It’s been almost a month since we’re back from our great American road trip and I’m finally ready to share some photos. This epic adventure was Sonia’s graduation gift and our first family trip when almost each night we spent in a different location (instead of staying in one spot and just doing day trips). Our final destination was Canadian Vancouver Island where we planned to stay for about a week to explore the southern part.

I was looking forward to traveling across the country and stopping at several national parks on the way. Badlands in South Dakota was the first longer stop on our route. We had a few hours to drive the scenic loop there, admire the scenery and take in the sights of magnificent rock formations. The views are out of this world. Can you spot some mountain goats frolicking on a vertical cliff in one of the photos?

After three days of driving we reached Washington State where we took a ferry to Vancouver Island and Victoria. After all the time in the car the next two days were perfect for just walking around this historic town.

One of the attractions we visited were the world-renowned Butchart Gardens. They’re so perfectly designed, it was almost a sensory overload, from the beautiful flowers and plants as well as from the number of tourists. There are several separate areas in the gardens, my favorite was The Sunken Garden, which was created in a old quarry over 100 years ago!

This might have been the most perfect rose I’ve seen in my life…

After two days of sightseeing around Victoria we were ready to hit some trails! Vancouver Island is a perfect place for outdoor enthusiasts. There are many spectacular hiking options and we were ready to experience as many places as possible during our visit. You can see some of our favorites below.

An old train trestle bridge…

Remote Pacific beaches…

A suspension bridge in the middle of an old growth forest and awe inspiring Douglas fir trees that are hundreds years old…

Mountain streams and waterfalls…

Man made Hole in the Wall that created a nice waterfall and a swimming hole below it. Somehow we missed the correct path and ended up on the wrong side of it and had to crawl through to admire its peculiar beauty.

Incredible coastal views and temperate rain forest in Pacific Rim National Park…

Full of marine life rocks and tide pools near Tofino…

After almost a week of exploring wilderness on Vancouver Island we took another ferry back to US and landed on Olympic Peninsula. Our plans to spend a few days there didn’t work out so instead we decided to start driving back and stopping at several national parks on the way. This is not our preferred way to visit but at least it gave us a glimpse of what’s there and a huge inspiration to come back in the future when we have more time to spend in each park.

Olympic National Park took our breaths away at Hurricane Ridge.

Mount Rainier National Park near the Visitor Center was literally flooded with tourists, but a helpful ranger suggested a hike that offered us some space and provided beautiful views of glaciers.

Yellowstone National Park is magnificent and having just 3 hours to spend there was definitely not enough. I’m sure we’ll be back to explore more.

I couldn’t believe how stunning were some of the meadows there – colorful wild flowers everywhere, it almost seemed unreal!

The most exciting moment was when while driving we stumbled upon mama bear with three cubs frolicking in the sage bushes. Seeing the bears was Sonia’s dream come true. This was her main goal for the entire trip. She really hoped to see them on Vancouver Island, which has a big bear population. I’m happy we didn’t meet face to face any while hiking in the woods. The bear family in Yellowstone was at a very safe distance 🙂

Theodore Roosevelt National Park was my dream come true, when we encountered a buffalo herd, wild horses and huge prairie dog towns. My hope was to take a photo of a buffalo crossing the road and this one politely obliged 🙂

I hope you enjoyed the photos from our great American road trip. It was a challenge to select them from almost 1500 I took… Three weeks on the road with two teenagers was also a little challenging and we were all happy to be back home 🙂

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