Westerner 3

TOUR OVERVIEW
The absolute best of the American Southwest - from soaring mountains, serene deserts and incredible canyons to rich and famous resort towns, casinos, movie sets and more. Experience an incredible adventure filled with an endless array of day and night time activities.


INCLUDED HIGHLIGHTS

• Authentic cowboy camp
• Western horseback riding
• Walk the Golden Gate Bridge
• Grand Canyon sunrise or sunset
• Walk amongst Giant Sequoias
• Scenic walks and hikes
• City tours of San Francisco and Hollywood
• Sightseeing in San Diego
• National parks and monuments - Yosemite, Zion, Bryce, Arches, Monument Valley, Lake Powell and the Grand Canyon
• Services of a TrekAmerica tour leader
• All transportation by private adventure vehicle
• 16 nights camping fees & equipment (except sleeping bag)

FLEXIBLE ITINERARY

Our routes have been carefully chosen to include the best night stops and highlights. However, as local conditions and passenger requests vary, no two trips will ever be the same. With the guidance of your Trek Leader you may modify certain nightstops and highlights to give a truly unique experience!


Days: 1-2 Los Angeles, Pacific Coast & Big Sur

With LA in the rearview mirror, head up the rugged California coast on the Pacific Coast Highway and take in the sights as the surf spirit takes hold of you! Fasten your seatbelt for blockbusting scenery. At the Monterey Peninsula, kick back on the beach, try sea kayaking or just chill in one of many cafes or bars of John Steinbeck's Cannery Row.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 3-4 San Francisco

Next, "Everybody's Favourite City", San Francisco, with its endless options. We'll tour the city and stride across the Golden Gate Bridge, before letting the cable cars carry us through the fabled, steep streets. View the Bay and Alcatraz on an optional ferry boat ride, visit Fishermans Wharf, shop in Chinatown and Union Square and sample the famous nightlife too, be it authentic Chinatown eateries, cool bars in North Beach or Haight-Ashbury or dance-floors heaving to hip-hop beats.
Accommodation: 2 en-route hotel nights paid locally


Days: 5-6 Yosemite National Park

Prepare to be wowed. Thundering waterfalls, huge granite cliffs shaped by the elements and towering sequoia trees are all perfect camera fodder within this huge wilderness. We have two days to hike, bike, or float through this extraordinary landscape. If you want a real challenge, try the 17 mile round trip hike to the top of Half Dome!
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 7 Sierra Nevadas

Take in bags of good ol' fresh air. Nothing beats following the park trails on foot, whether 'intrepid' is your middle name or you're a total city slicker.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 8 Zion National Park

You will have plenty of time to discover the Southwest's great diversity as we visit three National Parks over the next four days. Over in Utah, the call of the wild is just as strong. Negotiate the stunning terrain of Zion National Park first. Trek through colourful canyons or take a duck's eye view on the tree-lined Virgin River as it meanders below massive, cathedral-like, sandstone walls soaring several thousand feet into the sky.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 9 Bryce Canyon National Park

What's a hoodoo when it's at home? Actually, Hoodoos are weird and wonderful rock spires arranged in rows. "Mysterious", "breathtaking", "out of this world", are only a few of the descriptions offered by past visitors to Bryce Canyon National Park. For close up views, we allow plenty of time to take advantage of the park's incredible system of trails. Wherever you walk, you will encounter a kaleidoscope of colours and a fantasyland of rock spires that will leave you searching for your own way to describe this 'indescribable' place.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 10-11 Arches National Park/Moab

The park's name says it all. Some 2,000 orange sandstone arches strike their poses. Moab is the perfect base for two days of exploration and adventure in Arches & Canyonlands National Parks. Endless opportunity awaits; take a sunset stroll to Delicate Arch or bike down the famous `Slick Rock Trail´, float down the Colorado on a scenic rafting trip or tackle the terrain high above on a guided jeep tour.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 12 Wild West Cowboy Camp

Pull up those boots and grab your Stetson, because you'll be riding high in the saddle on an included horseback ride at our wild western cowboy camp. Yeee haaa! Your evening feast is then served piping hot from an authentic Dutch oven - that's a three-legged cooking pot for strangers to life on the plains.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 13 Monument Valley

We head to the Navajo Tribal Lands of Monument Valley. The only things to pre-date the origins of Native American culture are the towering buttes and mesas which dominate the awe-inspiring landscape. Take the opportunity to experience it close-up with an optional jeep ride and a Navajo Indian Reservation visit before setting up camp on the edge of Monument Valley. What a place to swap campfire stories and songs.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 14 Lake Powell

Swim the deep blue waters of Lake Powell, formerly the great Glenn Canyon, ride a waverunner or just sit back on the shore and soak up the powerful rays of this beautiful and surreal man-made desert oasis.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 15-16 Grand Canyon National Park

Next we come face to face with the most awe-inspiring national park of them all, Grand Canyon. Nothing you have ever seen before will prepare you for this spectacular site! Hike from the forest above to the desert below, red rock to white powder, or take a helicopter flight above it all and marvel at the brilliant colours. One thing's for sure though, this place looks incredible from any angle, especially walking along the rim at sunset or sunrise.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 17-18 Las Vegas

Back to the modern world with a bang - Las Vegas - the greatest show on earth! Cruise "The Strip" in a super-stretch limo, indulge in an all-you-can eat buffet, take in a show or just watch the amazing crowds, neon and attractions that many hotel casinos have to offer. And if that's not enough, take a helicopter flight down The Strip or just gamble the night away in one of the world class casinos. Oh, and there's a saying here: what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.
Accommodation: 2 en-route hotel nights paid locally


Days: 19-20 San Diego

It's all about the beach: bronzed bodies, big shades and baggy shorts. After strutting your stuff on a surfboard, rent bicycles, rollerblade, explore SeaWorld or the world famous San Diego Zoo.
Accommodation: Camping included


Days: 21 Los Angeles

Here's your finale. Back in Tinseltown, a visit to LA's craziest beach scene, quintessential Venice Beach and a tour of Hollywood Boulevard, the iconic Hollywood sign and Mann's
Chinese Theatre with its famous Walk of Stars - before the credits role on your blockbuster adventure.

Tour ends at approx 17:00 hrs in Los Angeles on day 21.