Trek America - Trailblazer 2007!

Here are answers some frequent questions i have been asked by future trekkers.

LAURA & CHRISTINE

HOW MUCH SPENDING MONEY DID YOU TAKE?

I think for the whole trip I had just over $4000 which was more than enough. I stayed in New York for a few days after the trek and still had money left. The only bad thing now is the exchange rate, when I went you were getting almost 2 dollars to the pound, ya won’t get that now, although it is starting to pick up again.

WHAT IS THE BEST TIME TO GO?

Our tour departed early June until mid August. The Weather in June at the start of the tour was mixed really, some days it did rain but it was nothing mad just little tropical showers. We had 2 really bad nights in Del Rio when it was really bad storms; the first night came as a surprise most people had to leave their tents because they flooded and head for shelter in a nearby kitchen. Some of us slept though it till the early morning unfazed lol. The second night we abandoned the camp much earlier and found refuge in the camps games room. It all just added to the trek experience.

   SEEING IS BELIEVING HAHA

WHAT WERE THE FACILITIES LIKE ON THE CAMP GROUNDS?

In my opinion I can’t really say anything bad about the facilities. As long as you’re not expecting 5 star hotel type bathrooms and showers then you won’t have a problem. Keep in mind you are camping and out in the wilderness some places so you can expect a few bugs and insects roaming around. Some places are better than others but at the end of the day it’s just a place to wash and clean up and in my opinion they were up to standard.

Dinner time

IM NERVOUS BECAUSE IM TRAVELLING ALONE?

Don’t be! Most people doing a Trek America tour and that I have spoken to are usually travelling alone. I think it’s a rare occasion for people to arrive in groups or couples. Everyone was travelling alone on my tour, which means everyone felt nervous beforehand but after a few hours together the nerves disappear and all the crack and joking begins. As everyone is on the same boat everyone wants to get along and just to enjoy the trip. Lucky for us we all got on brilliant throughout the whole trek with no real slugfests.

  SOME OF THE GROUP AT BANFF WAITING ON A BUS TO HIT THE TOWN

WILL I HAVE TO PAY ANY UNEXPECTED EXTRAS?

You should no that everyone will be expected to pay a food kitty, I think by memory it works out as $10 a day. Some big city stops i.e. Vegas, Chicago, and L.A you will have to pay for your hotel. From what I hear sometimes people will cram rooms with people just using sleeping bags still on the floor to save money. I don’t think we ever did this and I don’t recall the prices ever breaking the bank they were quite reasonable. I guess it just depends on how good your tour leader is and the places they find for you to stay. Also some camp sites have lodges available and they make a nice change from sleeping on the ground, again this is a group decision it only works out a few dollars each if everyone puts in.

ANDY ( ZE CRAZY GERMAN) & THE LODGES

WHAT CLOTHES SHOULD I TAKE?

To be honest when I was leaving I wasn’t sure either, so I just packed as if I was going to Spain for 2 weeks. I just took day time clothes like t-shirts and shorts etc and dressy clothes for the nights on the town, jeans and shirts. I would take a comfortable pair of shoes or walking boots if you plan on doing the long treks in the national parks, which I recommend you do because there are some great sights not to be missed.

The ladies in Viva Las Vegas Baby!

WILL I GET A CHANCE TO WASH MY CLOTHES OFTEN?

Yes, almost every campsite stop on the itinerary will have facilities to wash and dry your clothes and belongings.

WHERE CAN I RECHARGE MY IPOD, MOBILE ETC?

Again every campsite that you stay at will have power outlets available for you to charge up anything you need. Also the trek vans have two power outlets available in the back and in the front, just remember you’re American plug adapter and don’t make my mistake......keep your phone charger in a safe place so no one mistakes it for rubbish and decides to bin it!!! Thanks Stu ha-ha!

DO YOU SPEND LONG DURATIONS TRAVELLING IN THE TREK VANS?

The itinerary is set up so that you won’t be spending everyday travelling long durations in the van. Obviously America is a massive country and you can’t expect to get from one state to the next without some long haul drives. On average id say every 3^rd day you can expect a long drive as your trying to make up ground, although your not just constantly sitting on the bus there will be plenty of stops so you can stretch your legs or grab a bit to eat. To be honest the long drives aren’t that bad, they give you a good chance to catch up on some much needed sleep after a few late nights. I will give you word off warning though beware off the droolers ha-ha nothing pleasant about having someone else drool all down your shoulder while they sleep ha-ha! Yes this did actually happen to me ill say thanks Laura-Jay, thanks for the memory ha-ha.

  Sarah & Steve

DO YOU GET MUCH TIME TO RELAX OR IS IT ALWAYS ALL GO?

You can have as much time as you want to relax and do your own thing. At the end of the day it’s your holiday and you can choose to or not to do what ever you want. There will always be stuff to do so you would never be bored but it’s completely your choice no ones going make you do anything if you don’t want to. There will be lots of optional activities available for you to take part in, which again I would recommend if you want to get the most out of your trek experience, I think some off the most fun we had on are trip was during the white water rafting in Colorado springs. The group was split in two and each put into a different raft, it started off a nice peaceful row down stream but by the end off it , it was like something from a Captain Blackbeard story with people getting pulled from one boat to another, arms and legs flying everywhere….there was no group love lost that day ha-ha.

The only thing you would be expected to do would be some chores which will be fixed on a rota. The group will be split into 4 little groups, each day one group will cook, one group will clean the van, one group will wash up after dinner and the last group get a free day off. It’s not hard work and only takes up an hour of your time so remember to pack your cook books ha-ha. One dish I would recommend  cooking and went down well with everyone would be the good old CORNFLAKE CHICKEN ha-ha……….but that’s a whole other story ha-ha.

 Casey, ME, Laura, Steve and Sarah at Colorado

IS THERE ANYTHIN ELSE YOU SUGGEST I SHOULD TAKE OR ANY ADVISE YOU COULD GIVE?

I would suggest that you take a very strong insect repellent. If you don’t you will get bitten loads and it’s not very nice you don’t want it to wreck you trip. One of the girls on are trek got bitten so bad her legs swelled to the point where it was sore to walk, she was almost on the brink of going home at one point. Although the thing that seemed to annoy her most wasn’t the fact that her legs were swollen and dripping with blood and puss noooo, it was the fact that the doctor had the cheek to put her on antibiotics which meant she couldn’t drink for 3 weeks ha-ha…….alcoholic much? Ha-Ha

A few off the other girls started taking garlic capsules each day, which apparently kept the mosquitoes away.

One idea I would give (especially for you girls) is to just buy a sleeping bag over there, the first stop you make on trek is to a Wall-Mart to get supplies. You can get almost anything you need in here and a good sleeping bag is only about 20 dollars which would save you room in you bag for other stuff.

The most important piece of advice I could give and most important thing to take would be an open mind and a sense of humour, like I have said before everyone is on the same boat and going out to have the best experience they can, it’s going to be a trip you won’t ever forget.

HAPPY TREKKING!