I also visited New York on the same trip. I went on a coach tour organised by black New Yorkers to give tourists the chance to see the parts of the city where they lived. At that time, it was considered too dangerous to go to places such as Harlem (now a trendy area) as a tourist on one’s own.  How did you end up working there?  I was working for the BBC in Brussels and my wife and I were sick of the rain. A job came up in Washington DC, we had young twins and we just said: “Why not?” We did not really know anything about America but we thought we’d give it a go for a couple of years, and at least get a bit of sunshine.  But I soon realised that America was an endlessly fascinating place, and we liked it so much that we stayed, and I ended up as the BBC’s North American editor. We only really returned because a job on the Radio 4 Today show came up, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  • Is Seattle America's coolest city?  Were you particularly adventurous during your years in America?  Massively, both for work and play. If you’re going to cover America properly as a correspondent, you’ve got to put in the miles, and go to places off the beaten track — and I also wanted to give my family a real taste of America. So I got to visit everywhere from rural Texas, for a story about the demise of the rural Greyhound bus service, to Monument Valley, down in Marlboro Man territory, one of the most extraordinary places in the world.  Another highlight was doing the Skyline Drive, which runs the entire length of the Shenandoah National Park, in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia: another unforgettable experience. The autumn colours are truly spectacular.  Shenandoah national park (Photo: Alamy)  And the remotest place you’ve been?  America has a remarkable network of “ghost towns” — former cowboy towns which have been taken over by the National Park Service and are left as they were deserted by the settlers. One such town, Bodie, in the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California, is particularly remote. It’s right in the middle of nowhere and you can only reach it by four-wheel drive vehicle down a dirt track. When you arrive, the saloon bar doors are still swinging, even though the town was deserted in the Twenties. It’s like stepping back in time.  • The cheapest way to get to New York  I once hired a GMC Suburban, which is a staggering vehicle; it’s the sort of big four-wheel wagon that Secret Service men pile out of whenever the US president goes anywhere. We went skiing as a family to Colorado, and hired one at the airport because they had a special offer on the extended-length SUV, and it was the nearest thing to driving a palace on wheels. It was packed with the latest mod cons, had several rows of leather seats, the luggage disappeared into the boot and you just had the most amazing sense of space and height.  It is probably Kiawah Resort, a gorgeous hotel and resort in a nature reserve on Kiawah Island, just south of Charleston in South Carolina, where alligators wander around alongside people. We went there as a family every year we lived in America, and even now the children pester me about when we’re going to go back. My answer’s always rather vague. My favourite big-city hotel is the Beverly Hilton. It is ever so slightly tacky. There’s a giant movie screen next to the pool.  • 10 great US gardens  Miami, because it’s a weird and wonderful mix of America and something very different — a Latina, Spanish-language South American vibe, complete with manic drivers. In a way, it’s a glimpse of America’s Hispanic-dominated future and just has a real sense of energy and fun. It’s probably the country’s only really hedonistic city, too.  Miami's art deco architecture (Photo: Alamy)  And your worst travel experience?  Getting stuck in Chicago airport when the snow suddenly came, leading to our flight being cancelled. I’d been there on business and had promised my little daughter I’d be home in time for her school birthday celebration the following day. So to the horror of my producer, I decided to drive all night to get back in time. We hired a car and drove 15 hours through the snow to Washington. But the important thing was I made it to her birthday party on time.  • Denver: the airport that launched a thousand conspiracy theories  Best piece of travel advice?  Find a way of doing at least one journey that involves a long drive, because the seedy glamour of America is all to be found on the highways and smaller roads, at the gas stations and the motels that look like something out of a Hitchcock movie. It’s only by doing so that you really get a sense of just what a strange and sometimes brutal place America can be. I know it’s not a very green message.  Your most adventurous travel experience?  In a way, the most adventurous thing you can do in America is to venture into big-city ghettos way off the tourist track. Yes, the Great Outdoors has its dangers — you don’t want to run out of petrol in the middle of the desert on the way from Las Vegas to LA. But the most dangerous thing you can do is to venture into a no-go area in a city like Baltimore — the kind of place where a taxi driver will give you a look and ask: 'Are you really sure you want me to leave you there, sir?’  • 10 great US activity holidays  What do you need for the perfect American holiday?  When I visit with my family, we’re looking for what the Americans call “regular places” to stay and eat. Nothing too glitzy, but hotels, restaurants and attractions where you can get a real sense of America and the smell of the country. The smell that’s most evocative for me is the sweet, slightly sickly smell of fast-food outlets, of cinnamon, and of the petrol and the heat. If I’m honest, I still miss such smells.  Where do you want to go next?  I’m interested in seeing those parts of the States which are a bit off the beaten track, and are grappling with the future — such as Phoenix, Arizona. I’m looking forward to going there later in the year. I also love the sort of Breaking Bad-type desert-scapes you find there and in New Mexico. In the longer term, I’d love to visit the three states I haven’t yet visited. The kids want to go to Hawaii but I’d be more interested in seeing Alaska and Oregon.  Justin Webb is a presenter on the Radio 4 Today programme
Justin Webb, the radio presenter and former Washington correspondent, recalls his most memorable US adventures, from journeys through rural Texas to trips to 1980s Harlem