Jolly Old England

The Daily News' road trip tips for crossing the USA. Part 4/5

Welcome to part 4/5 of TDN editor Trevor Johnson's blog about his and his girlfriend's five-week road trip from Washington DC to San Francisco, which took place earlier this year. This week's instalment opens as they wake up for their first day in Last Vegas...

The Daily News’ road trip tips for crossing the USA. Part 3/5

Cowboy host at the Big Texan. He spotted me taking his picture but luckily didn't kill me.

San Francisco pictures, including Alcatraz

Thanks for reading our road trip blog, which finishes here. When I relaunch Jolly Old England, probably in 2012, I will actually add some facts about the places we visited! My forte is more silly jokes, as you will have noticed. Thankfully, Rachel has taken a lot of notes about the history of places we have seen. Here is a medley of pics from our last few days in windy San Francisco. Oh, and there'll be a Road Trip Movie coming soon.

USA road trip days 29 & 30: San Francisco, California

We take the car round the corner and feel almost cruel as a very brusque man takes delivery of it without examination or comment. Goodbye little car, you served us well. 4,480 miles on the clock for our trip. Eat it. 

USA road trip days 27 & 28: San Francisco, California

Due to popular demand, here is a pic of the boots.

Days 25 and 26: Yosemite National Park and Calistoga, California

9.15am. I’d imagined that, having gone to bed so early, I’d be up at 5am, frying bacon and eggs, having trimmed my moustache and exchanged cricket scores with the nearest Englishman, and then that I would scale El Capitan in a rakish smoking jacket before abseiling down on a rope made of virgins’ hair, in time for lunch.

As it turned out, it’s 9.15am before I extricate myself from the gordian knot of clothes and blankets that imprison me, and stomp down to the “showerhouse” to get naked with a bunch of fratboys.

USA road trip days 23 and 24: Yosemite National Park, California

Lunch stop at June Lake.

Rachel hits the laundromat while I go back to Death Valley to take pics of the last stretch, which I’d thought so photogenic the day before but had been unable to snap because of the battery problem.

I return to pick up R and we drive through wonderful snowy mountains, which close around us. We hadn’t been expecting the whole snow and mountains thing to continue, let alone grow in scale, and we stop to take a photo at a frozen lake.

USA road trip days 21 and 22: Lone Pine, California

Death Valley: so good they named it "death".

I begin to make the long slog back to the Venetian for another shot at the richest purse in poker (about $2,500 for first) but, having nearly got there, I decide instead to stop for the juicy-looking cash game at O’Shea’s, the rough and ready “Irish” casino on the cheaper side of The Strip (think the Tottenham Court Road end of Oxford Street as opposed to the Selfridge’s end).

USA road trip days 19 & 20: Las Vegas, Nevada

We go out, inappropriately dressed for the scorching heat. For some reason I thought that a long-sleeve shirt, lambswool jumper and summer jacket would be the ideal configuration of clothing for 77 degree weather. We only get as far as the Excalibur next door when we decide to turn back to get the camera and indeed change into more suitable outfits. Delicious sugar cinnamon pretzel in New York New York.

USA road trip day 18: Las Vegas, Nevada

I wake very early and wonder if it’s safe to step outside to look for coffee. Early morning seems to have the same kind of taboo as late at night when it comes to wandering around in some US towns and cities. I leave the room and the road is busy with lone men with carrier bags. One of them comes up to me and mumbles a question, to which I respond with a classic non-reply. He then seems to call me Audrey. I hurry on before the perceived similarities grow in his crazed imagination.