2499miles - 4970 km later

HI guys,

Now we're on our own.

With which means of transport? A campervan, quite comfortable and easy to drive. We just have to clarify the question where to go. In any case, I wanted to go to Big Bend National Park in Texas. For this purpose, we asked our crazy Contiki guide Braden if he could give us some tips for going down to Texas. Of course, he created a little round trip for us.

First we drive from Los Angeles to Joshua Tree National Park. There we spent the night at a campsite in the desert.

The next morning we made a stopover in Tucson (Arizona). The next morning started pretty early because we had a long drive to Big Bend National Park ahead of us. After this long drive, we finally arrived at the park in the evening. A beautiful national park with mountains on one side, then a part with only desert, and then there's the Rio Grande, which flows through the park.

After two nights in Big Bend, we drove to Guadalupe Mountains. The weather changes pretty quickly from sunshine to rain (that's West Texas for you). Because of that, we decided to skip hiking and look for a campsite instead.

The next morning in Artesia didn't start so well because the car didn't start, but help was quickly on the way and the journey continued to Santa Fe. A small cute town in New Mexico. If you ever get there, we recommend Pasqual Café. They serve very good coffee and Mexican food there. The campsite we chose for that night was outside of Santa Fe in the forest, very beautiful there.

The next morning started again only with the help of someone else to get the car running. Out of sheer joy that everything was fine again, we accidentally locked ourselves out. Don't ask us how that could have happened because we don't know ourselves. Ten minutes later and with a bent barbecue tongs, we continued on to Sedona. We actually managed to break into our car through the window. On the way to Sedona, we drove through Petrified Forest National Park, also very beautiful.

On July 30th, we drove on Route 89A, which leads through the mountains, back to Los Angeles. We even drove a stretch on Route 66. When we arrived in Los Angeles, we enjoyed the last sunset in the USA at the Observatory deck.

SUMMARY:

We drove for 40 hours and 4979 km.

We needed jumpstarts 3 times and broke into our own car once.

We drove through deserts, forests, mountains, and even nowhere.

We drove on Interstate-10, I-40, Route 66, and 89A.

All in all, it was pure freedom.

Thank you Braden for this great round trip suggestion.

With love, your Egger girls

HI guys,

Now we're on our own and back on the Road again.

We rent a camper. Very comfortable and easy to drive. For our destinations, we had the best connections with our screen tour guide Braden. He gave us a round trip from LA down to Texas and back.

The first stop was Joshua Tree NP. We stayed 1 night in the desert, with no toilets and showers. 😬 But the view was amazing in the morning.

The next day, we stayed at a campsite in Tucson, Arizona. We met very friendly and helpful people there.

The day after tomorrow, we started very early down to Big Bend NP. It's a beautiful NP with mountains, deserts, and the river called Rio Grande. We lived there for 2 nights and had everything, from sunshine to rain to storm.

After Texas, we drove through Guadalupe NP, New Mexico. The weather was not so good, so we decided to skip hiking and go straight to the campsite. In the morning, we needed help. Our car didn't start. But we had great neighbors with cables, so we went back on the road to Santa Fe.

This little town is cute with its Indian shops and markets. We found a nice restaurant called Pasqual's Café, good for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We recommend it. In Santa Fe, we stayed at a campsite in the forest. We tried to make a fire, but after 1 hour we gave up. So we went to bed without marshmallows.

The next day started the same way as yesterday, but with a new highlight. When we jumped the car, the doors locked themselves, the key inside, us outside. No phone service (forest). A neighbor had a great idea with a fork, so we cracked our own car 😂.

Today's target: Sedona. On the way, we passed Petrified Forest NP. Amazing views. The last day, we drove from Sedona to LA on the 89A, a way through the mountains, very beautiful. We also drove a part on Route 66.

In LA, we enjoyed our last night in the US at the Observatory. Amazing sunset.

Resume

We drove for 40 hours, 4970 km, drank 30 beer cans.

Needed 3 jumps for the camper. Slept in a desert, the mountains, and a forest. Drove on the I-10, I-40, 89A, Route 66, and into nothing.

All in all, it was a very great trip. Freedom.

Thank you Braden for all the advice. 😊

Love, Klara & Luci