Kanchenjunga in the Himalayans

Kanchenjunga has 8586 meters and is located partly in Nepal and India. The little state of Sikkim is far in India’s north right between Nepal and Bhutan at the Eastern Himalayans. Sikkim is one of the smallest and most-unknown states of India and was, for many years, and independent kingdom.

The Himalayan Mountains stretch far from the West in Pakistan to northwest India (Kashmere, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh) to a piece of land between Nepal and Bhutan which is Sikkim. Sikkim’s Kanchenjunga is the third-highest mountain in the world, only Mount Everest and K2 are higher.

When you want to see an eight-thousender but have no real experience in mountaineering, this is the right place for you.

View from Pelling in Sikkim

The view from Pelling is great: in the mornings, the sun slowly rises and the mountain appears in many different red colors. You definitely should not miss this spectacular nature phenomenon.

Sikkim is now more than a secret for mountaineers. Sikkim has many ways to see and experience the Kanchenjunga. When you enjoy hiking, you can go to Gangtok. Here, you find many tour companies for hiking and mountaineering. Gangtok is the state’s capital. You need to plan enough time for the region: all the paved roads end in Yuksom. If you want to do some hiking from Gangtok or Pelling, you should plan several weeks for that. We could not simply do some hiking in the heights, I think you should always consider the altitude and be careful.

The see the mountain anyways, you can travel to Pelling. Traveling there is a bit exhausting, but Pelling itself has many hotels and a tourist infrastructure. After all, Pelling is basically a long road full of hotels. Choose a hotel with a good view (in fact, all of them have a great view) and you can see the sunrise in the morning from the rooftop terrace. In the end a very comfortable and easy way to see the sunrise at an eight thousander.

Traveling to Pelling: Crossing an Inner-Indian Border

Pelling is a bit difficult to reach. The best thing is to combine it with Darjeeling, in the more southern state Bengal. From Darjeeling it’s 90 km to Pelling but you need at least 4 hours for that.

In Bengal, the streets are still reasonably good but as soon as you cross the Sikkim border, the streets get much worse. For Sikkim, foreigners need an extra permit, the standard India visa is not enough. The borderline appears to be the one of a new country: policemen are everywhere with loaded machine guns, they check your passport and you need to fill out some forms. It helps to have a copy (Xerox) of your passport. The lady at the border was friendly and helpful, the paper work went quite smooth but it’s anyways something that has to be done. When leaving Sikkim, you need to go back to the counter return some of the forms and get a stamp in your passport.

This extra permit is enough to travel to all the developed areas, most importantly the towns of Pelling and Gangtok. All areas further north, most of them nature conserve areas, are restricted and require another extra permit. You can ask the tour companies to do the paper work for you.

All of these regulations are subject to change. Ask Sikkim Tourism for updated information:

http://www.sikkimtourism.gov.in

Driving from Melli to Jorethang and Pelling

We did cross the Sikkim border at the Melli border control. After Melli, you drive along a valley for some time right next to the Rangeet River which also marks the border between Sikkim and Bengal. This part of the trip is still nice and relaxing even though the street is rather narrow. The next thing you reach is Jorethang, a very nice little town that makes a nice stop.

After Jorethang, the exhausting part of the trip starts: from now on the road constantly climbs up the mountain. For the last 60 km, you need three hours. There are no bridges or tunnel you just drive on a mountain street, sometimes on serpentines. We had a driver, driving ourselves would have been totally impossible, it was already exhausting the way it was. A big adventure! I have never driven that close to an abyss. The valley and mountain area are very beautiful: only a few streets and apart from that largely undeveloped area.

In Pelling: Khecheopalri Monastery and Kanchenjunga Water Falls

The following day, we went to see a Buddhist Monastery and a waterfall. The Khecheopalri Monastery and the waterfalls are close to Yuksom. Yuksom is, in East Sikkim, the last village that can be reached on roads. You can only do hiking to move further north.

Further information on the Monastery can be found in this article.

There are also the Rabdentse Ruins, leftsovers from the fallen Sikkim Kingdom and right next to it, the Pemayangtse Monastery. For Pelling, I would recommend to stay an entire day. Because reaching there is rather exhausting, you need an entire day for sightseeing in two nights in Pelling.

Hotels in Pelling

It’s not difficult to find a hotel in Pelling. Second only to Gangtok, Pelling has the most tourist infrastructure in Sikkim. There are also more fancy hotels. We did stay in the Seven Summit. Many of the other hotels were fully booked, the Five-Star-Hotel was all that was left for us. The rooms were clean, the hotel was really good. But even this place did not have a heating system. We had a heating pillow, a heating element for the mattress and warm water in the shower. But the rooms were still cold, really cold and the only warm place was under the blanket. Definitely consider that and bring warm winter clothes.

How To Reach Pelling

Sikkim currently does not have an airport, the closest airport in Bagdhora in Bengal. That is why most tourists travel from Darjeeling to Sikkim. There are busses from Darjeeling but also Shared Jeeps (Jeeps that come to meeting points and transport everybody who wants to). There are also train connections from Bengal. In the end all the standard ways to travel in India are available.

I would anyways recommend only two of them: per plane to Bagdhora and a driver from there. It takes a while to travel, distances are not long but slow. Driving yourself in the mountains is impossible; a driver is the easiest and least-stressful way to travel. We would not have made it without a driver.

Sikkim – A Big Adventure

Sikkim was a big adventure for us, an outstanding trip to more undeveloped areas at the outskirts of an Eightthousender. At the beginning I was not sure if all of that is worth it: all the time it takes, the border formalities and that exhausting drive. But I would not want to miss any of it. Sikkim is absolutely beautiful, great valleys and mountains, nature, plants and Buddhist monasteries and shine in sparkling beauty. We have by far not seen everything, but I would always comeback. It was a unique experience!

Der Beitrag Kanchenjunga: the Third-Highest Peak of the World in the Himalayans (8586 m) erschien zuerst auf travelspotting.

Animal Conversation Projects and Diversity of Species in Kaziranga

Kaziranga Nationalpark has had some great success in the last years and decades in terms of protecting the one-horned rhino. About two thirds of its worldwide population can be found here. After being threatened by extinction for years, its population has now recovered.

Apart from the rhino, the park also has wild Asian elephants and wild water buffaloes. There are also several deer species and three spectacular wildcats in the park: the Bengal tiger, the Indian leopard and the clouded leopard. Last but not least several smaller species of monkeys. This list is incomplete, the park has many more mammals and reptiles.

The park is also known for its vast number of bird species: water birds, swamp birds, birds of prey and many more. Even India’s national animal, the kingfisher lives here.

More information about Kaziranga’s animals can be found here:

http://www.kaziranga.co.in/mammals.php (list of mammals)
http://www.kaziranga.co.in/reptiles.php (list of reptiles)
http://www.kaziranga.co.in/birds.php (list of birds)
http://www.kaziranga-national-park.com/wildlife-in-kaziranga-national-park.shtml

Which of These Animals Will I Really See?

During our safaris, we saw many wild elephants. The rhino was everywhere and we could see the water buffalo on several occasions and spots.

The safari takes place on a private jeep. You drive on an unpaved road and can see several animals simply by looking look left and right. Several jeeps take a tour, everyone on a slightly different route; you don’t meet the other jeeps a lot. But the tours are fixed the jeeps take a pre-determined tour. All the animals know the vehicles and do not feel disturbed. For example a rhino was sleeping right next t o the street. A group of elephants was walking with all their baby elephants close to the road. The jeeps stop as soon as there is something to see and wait.

I would not expect to see a tiger. Tigers a shy and prefer to be alone. They don’t live in herds. Tigers usually walk away as soon as humans appear. At one of these tours, all the jeeps stopped because allegedly there was a tiger somewhere. But that either was not the case of the tiger long gone. You need to be very lucky to see a tiger.

Entrances to Kaziranga Nationalpark

There are three entrances to the national park:

• the main entrance in Mihimukh, Kohora
• at the West in Baori
• at the East in Agartoli

Kohora is the touristic center of the national park. Here, you find some hotels, shops and souvenir stores. It’s the park’s main entrance.

There is a second, smaller entrance in Agartoli. This is where we had our first safari because our hotel was only 5 minutes from the gate. This area is not busy at all; we had our best safari here.

Agartoli in the east is particularly important to see many species of birds. For everything else, you can also take one of the other two gates.

We decided to do the west and main gate. Agartoli was too far from the hotel. You can reach all the gates on road 715 at the same time southern boundary of the park.

Taking a Safari Tour

There are many full packages available online. I think you don’t really need it. A hotel is enough; you can book a safari here. That is how we did it and it worked quite well.
In India, a car usually has a driver and an owner. Drivers a usually not well-off, rather poor, making little money and do not speak English (or very, very little). The safaris were not sold out at all. We had a jeep for 6 with only the two of us. Accordingly, the tour was a bit expensive, because we had to pay for the entire jeep. But it was a good thing to be alone on the jeep, not get disturbed and we could see very well in all directions, no one blocking our view.

The driver picked us up at the hotel, was in time and took us to the western entrance. One of us had to go to the park administration there we had to pay a second time and a ranger got in the car. A very unusual thing, from a German point of view was the fact that he was carrying a loaded rifle. In India, this kind of means we take care of our guests’ safety. From my point of view, there animals were not dangerous at all. The ranger tells the driver which road to take and they stop on several occasions.

At the end of the tour, the ranger left at the national park gate and the driver took us back to the hotel. There were demanding tip, demanding is too weak. They insisted on getting tip! As far as I know, India is not a “tip-country” (like e.g. the US). Claiming tip that strongly is unusual.

How To Reach Kaziranga

Kaziranga is a bit difficult to reach. You can go by plane to Guwahati, Assam’s capital. From here, it is another 4-hour-drive to Kaziranga, even though it’s only 200 km. Shortly after Guwahati, you need to drive up a mountain; these things are always rather slow in India. You need to plan an entire day to reach.

How Much Should I Book in Advance?

A basic rule is: you can do many things spontaneously and short-term in India. If it makes you feel better, book a hotel. But even that is not really necessary. You can easily organize the safaris when you are there. That’s what I would do. Traffic in India is unpredictable; you never know when exactly you reach.

Kaziranga – India’s Most Beautiful Nationalpark

Kaziranga was, to me, the most beautiful national I have seen in India. It was rather quiet, not too crowded and most importantly, we did indeed see animals. I never really expected to see a tiger. Our hotel room neighbors saw one, but that one was very far away and only became visible on the photo because of the big camera lens. For that, they were on the road for 12 hours straight with nothing but a short lunch break. I would not have made it twelve hours on that bumpy road and jeep.

One thing is very obvious: you are off the main routes, an area that is of no interest for all the big travel agencies. There were no travel groups from Europe of the US, there were rarely any other white people, but many well-off Indians on a holiday trip in their own country. This made everything more relaxed, friendlier, everyone was nice and open to foreigners.

Der Beitrag The Kaziranga Nationalpark in Assam: a Park at the Brahmaputra River in India’s Northeastern State erschien zuerst auf travelspotting.

Three Entrances to the park

The national park at the very southern end of Florida needs to be on every Florida travel route. In the Everglades, the ocean becomes land and land becomes ocean. This tropical wilderness between sea water and fresh water has created a special environment and a biodiversity with a vast variety of species.
The northern border of the park is highway 41, leading from Naples in the east to Miami in the west. There are three different entrances to the park; we have visited two of them. Both offer an entirely different program.
If you are lucky, you get to see manatees, alligators and crocodiles (since one of it prefers fresh water the other salt water, that is very rare), several water- and wading birds (e.g. cormorant and heron) and lots of countryside and nature. Information about current problems is available with focus on environmental destruction and invasive species and as well as information about its history of settlement.

Gulf Coast Visitor Center and 10,000 islands: Sea Water Area of the Everglades

It takes 1 hour (60 km) to drive from Naples to the Gulf Coast Visitor Center, the visitor center closest to Florida’s gulf coast. In terms of ecology, the national park is split into two parts: the first part is called 10,000 islands and describes the sea water part, hundreds of small and tiny islands in the ocean, a maze of water streets, mangroves, trees and tiny islands. The second part describes the fresh water part of the park. Here the ocean is no longer visible but has become a swamp area, already mainland but still full of water. The ranger lady stood in the water of the swamp waist-deep, all the fresh water pushes up from the ground.

The 10,000 islands – salt water part of the Everglades – are a colorful collection of mangroves and waterstreets that can only be explored by boat. To me it felt, as if I had already reached the ocean and was no longer on the mainland. Due to the sheer size and variety of the area, I would not have been able to find the right way without a tour guide. The visitor center offers a boat tour. If you are lucky, dolphins will be there. Birds will definitely be there and even if you are unlucky and do not see a single animal, the nature of the Everglades itself is worth the trip. It absolutely stunningly beautiful!

The visitor center can be reached on Highway 41 and Interstate 75. Just follow the signs that say “Everglades City”. Parking is available at the visitor center. The visitor center provides all information about tours and prices.

Shark Valley Visitor Center

The Shark Valley Visitor Center is located another 50 minutes (70 km) east (following highway 41). This entrance to the Everglades offers an entirely different face of the park: water has become mainland: a huge swap and even a paved road are there. This is the fresh water part of the park. Except from the street, it feels like being in a jungle. It is a wetland full of reed, swamp with water waist-high and alligators that live in fresh water.

The paved road is a leftover from the time before the area was protected as a national park. It’s nowadays used for guided tours by train (not on tracks but on wheels). In addition, there are two smaller hiking paths and bicycles for rent. We did the train tour which was lead by a ranger. The tour took us through the swamp area, was fully narrated and the ranger talked about flora and fauna. We saw birds and an alligator.

The Shark Valley Visitor Center can be reached via highway 41, approximately 1 3/4 hours (130 km) from Naples. Parking is available in front of the visitor center.

Recommendations and Information about Different Tour Options

A quick first thought could be: why would I want to visit the Everglades twice? The answer is simple: because you get to see two totally different areas. The 10,000 island are water with many little islands and Shark Valley is a swamp land where hiking is possible. The Everglades look entirely different in both cases.

Before I was there, I imagined the Everglades to be a swamp area – just about what I saw in Shark Valley. The 10,000 islands was something totally new to me.

The third entrance Flamingo Center is located at the southern end of the Everglades. We ran out of time and could do all three entrances in one day. The Flamingo entrance was simply too far away. If you rush from one place to the other, it might work but we wanted to have time. Flamingo entrance is the main entrance to the park (reachable via Florida Turnpike from Miami or Florida City from the Keys). Flamingo has a port, a café and a campground. I didn’t see it so I cannot say anything else.

Time wise, we could only do two entrances in a day. If you want to do the third, plan an extra day. Coming from Naples, Flamingo Center is a bit off the route and difficult to reach.

Manatees – Floridas Mascot and Symbol in the Park

The “mascot” of Florida is the manatee. It’s a large, brown mammal living in the water. Manatees prefer fresh water and very warm water, shallow water, water with very little salt and like living close to the coast. Manatees are good-natured and herbivores. That is why Florida is a perfect place for them. Unfortunately, they are an endangered species. They like the water streets of the Everglades very much. I didn’t see any of them on our tours. I guess they are easier to spot in a kayak and in a smaller group of people outside the main roads somewhere between the mangroves and the smaller water streets.

Airboat Tour? – An Option?

To me the answer is no. On highway 41, there are many offers about air boat tours. Their ads follow you all the way along highway 41. I read in a travel book that these airboats are too loud and upset various animals. Also, these boats are causing many problems to manatees in Florida. As described above, manatees live in shallow water close to the coast. That is why they tend to crash the airboats’ screws and propellers. Manatees are a bit slow that means they hear the airboats coming but are to slow to get away. Supposedly, most manatees in the Everglades have airboat scars on their skin. I don’t know if all of this is true, but it could be and that is enough to know for me. That is why I would not recommend an airboat tour.

I know, environmental conscience, protection and tourism is an issue itself. Anyways, I think we should always prefer anything that is offered officially from the national parks and its rangers. At least, this way the national park makes money and the national park’s purpose is to protect and maintain nature. Also, the tours in the national park and entrance fees to the park are rather low, compared to for example all the parks in Orlando.

Der Beitrag Everglades Nationalpark – A park at the Land/Sea Boundary erschien zuerst auf travelspotting.

Monument Valley – Part of the Navajo Reservation in Utah and Arizona

The Monument Valley is a three-hour-drive from the Grand Canyon. It is located northeast, right at the Arizona state border in middle of the Navajo reservation. There is only one hotel in the valley: the View Hotel. Another option to spend the night is in Kajeta, a little village 20 minutes from Monument Valley. Kajenta does not offer much; it’s in the middle of nowhere. Don’t expect more than a place to stay for one night. Monument Valley can be combined with a ride to the Grand Canyon Nationalpark or the Arches Nationalpark in Utah. Both parks are about 3 hours from Monument Valley (Grand Canyon Southwest, Arches North).

We drove from Grand Canyon to Monument Valley after sunset when it was too dark to stay in Grand Canyon and reached Kayenta in the evening. He had a room in Kayenta for one night and went to Monument Valley the following morning to see the sunrise.

Sunrise at Monument Valley – Breakfast in The View Hotel

Early that day, we drove to Monument Valley on highway 163 to see the sunrise. Sunrise is a very special time in Monument Valley: the light emphasizes the red color of the rocks even more. It is a very good time to take beautiful pictures. A viewpoint for this is the place in front of the visitor center (you also find the View Hotel here). This spot offers an extraordinary view to the popular rock formations. The view you have here is the well-known perspective of the valley. Until here, it is easy to drive yourself. A proper, solid street leads to the visitor center. The hotel had a breakfast buffet. We were thinking it’s not worth asking, this place is super-exclusive and breakfast will cost more than 20 Dollars per person. But that was wrong, I’m glad we asked because the breakfast was only 10 Dollars. Having a breakfast here was the right thing to do: sitting at your table and enjoying the view was perfect after that sunrise. I would recommend doing that.

Monument Valley is located on a plateau, quite above sea level. That is why it can be cold in winter. On the pics you see in tiny bit of snow in the valley. Watching the sunrise was really cold, even though we had proper winter clothing. You will probably need a warm jacket here, unless you come in the summer months.

Driving on 27 km Unpaved Road – Monument Valley Road

The only way to continue your route and drive in the Valley is an unpaved road called Monument Valley Road that starts at the visitor center. Lonely Planet says this can be done in a standard passenger car. But I disagree, we tried it, it didn’t work. We did the first bend of the road, drove a bit further down a hill and a little further just straight. All in all, maybe 800 meters. This little part was enough for us to give up: the car bounces, we heard bumps and noises all the time, and potholes were everywhere. The ground was wet, muddy and plashy; you could only drive walking pace. We stopped because there was a huge puddle all the way across the road. We don’t know how much water it had but it definitely looked deep. We decided to not drive any further and not take any risk with our rental car. Maybe it would have been possible to drive cross that puddle, maybe we should have been driving faster while crossing those potholes. That’s difficult to say now. For us, it was too risky to damage our rental car.

The residents of the valley offer Jeep tours. There are different tour options available. All these jeeps drive faster and with much more routine and confidence through these potholes and all the mud. We could not have done it ourselves. Anyways, most likely they try to fill the jeep that means you will have to squeeze and share the car with other guests.

We were there in very low season (you can the snow on the pics). The valley had very few visitors. In and in front of the visitor center, there are many tour options and offers available. The shortest tour was offered for 80 bucks per person. None of us wanted to pay that much. We were a group of four: we would have to pay 80 dollar per person, not per jeep. After long and difficult negotiations, the price became much less. In the end, we paid 25 dollar per person. I doubt this would have worked the same way in the main season. When we were there, there were rarely any other tourists around. I think they decided to drive for little money instead of not driving at all.

Three Sisters, Totem Pole, the Thumb and John-Ford-Point

The tour itself was nice. It leads a bit further into the valley; you get to see many rock formations that are not visible from the hotel. I wasn’t sure if I’d be interested in the tour at all, in particular because I was supposed to pay 80 dollars. I have to say, it was worth doing the tour. You get to see the popular rock formations Three Sisters, Totem Pole, the Thumb and the John-Ford-Point. John-Ford-Point is a rock ledge that was used for many shots in John Ford’s movies but also Ford himself enjoyed standing there and watching larger scenes with many extras from there.

On the tour, several ladies sell jewellery, they say it’s authentic Indian jewellery. Necklaces and bracelets are pretty and not expensive (10 – 20 Dollar). You also get to see some Indian homes, even though these homes seem a bit artificial and made for tourists. In fact, all residents don’t live here but in different area that is not open to public.

At the John-Ford-Point you can take pictures with a rented horse at the rock ledge. I didn’t do that, that’s not my kind of thing. Horse lovers can also do an entire tour on a horse. I cannot say if that is good or not. I’m rather skeptical when it comes to using animals for touristic purposes.

When you do the longer guided tour, you see some places in the park that are only accessible with a tour guide. Because we had paid so little, of course they only did the short tour. To us, that was sufficient.

At the very end of that unpaved road, a little Opel Corsa came along. Somehow, these guys made it to the very end of that road. It don’t know how that was possible. The longer you drive along that road, the less standard cars you see. All the regular cars disappear one after another. At some point of the route, only Jeeps still drive along the road except that one Corsa.

Well-known because of it s many TV and film appearances

Monument Valley has appeared in many movies. The first movie the be shot there was Stagecoach with John Wayne, by John Ford. Ford made another nine movies in Monument Valley. Clint Eastwood’s The Eighter Section was also shot here, the Totem Pole appears prominently in this one.

Many famous scenes also play here: Forrest Gump ends his long run here, Tom Cruise climbs in the Mission Impossible II opening sequence, the Transformers Autobots reunite (Transformers: Age of Extinction). Many scenes with Jonny Depp in The Lone Ranger were filmed here. Just recently, HBO’s Westworld used Monument Valley as a filming location.
A very well-known campaign is the Marlboro campaign with the Marlboro cowboy. This was also made here. Many car ads are made here as well.

When you have visited Monument Valley, you recognize it in many films, ads and publications. Everyone has already seen Monument Valley somewhere. It’s the blueprint for all Wild West Impressions. It shows how we imagine the Wild West to be.

Suggestions and Ideas

Visiting the Monument Valley is highly recommendable. It’s the best place to take nice pics. I would not recommend doing a tour in a regular car. I think the road is simply too bad. A rental jeep would have worked. Or rental car (Dodge Grand Caravan) was not right. Maybe it’s possible to drive there yourself if you have offroad experience or are a very good driver. Anyways, we couldn’t.

The 80 Dollar-guided-tour is pricy, 80 would have been too much or us. I’m glad we bargained hard and got a better price, without the tour we would have missed a lot. Although the visitor center has a great view, it’s necessary to move further into the valley and see more rock formations.

The driver was a bit annoyed and not very motivated or friendly. Maybe that was because of the low price. The tour itself was ok, we saw all important rock formations and it took exactly as long as planned.

I would always do Monument Valley if I was in Grand Canyon. It requires an extra 2 days. Driving there, spending time there and continuing your route takes about 2 days (1 night). Half a day is enough for monument valley. If you are very enthusiastic about it, you can also camp there and hike.

Our next stop was Page in Arizona. This is where you find the Horseshoe Bend, Lake Powell and Antelope Canyon. Page is about 2 hours (200 km) from Monument Valley.

See also:

Article about the Horseshoe Bend

Der Beitrag Face of the Wild West: Monument Valley erschien zuerst auf travelspotting.

Heading to the Most Southern Point of the US: Key West and the Keys – Upper Keys, Middle Keys and Lower Keys – all of them reachable and connected by the Overseas Highway (No. 1)

The Florida Keys are a vast collection of little coral islands called keys. The chain of islands starts in the southeast of Florida, 26 km south of Miami. Final point of this route is Key West, it takes about 4 hours to reach from Miami (266 km). The 181.9-km-Overseas-Highway is basically a long-streched collection of roads and bridges.

The Keys can be split into three groups: Upper Keys, Middle Keys and Lower Keys. Upper and lower in this case refers to North and South. This is also the order I use to describe a few highlights on the route.

Because the Overseas Highway is a mere 180-km-straight, addresses and places have a mile marker in their name. Addresses use a five digit code, the first three digits refer to the miles on the road (including position after decimal point), the last two digits refer to the location of the address: odd numbers are at the Bay of Mexico, even numbers at the Atlantic Coast. The mile markers start in Key West, this is where you find the number 0. The higher the number, the closer you are to the main land.

One example: John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park address is 102601 Overseas Highway. This means it is on MM 102.5 at the Bay of Mexico. The first first important stop on this route is in the Upper Keys: Key Largo MM 91- 107.

Key Largo and John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park: Glass Bottom Boat Tour in the Park

Key Largo is one of the northern keys and relatively large, almost 53 km long. Of course there is the Overseas Highway, but Key Largo has a second connection to the main land (at the northern end of the island, Highway 905 to Florida City and the Everglades).
Very important in Key Largo are its surrounding Coral Reefs. These are protected as a State Park called John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. It’s a paradise for divers and snorkelers. We did not do a snorkeling tour but a glass-bottom-boat tour. That means, the boat has a glass window at the bottom and you can see the underwater world from the boat.

It’s easy to organize: you just go to the visitor center, ask about the next tour and buy tickets. To shorten this: next time, I would go snorkeling instead. The boat tour is ok, quite nicely done but you don’t get to see a lot. The engines are turned off, the boat bobs up and down in the water. You stand behind a barrier all the time and look through that bottom window. This means you are very likely to get seasick. On the way to the riff, they provide various information on what to do in that case. We bought one of these preventative medicine, took it and and did not have to throw up. Probably, the medicine did their job. But we were anyways feeling quite bad on the way back. Most people on the boat looked rather troubled. These problems with motion sickness have to do with the general situation of being in a solid room (the boat), that moves in the waves and the fact that everyone stands at the barrier and looks down to that window at the riff which is again solid and not moving. On the boat they say our brain loses its point of reference, cannot handle the situation and reacts with dizziness and motion sickness.

To me, the size of the bottom windows turned out to be a flop. I expected huge windows where you can see large parts of the riff and the ocean. But that was not the case. The windows are two rather small windows where people gather around. Most parts of the ship are fairly regular.

A good thing about the tour was the audio guide. A female tour guide on the ship was an expert in recognizing and naming all the different fish. That was really interesting; her enthusiasm about it became very obvious.

The snorkeling tour stopped in close distance. Next time, I would definitely book that. I think you get to see much more and don’t get dizzy and sick.

Snorkeling tours are 30 dollar per person and take place several times a day. One tour is 2 ½ hours of which you spend 1 to 1 ½ hours in the water. There are also longer snorkeling tours (4 ½ hours). The Glass-Bottom-Boat-Tour is 24 dollars (2 ½ hours) and takes place four times a day. Information about all of this can be found on the website.

Another interesting option is to rent a canoe, kayak or Stand-Up-Board. Because Key Largo is so close to the mainland, you can paddle to the Everglades. I did not do it, but I want to come back for that one day.

Because of all the many options you have in Key Largo, you need to bring time. I think you can easily spend 2 full days here. If you don’t have that much time, you can at least spend a morning or afternoon here (on the way to or from Key West) and do some snorkeling or kayaking. If you just drive to Key West with no stop here, you miss the best part.
The Upper Keys continue another 50 km after Key Largo. Several smaller keys follow. End point of the Upper Keys is Long Key with the little town of Layton. The bridge between Long Key and Conch Key is called Long Key Bridge (official name: Dante B. Fascell Bridge) and is the second longest bridge on the route.

From the Middle Keys to the Lower Keys on the Seven-Mile-Bridge

The Middle Keys are mainly organized in the little town of Marathon and cover a distance of 45 km. Long Key has a protected area (Long Key State Park, MM 70), Long Point Key as well (Curry Hammock State Park, MM 56), Key Colony Beach has a beach.

The Seven-Mile-Bridge on MM 47 is an interesting spot. This is where the Middle Keys end. The bridge is the longest on the route. A new bridge became necessary because the old one was destroyed by the weather. The new bridge was built in 1982 and runs almost parallel to the old one. Pedestrians and cyclists can still use the old bridge. You can stop here and take a walking tour. It is indeed funny standing in one bridge and seeing the other one.

Bathing and Snorkeling in Bahia Honda State Park

Right after this bridge, there is Bahia Honda State Park on Big Pine Key in the Lower Keys. It’s a beach in a protected area (that means you need to pay to enter) from which you can see the old bridge quite well. The beach is nice, but compared to the rest of Florida rather small. The keys are not the right place for beautiful bathing beaches. You can stop and swim, but don’t expect too much. All islands are small and only have small beaches. Some areas in Big Pine Key are privately owned and not publicly accessible.

The beach was voted the number 1 beach in the US in 1992 (by Dr. Beach, a Florida Geology Professor). One thing that is always there is the wind: you are far into the ocean on a very flat island. There are definitely nicer places to sunbathe. The keys are more about nature and underwater worlds. You can hike or watch rare animals and plants, in particular birds.

https://www.floridastateparks.org/park/Bahia-Honda

This is Part 1 of the Article: Road trip to the Most Southern Point in the US: On the Way to Key West

Part 2 can be found here:

Road Trip to the Most Southern Point: Key West, Mallory Square and Duvall Street

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Going there by Bryce Canyon, Highway 14 and Dixie National Forest

Bryce Canyon is northeast of Zion Nationalpark. A national forest is between these Utah’s two national parks (Dixie National Forest), you can either cross the forest or drive around it. The best route from Bryce to Zion is east of the forest on highway 89, highway 89A and highway 389 (via Carmel, Kanab, 2 hours, 140 km). A western route on interstate 15 is also possible (reachable on highways 89 and 20, 2 ½ hours, 230 km). There is a third option as well, a bit longer but more beautiful: you take highway 89 to reach Dixie National Forest, take highway 14 and cross the forest till Cedar City. It’s a very nice road, a scenic route but it takes a little more time (2 ½ hours, 211 km). The street can be closed in winter due to weather conditions (snow, icy roads or winds). We were there in December, Bryce Canyon was full of snow and night temperatures were below zero degrees. But we did not have any problems on that route, the street was fine. I would always recommend taking that route, it only takes a little more time and the scenic views and nature are very pretty.

Booking a Hotel in Springdale

Inside Zion NP, there is one motel called Zion Lodge. Camping is also available. We chose a cheaper option. All towns around the national parks have tourist facilities (Springdale, Rockville, Mt. Carmel Junction, Hurricane, St. George and Kanab). We stayed in Springdale right in front of the park’s main entrance. Springdale is rather artificial place, in the end only a very long street with hotels, restaurants, cafés, cinema and supermarkets. Calling this place a town is almost exaggerating. It’s very touristic and has no character. But it’s very good location compensates for all of that. You can see the mountains of the national park from there. Simply looking out looking out of the hotels window makes a great view and is a huge consolation for the artificial little town. A major plus is that you can reach the national park easily: you can either drive straight and park there or (if parking is not available) take the shuttle bus for all the hotel guests.

Zion Canyon Scenic Drive: a Scenic Tour on the Shuttle Bus

The shuttle bus system starts at the visitor center right behind the park entrance. You can either take the bus or go in your own car. The shuttle busses are free (basically included in the park entrance that you have to pay anyways). Restrictions apply on self-driving tours, you can only go east on Zion-Mount Carmel Highway).

The main route north, with all the main attractions is not open to private vehicles. Only guests of the Zion Lodge are allowed to go to the hotel in their own car. The shuttle bus stops 11 times on the route. You can get off and on as whenever you want. The busses come every few minutes; you don’t need to wait a long time. Information on stops, their hiking routes and how difficult these routes are (including distances and altitudes) is available in the visitor center.

Difficult Routes: Angel’s Landing, The Narrows and Kolob Arch

Angel’s Landing is the park’s most famous route. It’s a viewpoint on a rock on 1753 meters, to reach you need to pass a 450 meters change of elevation. We started hiking early in the morning (at 6 am with the first bus). We only met very ambitious hikers who we planning to do one of the difficult routes. Angel’s Landing is their absolute favorite one. The park’s list says it takes 4 hours (12 km back and forth). The most ambitious route leads along the Virgin River. You need to cross the river, walk in the river or swim in the river 60% of the time. In the end, your reward is The Narrows, a sandstone grot with natural pools and gardens. The Narrows leads through a canyon with big, sheer canyons walls. The river leaves no space for walking trails. You need an extra permit to hike here, because the river’s water level is unsteady. After 22.5 km you reach the Kolob Stone Arch, the largest stone arch.

Unfortunately, I have never done any of these difficult routes: it’s still an unfulfilled dream to me. I really hope I can come back one day for that. Even though, The Narrows will most likely be too challenging for me.

Easy Routes for Little Trips: Temple of Sinawa and Emerald Pool Trails

We only had time to do some easy routes. We took the shuttle bus to its very end, the Temple of Sinawa. That is a smaller hike, or rather walking tour along the river. It’s an easy walk and a good opportunity to dive into the park’s atmosphere. You walk along the river’s rocks and see how the rocks orange beautifully contrast the blue sky.

Emerald Pool Trails are several smaller hiking routes along the river close to the shuttle bus line (next to the Zion Lodge Motel). You can walk a few steps up and enjoy the view from a bit further up. You can take a walk without being far from the bus line; you can just go back to the previous bus stop.

Even though this description does not sound super spectacular, I would definitely recommend doing some smaller walking tours. These tours made me fall in love with the park and are the reason why I want to come back, bring more time and do one of the more difficult tours.

You do not need any special equipment or shoes. All you need is a pair of shoes you would use for a longer walking tour. There’s only one thing in summer: don’t underestimate that it’s hot.

Zion – Mount Carmel Highway: A Self-Drive-Tour and Canyon Overlook Trail (Scenic Route)

The eastern route of the park cannot be reached in a shuttle bus, you need your own car for that. (There is a tunnel on the route with certain restrictions for larger vehicles). But you won’t have any problems with a standard passenger car. The tunnel is very long, 1.8 km. Right after the tunnel, a good hiking path starts: the Canyon Overlook Trail. Zion NP calls the hike medium level (1 hour, 1.6 km). You can park right opposite on the other side of the street. First part of the route is a path after that you need to walk on several stones and bumps, the ground is uneven. I recommend comfortable shoes for that.

The route is in my opinion not difficult only uneven. At the final spot of the tour, you have an absolutely stunning view over the valley. After all the easy hikes on the first day, this was our first opportunity to see the rocks kind of from top. So far we only had a “from-bottom-to-top-view” and only walk “under” (at the foot of) these rocks. The highway has some more viewpoints to enjoy the view. It was very nice for us to walk in nature, not near the roads. You need to be a little fit to do the tour but it’s definitely doable without being totally exhausted.

Professional Climbers in the Rocks

We left very early in the morning, the bus was almost empty. As mentioned above, we only met ambitious hikers and climbers. We could still see the climbers in the mountains. They have their tents somewhere in the air and that is how they spent the night on the way up. The bus driver says climbers like to come to Zion NP. To me, it was the first time that I saw something like this “for real”.

The bus driver also said most accidents happen on the way to Angel’s Landing because tourists overestimate their skills. Climbers know very well what they can do and what they cannot do. We were there on a Gap Day, Thursday was a public holiday and we were in Zion NP the following Friday. I was very glad that we went to the park so early. The park got more crowed all day long. In the end, a long line of cars even waited at the park entrance. Even thought, the park is big enough for everyone and people don’t gather at one spot, the silence in the morning is unbeatable. Also, the bus driver was relaxed, in a good mood and talkative. He had quite some stories to tell.

Further attractions: Kolob Canyon and Lava Point

There are two more park entrances: Kolob Canyon Northwest and Lava Point/West Rim Road. Kolob Canyon also has a visitor center. Both entrances have more hiking tours and also guided horse tours.

A Shuttle Bus System at the Main Routes – Is that a Good Thing?

Indeed, I like the shuttle bus system. Some call it touristic; of course it is, without tourism, none of us would be there. To me, these shuttle bus systems make life easier for everyone. A self-drive-route is usually quite messy. The first driver has problems with the rental car, the second one has rented an RC and cannot drive it properly, the third ones drives slowly because someone wants to take a pic and the fourth one wants to leave quickly because he has already seen the area. This list could be continued much longer. To sum up: these shuttle busses make life easier for everyone, much less chaos and mess is everywhere. Getting on and off is not a problem at all, there is only very little waiting time and everyone in the group (including the driver) can enjoy the view. Traffic is much less, the only ones around are the shuttle busses. The drivers know the area; they don’t honk, don’t block the road and don’t take the wrong road. To me, the shuttle bus system is a good concept and has entirely convinced me.

Resume the Tour: I Want to Come Back

One of the things I want to do in the future is to come back here and do one of the difficult routes. I think I could easily pass an entire week in Zion NP. The nature is absolutely stunningly beautiful; climbing up these rocks must extraordinary. Our visit to the park was, in the end, only a starting point to do more. But now I definitely know that I like it there and that I want to come back. I hope I get the chance one day. To me, this is the most beautiful national park in the US (only, I have not done some of the very famous one, in particular Yosemite NP. I cannot say if Yosemite would be better).

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Grand Canyon in Arizona: South Rim and North Rim

The Grand Canyon can be split into three parts: the North Rim, the South Rim and its descent (and following ascent). Most visitors go to the South Rim, mainly because it is reached most easily and because it has the most touristic infrastructure. South Rim is a 4 ½ hour ride from Las Vegas (450 km). The route is Highway 93, Interstate 40 and Highway 64.

The South Rim consists of two parts: in the west, taking the official shuttle bus to Hermit’s Point, the end point of the route (13 km) or in the east heading to the Desert View Point (30 km). For the eastern part, you need your own car. There is no public transportation available. The shuttle bus in the west stops at various points and many locations. You can get in and out and as many times as you want. The bus runs every few minutes. I like these shuttle bus systems (see Zion NP). I think, these systems are a major asset. Larger parks, like the Grand Canyon, can be visited with much less pressure. Without these busses, everything would be very messy. All visitors would drive around in their rental cars with no organized system, no structure. The first car wants to drive fast because they try to leave as soon as possible; the second car would drive slowly because the co-passenger is taking a pic; the third car doesn’t drive at all but stop to take a pic; the fourth one is not even a car but an RV which is a bit to big for the driver who has problems and simply blocks the entire road. Plus, you would spend a lot of time looking for parking, with many people around you would most likely not even find parking at all. And last but not least, the driver cannot really enjoy the park and the view because he or she has to focus on the driving. I prefer an official shuttle. Things are organized and much easier like that.

South Rim: Hermit’s Point and Desert Point

You can hike anywhere around here. You are always close to the South Rim and either look down to the river or at the landscape on the horizon. You should definitely get off the bus and walk a few steps near the river. Everything looks different while walking of hiking, more beautiful, more impressive. The routes descending to the river are the exhausting ones. As long as you stay “on the same level” (walking at the Rim with almost no elevation), everything is easily doable. Final stop of the bus route is Hermit’s Point.

A thing you should definitely do is the self-drive tour to Desert Point. Impressions are different, the canyon and the landscape definitely looks different here. We were there in December. As you can see on the pics, snow was everywhere and made the canyon even prettier. The closer we came to Desert View, the more snow we had. It was a bit cold but apart from that, the weather was quite convenient. Compared to visiting in summer, when it’s extremely hot, I would always prefer winter. Plus, the visitors load is light; it’s a good way to beat the crowds.

Starting Point of all the tours is Grand Canyon Village and its tourist center where you find all the information you need. This is also where the shuttle bus leaves. There are two bus lines: one connects the lodges in the village and the tourist center (blue line) and the second one the village and all the viewpoints (orange line). The second one is the one I described above.

North Rim: Off the Main Routes

The Canyon’s North Rim is only 80 km from the South Rim (beeline). But you need to drive a completely different route to go there: leave Arizona and cross Utah. The roads are in general much worse on this route. That’s why very few tourists make it there, most prefer the South Rim. I have not been there but google maps says it takes 2 ½ hours to drive the last 90 km. I think, based on that, North Rim is something for enthusiasts but not for everyone. In winter, North Rim is closed.

Where to Book a Hotel: Grand Canyon Village, Williams and Flagstaff

Grand Canyon Village, right in front of the Park’s Southern Entrance has many lodges, motels and places to stay. It is possible, even likely, that all these places are fully booked. The village is located comfortably close to the park that is what defines its prices. We found it too expensive. We decided to stay somewhere else not that close to the park and found two options: Flagstaff and Williams. Williams is exactly on the way from Las Vegas to Grand Canyon, you don’t need to drive any extra distance. Flagstaff is about 50 km further east. If you plan to just stop on the way to Grand Canyon, Williams is the best option. Flagstaff is a second option if you don’t find anything in Williams. From Williams to Grand Canyon, it’s about 80 km on highway 64. We found that route very easy: it’s a straight 80-km-drive with very little to no traffic in the morning. We did not mind doing that but if you do, book a hotel in the Grand Canyon Village, also when you are planning to stay several days and do some hiking tours.

Hiking in the Depth of the Grand Canyon: Doing the Bright Angel Descend

We did not do the walk down to the river. Signs are everywhere say that the hike is exhausting and that you need many water bottles to do it, that it’s hot and that most people tend to overestimate their skills. The national park strongly advices to not do the ascend and descend in one day. To stay overnight in the canyon, you need a permit. The main route down is the Bright Angel Trail: you walk 13 km but a difference in altitude of 1360 meters. It’s definitely super-exciting to do that but only with planning and training in advance. I don’t think you should try to walk down to the river just because you are already there. I think this is something for ambitious hikers.

Flora and Fauna of the Grand Canyon: Condors

We were lucky; we saw condors flying over the canyon. Seeing these birds was very special, but we have no pics of that. The birds were flying low but it was still too high to take pics of them.

Grand Canyon Skywalk

The Grand Canyon Skywalk is far away from the National park or the South Rim. The skywalk is 400 km (4 hours) from the South Rim (beeline much less). The skywalk is a transparent glass horseshow-shaped platform on the edge of a smaller canyon operated by the Hualapai Indian tribe. They charge about 50 dollars to enter the platform. The entire glass bridge is on Indian land in a reservoir far west of the National Park. We did not visit it. I cannot say much about it. The skywalk is close to Las Vegas, only 120 km. But that is the only asset I see, I don’t know why I would want to go there. I prefer official national parks in general.

Advice and Ideas

The Grand Canyon is definitely one of the things you should have in at least once-in-a-lifetime. Even if you have never been there, the Canyon seems strangely familiar because of all the TV and movie appearances. Indeed, it only shows its real beauty when you are standing at one of the viewpoints, looking at the scenery. Hiking down to the river has to be planned properly because it’s a steady descent of many altitude meters. Hiking along the South Rim is easily possible, in warm months you need to consider the heat and the general climate. Visiting the canyon in winter is very good, I can definitely recommend that. It’s cold and snowy but very few people are there.

When you drive further east (to Desert’s Point), the tour can be combined with a visit to Monument Valley via Kayenta (see Article about Monument Valley).

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The Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Where It Is and How It’s Called

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is in Tennessee and North Carolina, the closest town is Knoxville, Tn. You can best reach the Great Smoky Mountains from the two cities Atlanta and Charlotte. From Atlanta, it’s a 3-hour-drive (260 km, Interstate 85, Highway 23 and 441). There are two smaller villages close to the park: Cherokee (at the park’s main entrance) and Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg (west of the park). Both have many hotel options available. Highway 441 goes through the park from Cherokee to Gatlinburg.

Great Smoky Mountains is the official name, but the forest is most commonly called Smokies. The name comes from the fact that the view is in general bad: because of high humidity, large parts of the mountain are covered in smoky clouds.

Booking a Hotel in Cherokee: Harrrah’s Cherokee Casino

We stayed in Cherokee, east of the park. Cherokee is a little village, basically a transit place to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Quality Inn Hotel was, as expected, good and cheap. We were totally surprised to see a casino right on the opposite side of the road. Not a small casino, but a huge hotel called Harrah’s Cherokee Casino, a hotel with restaurants, buffets and of course gambling: a huge complex right in the middle of nowhere. According to Wikipedia, the hotel has 1108 rooms. It’s the only place in Cherokee that serves alcohol. I was expecting to find a hotel that size in Las Vegas but not in Cherokee, a little village with a bit over 2000 residents.

Clingman’s Dome

The Smokies is one of the very few national parks in the US that is free (that means you don’t have to pay admission fee). The forest is very important for environmental protection and even became UNESCO world heritage in the 1980s. For this, the very old parts of the forest (that have existed even before the European settlers came) are particularly important. Highest peak of the forest is Clingman’s Dome (2015 m). You can walk there on a paved, solid path. It’s only a few hundred meters from the parking space but it’s quite a climb and not totally easy. You don’t need to be a professional climber for that it’s only a steeply rising walking lane. There is an observation tower at the peak that can be reached on a long, winding bridge. The bridge made me a bit dizzy but I’m uncomfortable with heights anyways. You can indeed reach the tower easily by just walking there.

Chimney Top Trail and Newfound Gap

We also walked along Chimney Top Trail. We wanted to do a short hike that is doable in regular running shoes and anyways leaves the regular, paved roads. We did not walk until the very end, the Chimney Top. On this hike, you get to see a forest, nature and a little creek. Signs are everywhere, the hiking path is easy to find. The visitor center has free maps that describe exactly where all the hikes lead, how long and how difficult these hikes are. That is always very helpful. We always try to find easy hikes with no climbing. We also reasonaly long because we usually don’t have time to hike 10 or 12 miles per day.

Newfound Gap is right next to highway 441 and is good spot to stop for the view. Gap refers to a low point between the mountains that connects one mountain to the other. The ecosystem changes a lot here, even temperature and weather can change within short distance.

Cades Cove

Cades Cove is an area in the far northeast of the park (in the Tennessee part, 57 miles from Cherokee). Cades Cove was the center of early settlement: a well isolated, green valley with meadows and grass. The valley still has some leftovers from the early settlers: a Methodist church, a Baptist church, an old wooden house, a mill and a little creek. The best way to see the valley and all the remaining buildings is to drive the Cades Cove Loop Road. It’s an 11-miles-one-way-loop-road (20 km). You drive very slowly and can stop whenever you see something interesting. You can also rent a bicycle and do the loop on the bike.

Cades Cove is the main attraction of the Smokies and attracts most visitors. It’s always busy. You drive the loop in a bit of a chain. That mean you just follow the car in front of you. If you are on the loop, there is no way to turn around and go back, you can only do the entire loop. The valley is very beautiful the early settlers have indeed chosen a very nice place to stay. The visitor center is half way on the loop, next to the mill.

We made a mistake and took the loop twice. The GPS gave us some wrong information. The GPS lead us to an exit that was indeed a 20 mile unpaved road. When we saw that, we were already on the loop and had to finish it a second time. You definitely need to plan enough time for that loop, you cannot drive fast at all. You need at least 2 hours (better 3, to have time to stop).

The official park website says the GPS is wrong in the park. We did not know that and made that mistake. Some advice: get a map from the visitor center and use that map instead.

There are many more hikes, paths and camping shacks in the park.

Some Advice and General Information

We liked the park. At the beginning, you get to see a huge are of forest. It looks a bit like the Black Forest. Yet, in the US things are always bigger. Same counts for the Smokies.
We liked the combination we did: a viewpoint, hiking in the forest and seeing the valley of an early settlement. I would also recommend doing something like that. The national park has many faces. Besides Clingman’s Dome, there are many more viewpoints like Rich Mountain Road which has a great view of the Cades Cove Valley or Abraham’s Creek. Newfound Gap is easy to reach, right at highway 441. Cades Cove is not the only valley; a second valley is called Cataloochee Valley. There are two waterfalls called Deep Creek and the Damm in Fontana. There are many hiking paths here, you should pick the one you do according to time, motivation, and fitness level. It’s definitely recommendable to leave your car and do at least some walking.

In the Smokies, I asked myself quite some times: where is the forest line? There is still heavy coniferous forest in Clingman’s Dome on 2000 meters. I always thought, the forest stops somewhere at around 2000 meters? I don’t know much about that, maybe someone can answer that.

I think, without a car, it’s very difficult to do the Smokies. We drove along 441 in one day (including a tunnel right through a mountain) and did some viewpoints, hiking and Newfound Gap. The following day, we did Cades Cove and its loop and left the park on the west (heading to Nashville). Going back and forth makes little sense because of the sheer size of the park. It’s better to make a plan about how these routes fit together.

Dolly Parton

Dolly Parton is from here. People here are obviously proud of here. Dolly Parton ads and gifts are everywhere, also pics and CDs. Pigeon Forge has a Dolly Parton amusement area, which we did not visit. The movie Serena (2014) with Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper plays in the Great Smoky Mountains but was shot somewhere else.

Asheville: Biltmore Estate

Biltmore estate in Asheville is one hour from Cherokee. It’s America’s largest private home, a huge Renaissance-styled mansion from the late 19th century. I really wanted to go there but because of the jetlag, we were all extremely tired in the evening and did not do it. I still regret that! Now, I would definitely drive that one hour to Asheville to see the Biltmore Estate.

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