Hey y’all!  This week I will be taking a trip to the wild western state of Wyoming!  Now as I mentioned in my first post about Michigan, Wyoming does not exactly pop out as a vacation hot spot.  Let me be the first to tell you, however, that Wyoming is by far (and I mean by far) the most beautiful and compelling state I have ever encountered.  It is as though you are walking into a different world and I could not believe my eyes for most of the trip.   

Back in 2012, my family and I adventured to Wyoming over the summer because, for those of you who are not aware, Wyoming makes up a portion of the Rocky Mountains which is nearly impossible to visit during the winter (though it would be remarkable this time of year).  I am going to take a minute now to address an incident that happen right as we entered the state.  

When we entered Wyoming at 8pm on a Thursday night driving west on I80, we were driving through a storm and started up the Laramie Mountain Range.  Well one interesting fact about Wyoming is that when entering the state from where we did, you are leaving the Great Plains region of the United States.  When we started up the mountain we could therefore see the edge of the storm (because the ground was so flat) but as we neared the top of the mountain the sun was blinding us.  Apparently, a MAC truck had been blinded as well and wrecked into a car just moments before we came barreling through going 70 mph.  There was debris everywhere and with nowhere else to go, my father had to run over most of it.  As he tried to swerve the big pieces another MAC truck was trying to do the same and nearly ran straight into us.  After we passed the accident and just nearly avoided one ourselves, we pulled over to check the vehicle and upon getting out we encounter one of the greatest works of nature: the rainbow.  It was a surreal moment I will never forget. 

 

Now that we finally got safely into Wyoming, we went to stay in a town called Jackson Hole.  This town is situated just outside Grand Teton National Park which was our main attraction at this point.  The park is filled with beautiful mountain ranges and wildlife that remind you of a postcard from every angle.  I can remember seeing the hundreds upon thousands of bison grazing out in the fields while having prairie dogs run and prance about at my feet.  We were also privileged to see elk, pronghorn, and bald eagles which are all truly magnificent creatures.  While in Jackson Hole, we also decided to do some hiking.  We took a boat over Jenny Lake to reach the starting point for our hike to a spot known as Inspiration Point.  Upon reaching the top, we had climbed 7200 feet!  The view out over the lake and horizon was breath-taking and still engrained into my memory now six years later.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My family and I then traveled from Jackson Hole to the well-known Yellowstone National Park.  The park itself is primarily in Wyoming with extensions into both Idaho and Montana as well.  While in Yellowstone, we went to one of the most popular tourist attractions the park has to offer: Old Faithful.  Old Faithful is Yellowstone’s most regular geyser, erupting on average every 93 minutes.  The geyser projects water up to an astonishing 184 feet and erupts for up to five minutes at a time.  We were fortunate enough to witness four straight minutes of Old Faithful’s powerful eruption, of which I was thrilled every second.   

We then proceeded to peruse the park gawking at each and every hot spring and mud pool.  One other pool in particular caught my attention.  The Grand Prismatic Pool, which is part of the Midway Geyser Basin, bestowed upon us a beautiful display of colors created by the various bacteria in the pool (yes, bacteria can be beautiful).  This pool was breath-taking when including the wooded backdrop of the Yellowstone forests and wildlife.   

 

Continuing our adventure of Yellowstone, we advanced over to the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.  This canyon is carved out by the mighty Yellowstone River that eventually deposits into the Missouri River.  Hiking along Uncle Tom’s Trail, we descended over 300 stairs to reach the overlook of the Lower Falls.  This was the definition of awe-inspiring as we watched thousands of gallons of water cascade down the falls.   

Now I could go on and on for pages and pages about how spectacular Wyoming truly is, but I will refrain for now.  My advice is to not only take my word for it, but to go visit it yourself if possible.  Even if nature is not your thing, give Wyoming a shot.  It could turn you from a city-slicker to a nature-lover in seconds. 

Stick around for next week when I take on the exact opposite of nature and possibly the exact definition of wildlife in New York.

Hey everyone!  This week I will be traveling to the great state of Florida for loads of sunshine and fun.  Now Florida is viewed typically as a vacation spot and occasionally I have to jump on the bandwagon and see what all the fuss is about.  My family and I traveled to Florida over Christmas (thus why there are Christmas decorations in the pictures), so we did not have to deal with the heat of summer.  First, I will walk through the great attractions of the Orlando area. 

 

My family and I started off our time in Orlando by going to the infamous Walt Disney World.  We decided to go to Magic Kingdom (one of Disney’s four main parks) for the day.  Magic Kingdom, as the name suggests, is truly magical between all the Disney characters walking around and the thrilling amusement park rides.  My family and I had fast passes for a few of the rides which I would highly recommended getting so that the long lines may be skipped.  Some of my absolute favorite rides included Space Mountain and the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.  Both rides are roller coasters that suit any thrill-seeking adrenaline junkie with their quick bends and steep hills.  I was also amazed by the Disney Fantasy Parade that marches through the streets of Magic Kingdom every day.  This parade provides the opportunity to see all one’s favorite Disney characters from one spot.  At night, the Magic Castle has lit up in various colors creating a beautiful centerpiece to the Christmas lined buildings of the main street.  I would highly recommend going to Disney over Christmas at some point to see the park in all its glory. 

 

After our day in Disney, my family and I set off to Daytona for a tour of the International Speedway.  Now it may not seem as though there is not much to observe at a racetrack, but I was in complete shock by how eye-opening of an experience it was.  As the following picture shows the speedway is actually at an angle throughout the entire loop.  The picture was taken along the straightaway because the turns were too steep for visitors to be on.  I also got to experience, first-hand, victory lane which was a lot smaller than I had expected it to be for such a big race as the Daytona 500.   

 

 

The next day of our trip was truly a once in a lifetime experience.  We went to a place called Discovery Cove where aquatic life meets man (and woman).  This paradise featured multiple pools with a 30-minute long lazy river through an aviary, meet-and-greet with dolphins, and swimming with aquatic life from stingrays to sharks.  On top of all that, the resort was also “all you can eat” all day because who does not love food.  The most unbelievable part was when I got to get up close and swim with a dolphin.  The dolphin had extremely smooth skin and glided through the water with ease.  The trainers even permitted us to kiss the dolphin.  This day will live forever in my memory and I would recommend everyone try to experience the beauty of nature in some way similar to this throughout his or her life. 

 

 

 

After visiting Orlando for a week, we slid southwest, over to the Siesta Keys.  Now for anyone who goes to the beach in North Carolina, South Carolina, or anywhere else near there, you can relate to the burning sensation caused by walking along the sand during the day.  In the Siesta Keys, I was shocked to find the white sand beaches to be completely cool and refreshing to walk on.  I can remember the water being a clear blue and being surrounded by all this on Christmas Day.  Since I am from Pennsylvania, Christmas on the beach was a foreign concept.  My family decided we were going to do some major building out of sand this day and in the spirit of winter going to make a snowman (aka sandman).  After five hours of hard work we had a made a tourist attraction with over 200 people stopping to take pictures and sit on the bench we had carved.  The day was completed with a beautiful sunset over the ocean.   

As we started to head back north on our route home, we stayed in St. Augustine in northern Florida as well.  The town features the oldest masonry fort in the continental United States, Castillo de San Marcos.  The fort is 315 years old and features everything from rooms that housed soldiers to beautiful cannons.  It is breath-taking to encounter such an important staple in US history and even more amazing to say “Oh, I’ve been there” when the fort is brought up in a history class.   

Overall, Florida is known to be a tourist attracting state, but I, for one, can attest to the fact that it truly is astonishing.  Not to pick favorites, but this might have been my favorite state of all time.  I hope that everyone will get the chance to visit Florida and discover all its historical and entertainment opportunities.  

Hope everyone stays tuned for an adventurous trip to Wyoming next week! 

Welcome to Just TraveloUS!  This blog will give all kinds of insight into my adventures across the United States.  Every year my family and I hop in our truck with our fifth wheel camper strapped to the back and take a road trip to a variety of places.  My goal for this blog is to introduce a new state each week and highlight some of the great tourist destinations I have visited with hopes that one day everyone can experience these great attractions.   

This week I will be visiting Michigan.  Now Michigan is not what most people would consider a vacation spot, but it has much more to offer than it seems, starting with lower Michigan.  While in the Detroit area, my family and I visited a place called the Henry Ford.  As the name suggests it is both a museum for all automobiles, tractors, locomotives, and Ford influenced inventions as well as the manufacturing plant for the infamous Ford F-150.   

While there I witnessed the build of the truck itself as it ran its way across the assembly line.  It was truly amazing to see how efficiently hundreds upon thousands of trucks could be built.  There were also various presentations on how the trucks are made.  Specifically, one presentation caught my attention.  During this presentation I was dazzled by a laser light show that was projected onto a blank model of the F-150 showing the construction process.  The theater also had multiple screens surrounding the audience which enhanced the experience.   

While visiting the museum portion of this captivating place, I was also taken aback by vehicles such as the car President John F. Kennedy was in when he was shot.  There was also the infamous Oscar-Mayer Wienermobile.  Overall, the Henry Ford was a very intriguing place for both people who admire automobiles as well as people, such as me, who before going had almost no knowledge of vehicles.   

 

Next, my family traveled north to the upper portion of Michigan.  Our campground sat directly along Lake Huron with a beautiful view of the sunset and the Mackinac Bridge.  We traveled across the lake one day to visit a place called Mackinac Island.  This was by far my favorite place in Michigan.  The island itself does not allow any motorized vehicles so we had to take a ferry to get there.  The island is filled with beautiful lake front houses, unique gift shops, and plenty of bicycles and horse drawn carriages.   

Once there we began hiking with our goal set on getting to the highest point of the island.  On our way to the top we came across an overlook (my blog header image) as well as a unique rock formation called the Arch Rock.  There is nothing more inspiring to me than seeing such beautiful works of nature such as this.  It reminds me to occasionally slow down and just soak up the moment.   

 

Once finally at the top of the island we were presented with both a beautiful panoramic view of the island and an exclusive look through Fort Holmes.  This fort was originally built during the War of 1812 by the British to help protect the other fort on the island, Fort Mackinac.  It was fascinating to me that such elaborate structures could be built during that point in time. 

While in northern Michigan, my family and I also went to Sault Ste. Marie to go through the Soo Locks.  The Soo Locks are the mighty locks that allow barges, tugboats, freighters, and even sailboats to travel over the 21-foot drop between Lake Superior and Lake Huron.  As our tour boat entered the lock I noticed the gates did not close completely behind us and I thought to myself, won’t the water escape?  It turns out that the pressure from the incoming water forces the gates shut creating a truly spectacular display.  Not only was it amazing to be lifted 21 feet by water within a matter of ten minutes but we were also 20 feet away from Canada.  No passport needed here however!   

Overall, Michigan is overlooked for its fantastic vacation opportunities.  What many do not realize is just how relaxing and freeing a place (besides the beach) can be.  I would recommend visiting Michigan at some point to experience all these amazing places.  

Stay tuned for next week when I travel south to visit the Sunshine State of Florida!