In every way, 2011 was an amazing year. Jamie Talbot and I travelled the world, visited 15 countries, and met countless inspiring people. We spent time with our families and friends in Australia and England, and made new friends everywhere else. Eight months on the road was revitalising yet tiring, but we’ll never forget the opportunity we had to take the such a huge chunk of time off work, pack up our lives and travel, free of worry, debt and responsibility. The trip brought us even closer together, too – so we got married at the end of it! And now, we start 2012 with a new home in San Francisco – overjoyed at what 2011 brought us and excited to see what’s ahead in 2012. Here are my favourite memories from the year on the road.
So much has happened since I last posted on this blog. As I write this, the last entry is from mid July in Peru – and it is now October and we’re in Australia, celebrating our Engagement! That’s right – I’m making an honest man out of Jamie Talbot 
We are back in Australia for just a few short weeks before we head back to San Francisco, where we spent a wonderful month in September getting to know the city. While there, Jamie was so incredibly successful with his job interviews, and has accepted an amazing position with a company there. We can’t wait to head back to the USA to start the next part of our lives together, but before all that, there was enough time in Brisbane to catch up with friends and family for a fun celebration. A friend of mine was around to take photos for the evening, so all credit for these photos goes to Luke Brown – thanks, Luke! It was a fantastic night, and one with some awesome memories. Thanks to all our beautiful friends that could make it – we’ll see you again soon!
We were almost over the red rocks by the time we made it to Bryce Canyon, but quickly realised this was a site quite different to the others. Thousands of red, orange and white needles of rock poke up from the canyon, giving a ripple effect as the sun passes over in the afternoon. And even better than standing at the top looking down, you can follow a few well worn paths into the canyon, and get lost at the bottom. I’d love to go back to see Bryce Canyon in winter, because the snow fall would really light the place up!
Monument Valley is the ultimate movie set – for John-Wayne-style westerns, at least. The famous red rock monuments all line up on the horizon and change colour and size throughout the day, depending on where you’re standing. We did a one day trip through the main valley and the one next to it, Mystery Valley. It was hot, red and dusty, as you would expect – but with some amazing sights along the way. As usual the best times for photos were morning and evening but with such a long day in the sun, I unfortunately I didn’t make either! But these pictures will have to do – enjoy!
Our second stop in Moab was to Canyonlands National Park, which, as the name suggests, is full of canyons. About an hour from Moab, the park is massive. There are a number of different viewing points, loads of trails and even one canyon rim that would take two days to drive around. But in the absence of a 4WD, we stuck to the viewpoints of Mesa Arch, Green River, Grand View, Needles and Wooden Shoe. The sights were beautiful but in the middle of summer, the best bet is to visit early morning or late afternoon. We were rewarded with the best light in the afternoon at Grand View Viewpoint, which is my favourite photo from the set. Between all of that and Arches, I am almost convinced that Utah is made entirely of National Parks.
