The 6 weeks we spent doing the Grand Trek last year were simply unforgettable. There are so many highlights I could call upon; the view over Chicago from the top of the John Hancock building and my first 'pizza pie'; feeling the power of Niagara on the Maid of the Mist; the Independence Day Rodeo in Cody; hiking into the Grand Canyon; sunrise the morning after a monsoon in Monument Valley; being locked in 'the Hole' on Alcatraz; visiting the Alamo; cruising the Strip in Vegas in a limo. All this, not to mention the sights of New York and Washington, the natural beauty of Big Sur, Yosemite and Yellowstone, the sheer size of Texas, New Orleans nights on Bourbon Street... I could go on. Equally as good though were the nights around camp, laughing and joking over a few beers, star-gazing, listing the number of potentially lethal snakes that live in the area... It was absolutely fantastic and I can't wait for my next Trek. If you're even thinking about it, do it. I have the t-shirts, the books, the 3,500 pictures and the memories to prove it.

Michael Byrne