New Delhi, May 2 -- I am standing in front of a canyon, the entrance to which is approximately 15ft high on a slick rock wall. It has been 12 years since I have done any sort of climbing, and I stand for a moment scratching my head, trying to decide whether to carry on or turn back.

I had started driving a Nissan Rogue from Los Angeles three days ago to take it on a wander across California, but the lure of the topological features on a paper map, the fatigue-free comfort of the car and the voice in my head that kept whispering "just a little further" soon had me driving across California and Nevada into the centre of south Utah. And that's how I found myself in an area called the Badlands, staring at the mouth of a canyon.

Serving as t...