In 2014, we set off on what promised to be the ultimate American road trip

As someone with a less-than-stellar grasp of U.S. geography at the time, we decided on what looked like a sensible loop: fly into Denver, drive up to South Dakota to see Mount Rushmore, head across into Wyoming to explore Yellowstone National Park, with overnight stops in Cody and Jackson, before circling back to Denver

Simple, right?

The trip started with a full British Airways flight out of Heathrow, what we didn’t know then was that it was full of passengers, but nearly empty of luggage

When we arrived at Denver airport late at night, only 9 bags emerged from the carousel

9. For a full transatlantic flight

There had been no announcement

No heads-up from BA to Denver airport staff

Just a slow, awkward realization that 200+ tired travelers were not getting their bags tonight

The airport wasn't exactly staffed for a situation like this either

Eventually, BA handed out “cashpoint (ATM) cards” so we could buy essentials

So day one of the great American road trip? Shopping

I discovered the Patagonia store in downtown Denver, and let’s just say I now associate great outdoor gear with British Airways customer service

To BA’s credit, they did reimburse us and promised to deliver our luggage

The catch?

We had to guess where we’d be a week in advance so they could intercept us

No easy feat when you’re roaming vast national parks

Somehow, it worked

Our bags caught up with us in Yellowstone, just in time to make us feel reunited and, ironically, a little more rooted in the wilderness

Oh, and there were also James Taylor tickets for Red Rocks that got tangled in the chaos, but that’s another story for another day