Hows the Fitness Going after the US Fast Food

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Fitness is the thing that goes when travelling, some people get fitter with all the walking and carrying a heavy backpack. But when you hire a car, why walk? Why carry your backpack any further than the trunk to the bedroom floor 5 meters away from the hotel car park. Why over exert yourself? Actually most of America with its open land to discover, the car seems the easier and only logical option. That is until you hit the west coast and in this case California.



There is a slow deterioration of health in general whilst travelling USA. From the options in fast food, to the endless amounts of beer, mostly tasting like water, (still its beer.) The whole of JP5 has been the best I have eaten but I have not done much to keep fit. So as we enter the Yosemite National Park it was time to test out how unfit we had become.



It is the second week of December so hiking here needed pre-thought. With the cold comes layers of clothing. I went with 5 layers including thermals, a wind jacket and winter jacket plus the rest.



Yosemite is the National Park renown for its waterfalls, its towering granite rock formations and its diverse range of plants and animals. It is one of the USA’s most untouched wildernesses. Actually in mid February if you hit El Capitan waterfall with the right sun setting light the water appears to be lava. (Here’s the link: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/weather/let-the-fire-fall-yosemite-waterfall-turns-to-lava-as-sun-and-earth-align-20120221-1tk90.html)



Whilst here I mistakenly called Yosemite to rhyme with the Australian spread vegemite. In hindsight it would have been nice to have some vegemite sandwiches ready for the top but oh well.



The humidity was almost non-existent until you emerge to a level where the first treetops are seen. Sunlight was at full beam so the layers of clothing need to be peeled off. Eventually leaving 3 layers for the hike.



We were heading to Yosemite Point (2114m) passing the Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls. The waterfalls were a no show but what we got was the snow waterfall at the Upper fall. I never knew they existed? At the end of the trickle a large pile of snow built up at the bottom to a granite filled bed. The tall trees the higher you climb are covered in crackling bark sometimes smothered in moss for good measure. Because of the coolness the river froze up in parts helping create that perfect winter landscape shot.



Once at the top the valley sweeps around the granite mountaintops full of green tree tops and just Mother Nature at its best. I was struggling there for a while and held our friend Scott (the real name of Robert Parish.) It took about 5 hours there and back and by the end my legs would be sore for the next few days.



They had a very reasonably priced convenience store at the main office and I went overboard with a full chicken and multiple drinks. The hiking is restricted in December, actually my sister in January got blocked off from the main entrance because of the snow. Provided you can enter the park no matter what you do the Yosemite National Park is worth a visit.



Exhausted but better for it we headed to San Francisco for a brief stopover before our flights out of the country. There are plans to return to the west coast of America but it was a just in case move to come here.



We met up with our good friends from Japan, Googie and Kodait. But before we saw them it was to the top of Hyde Street, which has a view of the city and Alcatraz. I have heard mixed reviews of this place but maybe it’s the car making it easy to get around but I really liked this city. It has a fare bit of character.



It was mid afternoon so the sun was heading toward the end of its life. Golden Gate Bridge has a small car park next to the bridge and gives an up close photo opportunity as well as a chance to walk along the bridge.



When we picked up the girls we did two drives of different speeds. First was the drive down Lombard Street, the steep hair pinned road over one block. It was built that way to help early car models to navigate the steep hills.



Next up is Hyde St, a nice street to emulate a high-speed chase from the movies. After crawling our way down Lombard Street we did a U-turn around the block to get back on Hyde. It’s tempting to go all out and there are stop signs to the lead up which slow you down somewhat. There is also tourists looking down from the top of Lombard street on the right, the cable carts on the left and other cars to contend with but once over the crest it’s a free for all till the traffic lights at the bottom.



The white Toyota Corolla with Rhode Island number plates may not be a black Dodge Charger or Green Ford Mustang from 1968 movie Bullitt but I gave it some until the suspension raised a little and I did tap the brake a little. When we got to the bottom we were stuck for 5 minutes behind some truck. A right turn takes you to Fisherman’s Wharf, which is nice enough although extremely touristy. The best shop is the left-handed shop where you can entertain a good 2 minutes by writing left handed, cutting paper left handed.



This was basically our last few nights together for Scott and I and with the extra company of Googie and Kodiat we bought some red cups and had our own pre-gaming with a college party theme. Beer pong and what not. We stayed near Union Square and the night was entertained with some piano-off between two guys and some Irish pub that we came across.



The highlight of the time was in fact visiting Castro Street the gay area of San Francisco. This is where the gay revolution and the basis of the Henry Milk story came from. A range of eateries and bars line Castro in this section (the cheap Chinese shop has large cheap meals).



There is a different vibe here. I actually don’t mind it especially when walking around with a female. But Robert Parish got some further attention, which Kodait couldn’t get enough of. Finally I’ve found a traveller that gets more unwanted attention from gay people more than me! Been a pleasure Scott.



We were staying in a bit of a rough area in little Saigon and the smell of pot was everywhere. In fact the next day in LA when we smelt it I said, “Whoop! I think I smell San Francisco!” There seem to be a lot of people you’d classify as bums and I bought a magazine from a homeless guy and the newspaper mentions how with the occupy Wall Street protestors, the police are confusing who are homeless or demonstrators so the homeless are being asked to move on from there normal park benched home.



Our final drive south and for our last night we hit LA, it would have been nice to do Hwy 1 the whole way but it takes too long so we reached Hollywood by nightfall. The only annoyance of winter is that the sunsets early so minimising your days. Our last night was an obligation to try and have a big one. We gave Hollywood a shake but when we got there hardly any place was open.



It just seemed like I was walking down a bit of George Street in Sydney where the cinemas are. In the end the total amount of drink was zero and we went to bed. The only bar was full of underage kids from the surrounding suburbs probably some celebrity kids.



The next day we were to try and make use of the car. Drive to the cliché destinations. Hollywood again to see the footprints and fingerprints in front of the Mann’s Chinese Theatre, a drive up to Griffin Park and the observatory and Planetarium for the closest view of the Hollywood sign, Beverly Hills than Malibu. It was nice driving through these areas with a car with 3 months of built up dirt on it.



LA just felt like one big suburb really with Beverly Hills having the mansions and Malibu with the ocean. Didn’t do much for me and an anti-climax to what had been an incredible road trip that was beyond expectations.



As my last few hours ticked over we finally had our last few beers and I admitted, “I’m kind of not ready to leave.” I haven’t had that feeling too often in my travels. The beauty of this place is that there are so many things that are so right whilst at the same time, equally, so many things that are so wrong. Luckily I will return briefly to conclude JP5 and perhaps then I will get my fill of the US. Until then my USA journey is not complete.



A big thanks has to go out to Scott my road trip buddy for two months. He now takes over the mantle as the longest human being to survive travelling with thedribbleman. I’m sure there were moments of frustration that we both would like to forget. Like me waking up sometimes 2 hours before Scott did and his alarm being me typing on the computer.



You really get to know a person on a road trip environment - The real person in all their fluctuant glory. Especially after hoeing down the fast food specials and an endless amount of Buffalo wings. Tuesday mornings after the Monday night Football specials were the real deal.



But I wouldn’t change too much of what we did and the experiences we had. I lucked out in the end when we joined forces. He could have even saved me from a serious accident too because I was exhausted after the first month. On Scott’s (AKA: Robert Parish’s) first shift behind the wheel I feel asleep in the passengers seat for about a minute and woke up suddenly and floundered around desperate to find the wheel, the gear stick, the brakes, anything. Bellowing out a panicked “Brrah!” I realised soon after Scott saved my life (to sound dramatic.)



The stories from Chicago onwards are as much his as they are mine but in his own words would be far more condensed to my long-winded dribble I can’t seem to avoid. Thanks again Scott and to the people who gave up their time to read our adventures. JP5 has not finished but we are nearing the end.

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