once we reached the top, we enjoyed the well-deserved view and spent about half an hour resting and mentally preparing for the descent. Throughout the day, we hiked several other trails after this one, and by the evening, we could feel it in our legs. We took about 26,000 steps that day and in the evening, we drove out of the park again, parking our car in a parking lot where we planned to spend the night. There, we cooked our well-deserved dinner.

The next morning, we headed to SACRAMENTO. This is the capital of California, and we first visited Old Sacramento. The typical American style of the different stores was quite impressive. In the afternoon, we took a tour of the government building and then met up with our next host. Together, we went shopping for dinner and cooked together at her place. After conversations about travel and music, we went to her favorite bar, which was also decorated in a classic style.

The next morning, we set off for MENDOCINO NATIONAL FOREST. Unfortunately, we encountered heavy rain in the afternoon as we tried to reach the forest. We traveled on unpaved roads, unsure if the van would make it. On top of that, Google Maps was not accurate and tried to guide us through private paths. After half an hour of driving uphill, fog set in, and we decided not to continue as we wanted to reach the top safely. So we parked at a rest area next to the road, ate something, and went to bed early. We got up early the next morning and drove back to our next destination, ASHLAND. This was our first time setting foot in Oregon, and we found accommodation with a host there. We explored the small town first and then went to a brewery with our host. There was a huge variety of beers, and the decor was remarkable, with shelves along the whole wall filled with different beer varieties from all over the world.

The following afternoon, we arrived in PORTLAND. Here, too, we found accommodation through someone Steve had met on the East Coast of the United States. She worked at a pizzeria, and that's where we met her, where she welcomed us with two free slices of pizza. Then we went back to her apartment and planned our next day. After breakfast, we explored Portland: first, we went to the Saturday Market, a kind of flea market with many handmade items, although mostly knick-knacks and decorations that we couldn't afford to carry as additional baggage on our trip. After visiting Oldtown, we passed by the famous Voodoo Donuts, but the line was very long on that day, so we decided not to waste our time waiting. Then we walked through Washington Park, which was basically a huge piece of forest in the middle of the city. Since Portland has many trees, I saw the perfect t-shirt describing the situation at the market. Initially, we planned to continue the next day, but our host convinced us to stay one more day. So the next day, we hiked half an hour north of Portland with her on one of her favorite trails and enjoyed the view despite the strong wind up there. Since it was Easter Sunday, many people were out, and someone had hidden small Easter eggs with messages along the whole trail. After returning in the afternoon, we initially wanted to buy groceries for our dinner. Fortunately, the roommates and a few friends decided to grill hamburgers together, so we only had to get the meat and could use the rest from them, which was very kind of them.

The next day, after a video call with Mama Lara and Alke, we headed north again. Before reaching our final destination in the USA, we spent an afternoon hiking around Coldwater Lake in MT SAINT HELEN. Unfortunately, only the first 4 km were accessible, as the trail was cut off by a waterfall. This was fine with us since we were planning to leave early in the evening and drive towards SEATTLE. There, we met up with our host. We spent our last day in the USA exploring the sights in Seattle with a guided tour from another couchsurfer. We got to see some places that we hadn't even thought of. In the afternoon, we drove to VANCOUVER, and the final two weeks with Steve were diverse, impressive, and exciting, and for that, I want to say thank you! Here is Steve's YouTube channel covering his entire stay in Canada and the trip through the USA, although our parts of the trip are not completed yet:

https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCM_49cqXUn8zVACxNpbiqsg

In the early evening, we reached the border, and we were a bit nervous as border control can be quite strict. However, our nervousness was in vain, as we were fortunate to have a relaxed border officer. So nothing could stop us on our way to Vancouver, and we were excited to see what awaited us there and how the job search would be. At least for the first week, we had accommodation with a host who wanted to welcome us after our trip, and that was our next destination...