Hugh McNaughtan, Amy C Balfour, Stephen Lioy, Carolyn McCarthy, Christopher Pitts, Ryan Ver Berkmoes, Benedict Walker

AMAZING ROAD TRIPS32

BEST TRIPSSOUTHWEST USA’S

©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd

MAP LEGEND

SYMBOLS IN THIS BOOK CONTENTS

% Telephone Number

h Opening Hours

p Parking

n Nonsmoking

a Air- Conditioning

i Internet Access

W Wi-Fi Access

v Vegetarian Selection

s Swimming Pool

E English- Language Menu

c Family-Friendly

# Pet-Friendly

Tips from Locals

Top Tips

Link Your Trips

Trip Detour

5 Eating

Family

History & Culture

Food & Drink

Outdoors

Essential Photo

Walking Tour

4 Sleeping

PLAN YOUR TRIP

Welcome to Southwest USA ........... 7

Southwest USA Highlights.............. 8

If You Like … ................................. 20

Need to Know ................................. 22

City Guide ........................................24

Southwest USA by Region ............ 30

Southwest USA Classic Trips ....... 32

ON THE ROAD

1Four Corners Cruise .....................10 DAYS 35

2Route 66: The Southwest ....5–7 DAYS 47

ARIZONA ...........................59

3 A Taste of the Old West ................... 3 days 63

4 Grand Canyon North Rim & Lake Powell ........... 3 days 71

5 Fantastic Canyon Voyage ...................4–5 days 79

6 Mogollon Rim Country ...........3–5 days 91

7 Southern Desert Wanderings ...........3–4 days 99

Walk Track/Path

River/CreekIntermittent RiverSwamp/MangroveCanalWaterDry/Salt/ Intermittent LakeGlacier

BeachCemetery (Christian)Cemetery (Other)ParkForest

Sportsground

International

Cliff

Capital (National)Capital (State/Province)City/Large TownTown/Village

State/Province

StepsPlaza/Mall

Pedestrian Overpass

Tunnel

Walk RouteLinked TripTrip DetourTrip Route

Airport

Underground station

Train/Railway

Cable Car/ Funicular

BART stationBoston T station

US Interstate Hwy US National Hwy

State Hwy

ReservationUrban Area

Trip Stop

Tram

Trip Numbers

Walking tour

Trip Detour

ParkingSubway station

Metro/Muni station

LaneTertiary

TollwayFreewayPrimarySecondary

Unsealed Road

Transport

Hydrography

Areas

Boundaries

Population

Routes

Route Markers

Trips

Note: Not all symbols displayed above appear on the maps in this book

CONTENTS

8 Highway 89A: Red Rock Country ..... 2 days 107

9 Highway 95: Yuma to Lake Mead ...........3 days 115

a Southwest Indian Nations Sojourn ..... 3–4 days 123

NEW MEXICO ................ 137

b High & Low Roads to Taos .................1–4 days 141

c El Camino Real & Turquoise Trail .....3–4 days 151

d Georgia O’Keeffe Country ................ 2–3 days 159

e Highway 4: Jemez Mountains ...... 2 days 167

f Enchanted Circle & Eastern Sangres ......2 days 175

g Las Cruces to Carlsbad Caverns ................ 2–3 days 183

h Geronimo Trail ...................... 2–3 days 191

i Into the Gila ............................2 days 199

j Highway 53 to Acoma ...................2 days 207

k Billy the Kid Trail ...........................2 days 215

Texas

Utah, Colorado& Nevada

Arizona NewMexico

p269

p59p137

p227

3

Contents cont.

Utah Arches National Park

JFU

NK

/SH

UT

TE

RS

TO

CK

©

TEXAS .............................227

l Hill Country .................2–5 days 231

m Big Bend Scenic Loop..........5–7 days 241

n Texas Gulf Coast ......................... 4 days 249

o Heart of Texas ......................... 4 days 257

UTAH, COLORADO & NEVADA ..........................269

p Zion & Bryce National Parks ......... 6 days 273

q Scenic Byway 12 .................. 5 days 283

rMoab & Southeastern National Parks ......... 4 days 291

sMonument Valley & Trail of the Ancients ......... 5 days 299

t Dinosaur Diamond Prehistoric Byway ..... 6 days 307

u San Juan Skyway & Million Dollar Highway ............... 6–8 days 315

v Colorado’s High Country Byways ....5–7 days 325

w Highway 50: The Loneliest Road ......... 3 days 333

ROAD TRIP ESSENTIALS

Southwest USA Driving Guide .... 345

Southwest USA Travel Guide ...... 350

Index ............................................. 360

4

5

AAbiquiú 160-2, 165accommodations 23, 351Acoma Pueblo 212, 213air travel 350Airport Mesa 85Ajo Mountain Drive 104Alamo, the 233, 266Alamogordo 186-7, 189Albuquerque 42-3, 45, 51, 57,

154, 157, 172, 173, 224-5Albuquerque Museum of Art

& History 225aliens 96, 216-17Alpine, TX 244-5, 247Amarillo 50, 262, 263American Indian art 17American Indian culture &

history 17, 123-9American International

Rattlesnake Museum 224Amtrak 350Anasazi State Park Museum

286Ancestral Puebloan people

42, 128, 299-303, 317Angels Landing 38Animas River 318Antelope Canyon 73Aquarius Plateau 285Aransas National Wildlife

Refuge 251-2archaeological sites 304, see

also individual locationsArches National Park 293-4area codes 356Arizona History Museum 64-5

Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum 101

A:shiwi A:wan Museum & Heritage Center 209

Aspen 328-9, 331ATMs 354Audrey Headframe Park 83Austin 27, 235, 264-5Aztec 163-4, 165Aztec Ruins National

Monument 163-4

BBalcony House 317Ballroom Marfa 244Bandelier National

Monument 169-70, 173bathrooms 356Bear Creek Falls 319Becker Butte Lookout 95-6beer 21Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art

340Bell Rock Pathway 112Best Friends Animal

Sanctuary 38Big Bend National Park 246,

247Big Nose Kate’s 66Big Spring 260-1, 263Bill Williams National Wildlife

Refuge 118Billy the Kid 215-21Bird Cage Theater 66Bisbee 66, 68, 69Bisti Badlands 164Black Range Museum 194Blanding 302, 305

Blue Hole 235-7Bluff 301, 305Bob Bullock Texas State

History Museum 264Bob Wills Museum 261Bonito lava flow 126books 56Boothill Graveyard 66border crossings 347, 348Bosque del Apache National

Wildlife Refuge 154bottled water 39Boulder 286, 289, 327, 331Boulder City 120, 121Box Canyon Falls 321Boyce Thompson Arboretum

96Bradbury Science Museum

169Bremond Block 265Bright Angel Point 75Bright Angel Trail 43, 88Briscoe Western Art Museum

266Bryce Canyon City 284-5,

289Bryce Canyon National Park

277-80, 281Bryce Museum 284-5Buck Canyon 293Buckhorn Saloon & Museum

266Buddy Holly Center 262Buena Vista 330, 331Bullhead City 119, 121bus travel 350business hours 23Butler Wash Ruins 302-3

INDEX

360

©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd

CCactus Theater 262Cadillac Ranch 50Camino Real 151-7Canyon, TX 262Canyon Country Discovery

Center 296Canyon de Chelly National

Monument 18, 128, 129Canyon Pintado National

Historic District 309Canyonlands National Park

292Cape Royal Point 76Capitan 218Capitol Reef National Park

288Capulin Volcano National

Monument 180car rental 22, 346Carl Hayden Visitor Center 73Carlsbad 187-8, 189Carlsbad Caverns National

Park 17, 188Carrizozo 220cars, see drivingCassidy, Butch 277Castle Dome Mine 117-18Catwalk 202cell phones 23, 356Centinela Traditional Arts 144Cerrillos 155-6Cerrillos Hills State Park 156Chaco Canyon 162, 165Chaco Culture National

Historical Park 162Chain of Craters

Backcountry Byway 212Chama River Canyon 165Chapel of the Holy Cross 85Chapin Mesa Museum 317Chautauqua Park 327children, travel with 21, 351-3chiles 18, 156Chimayó 143-4, 149Chinati Foundation 244

Chiricahua National Monument 68

Chloride, NM 194-6, 197Christensen, Albert & Gladys

294-6Church of San José de

Gracia 145Churchill County Museum

335-6Cimarron 178, 181Civic Center Park 343Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur

Quarry 312cliff dwellings 126, 128, 193,

302-3, 317climate 22Cloudcroft 189Coconino National Forest 109Cold Springs Pony Express

Station 337College of Eastern Utah

Prehistoric Museum 312Collegiate Peaks 330Colorado National

Monument 312Comb Ridge Sauropod

Trackway 309Comfort, TX 233, 239Condor Viewing Site 74Congress Ave Bridge 265Córdova 144Corpus Christi 254, 255Cosmopolitan, The 37-8, 341costs 23Cottonwood 83credit cards 354Cuba, NM 165culture 20currency exchange 354cycling 112, 120, 285

Ddangers 356Davis Mountains State Park

243-4daylight savings time 23Dead Horse Point State

Park 293

Delgadillo’s Snow Cap Drive-In 55

Delicate Arch 293Denver 326, 331, 342-3Denver Art Museum 343Denver International Airport

350Desert Caballeros Western

Museum 81Desert View Drive 88Desert View Watchtower 88Devils Garden 286Devil’s Rope Museum 49Dinosaur National

Monument 310dinosaurs 307-13disabilities, travelers with 357discount cards 352Dixon 148, 149driving 345-9, 351

accidents 349border crossing 347, 348car rental 22, 346fuel 22, 349insurance 345license 345maps 347parking 348road conditions 348road distances 346road rules 345, 348safety 349

Durango 317-18, 323Durango & Silverton Narrow

Gauge Railroad 318

EEarp, Wyatt 66Earthships 177Edge of the Cedars State

Park Museum 302Eiffel Tower Experience 341El Malpais 213El Malpais National

Monument 210-12

361361

IND

EX C–E

El Morro National Monument 210

El Paso 242El Paso Holocaust Museum

242El Paso Museum of Art 242electricity 351Elgin 102Ely 338, 339emergencies 22, 352Emory Pass 193-4Escalante 285, 289Eureka 338Eureka Sentinel Museum 338exchange rates 354Explore Navajo Interactive

Museum 127

FFairbank Historic Site 65-6Fallon 335-6family travel 21Farmington 165festivals 143, 322Flagstaff 54-5, 57, 86, 89,

134-5food 18, 20, 23, 353Fort Concho National

Historic Landmark 260Fort Davis 242-4, 247Fort Davis National Historic

Site 244Fort McKavett State

Historical Park 258-9Fossil Discovery Exhibit 246Four Corners Monument 41Fredericksburg 233-4, 239Fruita 309, 313Fruita Paleontological Area

309fuel 22, 349Fulton 252-3

GGallery 408 220Gallup 51, 208-9, 213

Gallup Mural Walk 51Galveston 250-1, 255Garner State Park 258gas 22, 349Gates Pass Scenic Overlook

65Georgia O’Keeffe Museum 42Geronimo Springs Museum

194Ghost Ranch 162, 165Gila, the 202Gila Cliff Dwellings National

Monument 193, 197Glen Canyon Dam 72-3Glen Canyon National

Recreation Area 73Glenwood Springs 328, 331Globe 97Goliad 252Goose Island State Park 252Goosenecks State Park

Overlook 304Grand Canyon Caverns 55Grand Canyon Lodge 75, 77Grand Canyon National Park

10, 87-8North Rim 39, 75South Rim 43-4, 75

Grand Canyon Railway 43Grand Canyon Village 88, 89Grand Canyon Visitor Center

87-8Grand Staircase–Escalante

National Monument 286Great Basin National Park 338Great Sand Dunes National

Park 330Green Chiles & Texas BBQ 18Grimes Point Archaeological

Area 336Gruene 238, 239Gruene Hall 238

HHackberry 55Harpers Corner Scenic Drive

310

Hatch 156Head of the Rocks 285health 353Heard Museum 124Hidden Cave 336highlights 10-19, 33hiking 21Hillsboro 194, 197history 20Holbrook 57Hole-in-the-Rock Road 286,

288Hole ’n the Rock 294-6holidays 356Holly, Buddy 262Honanki Heritage Site 110Hoover Dam 19, 44, 120Hopi House 43Hopi Museum 128Hopi Nation 127-8Hopi Reservation 129Horseshoe Bend 39, 73hot springs 169, 171, 180, 194,

202, 319, 322, 328, 330Hotel Monte Vista 134-5Hovenweep National

Monument 301-2Hubbard Museum of the

American West 220Hurd-La Rinconada Gallery

217

IIndian Pueblo Cultural

Center 172insurance 345, 353International UFO Museum &

Research Center 217internet access 353Island in the Sky District

292-3

JJacob Lake 75, 77Jemez Historic Site 171Jemez Pueblo 172

362362

IND

EX E–J

Jemez Springs 171-2, 173Jerome 82-3, 89Jerome Artists Cooperative

Gallery 82-3Jerome State Historic Park 83Jersey Jim Lookout Tower 317Johnson, Lyndon B 235Johnson City 235Jornada del Muerto 152

KKaibab Plateau Visitor

Center 75Kanab 38, 45Kelly’s Brewery 51Kerrville 233, 239Kerrville-Schreiner Park 233KiMo Theatre 51Kingman 56, 57Kingston 196Kinishba Ruins 94-5Kitt Peak National

Observatory 104Kodachrome Basin State

Park 280Kolb Studio 43Kolob Canyons 275KTAO Solar Center 177

LLake Havasu City 118, 121Lake Mead 120Lake Peak 145Lake Powell 73Laredo 258, 263Las Conchas Trail 170Las Cruces 152, 157, 184-5,

189Las Trampas 145Las Vegas, NM 178, 180, 181Las Vegas, NV 24-5, 37-8,

45, 340-1Laughlin 119, 121Lavender Pit 66-8Leadville 329-30Leakey 258

Lees Ferry 74, 77Lees Ferry Lodge 74, 77legal matters 353-4LGBTIQ travelers 354Lightning Field 201Lincoln 217-18, 221Living Desert State Park 187-8Lockhart 238London Bridge 118Loretto Chapel 223Los Alamos 168-9, 173Los Alamos Historical

Museum 169Lost Dutchman State Park

96, 97Lowell Observatory 86Lower Calf Creek 286Loyola Beach 254Lubbock 262Luckenbach 234Lyndon B Johnson Ranch

234-5

MMadrid 155mail 355-6Mancos 317Manhattan Project 168Manti-La Sal National Forest

296maps 347Marathon 245-6Marble Canyon 73-4Marfa 244, 247Maroon Bells 328-9Mather Point 87Maynard Dixon Living

History Museum 277McCarran International

Airport (Las Vegas) 350McCauley Springs 169McConkie Ranch Petroglyphs

310McDonald Observatory 242-3McLean 49-50medical services 353

Mesa Arch 293Mesa Verde National Park 13,

42, 317Mesalands Dinosaur

Museum 51Meteor Crater 54Mexican Hat 305Middlegate Station 336-7,

339Mike O’Callaghan–Pat Tillman

Memorial Bridge 44, 120Mill Canyon Dinosaur Trail

308-9Millicent Rogers Museum 148Million Dollar Highway 319Miss Hattie’s Bordello

Museum 260Mission San Xavier del Bac

104Moab 12, 294, 297, 308-9,

313Mob Museum 37mobile phones 23, 356Moenkopi 127, 129Mogollon 202Mogollon Rim 91-7Mogollon Rim Interpretive

Trail #615 94Mogollon Rim Visitor Center

93Moki Dugway 304Monastery of Christ in the

Desert 162money 23, 354Montezuma Castle National

Monument 124-5Montezuma Well 125Monticello 296, 297Monticello Box 196Monument Valley 39-41, 45,

300-1, 305Monument Valley Navajo

Tribal Park 300-1Moraine Park Museum 327Mora Valley 180, 181Morning Star Gallery 223motor homes 346-7

363363

IND

EX J–M

motorcycles, see drivingMt Carmel 277Mule Canyon Ruins 303Museum of Indian Arts &

Culture 143Museum of International Folk

Art 143Museum of the Big Bend 245music 345, 349Mygatt-Moore Quarry 309

NNarrows 277National Geographic Visitor

Center & IMAX Theater 86National Hispanic Cultural

Center 172National Mining Hall of Fame

329-30National Museum of Nuclear

Science & History 154-5National Museum of the

Pacific War 234National Ranching Heritage

Center 262national & state parks 355,

see also individual parksNative American culture,

see American Indian culture & history

Natural Bridges National Monument 303-4

Navajo Bridge Interpretive Center 74

Navajo National Monument 128

Needles District 296Neon Museum 37New Braunfels 238, 239New Mexico Farm & Ranch

Heritage Museum 184-5New Mexico History Museum

222New Mexico Museum of

Art 222New Mexico Museum of

Natural History & Science 225

New Mexico Museum of Space History 187

New Shoe Tree 337Newspaper Rock State

Historic Site 296

OOak Creek 112, 113Oak Creek Canyon 108, 113Oak Creek Visitor Center 109Oak Creek Vista 108-9Oatman 56OK Corral 66O’Keeffe, Georgia 42, 159-65

Home & Studio Tour 161Old Columbia Cemetery 251Old Tucson Studios 65opening hours 23Organ Pipe Cactus National

Monument 104, 105Orpheum 135Orvis Hot Springs 322Our Lady of Guadalupe

Chapel 224Our Lady of Guadalupe

Mission 209Ouray 319-21, 323Owachomo Bridge 304

PPadre Island National

Seashore 253-4Page 73, 77Page Springs Cellars 110-12Palace of the Governors 222Palacios 251Palatki Heritage Site 110Palo Duro Canyon State

Park 262Panhandle-Plains Historical

Museum 262parking 348parks, see national & state

parks, see also individual parks

Patagonia 102, 105

Patagonia-Sonoita Creek Preserve 102

Pause-Rest-Worship Church 116

Payson 93, 97Petrified Forest National

Park 51-3, 54Petroglyph National

Monument 172petrol 22, 349pets, travel with 355Philmont Museum 178Philmont Scout Ranch 178Phippen Museum 82Phoenix 28-9, 124, 129, 130-1photography 355Pie Town 201-2Pinetop-Lakeside 97plugs 351Point Imperial 76Pony Express 336Port Aransas 253, 255Port Isabel 254, 255post 355-6Prada Marfa 246Prescott 81, 89Presidio La Bahia 252Presidio San Agustín del

Tucson 133Price, UT 312, 313public holidays 356

QQuartzsite 118Queen Mine 66

Rradio 349Rancho de las Golondrinas

156Rangely 309-10Red Canyon 277Red Canyon Bicycle Trail 285Red Cloud Loop 310-12Red Fleet State Park 310Red Mountain Pass 319

364364

IND

EX M–R

Red River 178, 181Red Rock Canyon National

Conservation Area 44Red Rock Country Visitor

Center 86Red Rock Loop Road 110Red Rock Pass 112Red Rock State Park 110Reno 334-5, 339Republic of the Rio Grande

Museum 258Reserve, NM 205Ridgway 322Rim Country Museum 93Rim Road Scenic Drive 277Rim Trail 88Riordan Mansion State

Historic Park 55River Mountains Loop Trail

120Riverbend Hot Springs 194road conditions 348road distances 346road rules 345, 348Rockport 252-3Rocky Mountain National

Park 327, 331Romero St Gallery 224Roswell 216-17, 221Route 66 47-57Route 66 Museum 56Ruidoso 218-20, 221Ruidoso Downs 220RVs 346-7

Ssafety 356Saguaro National Park

(West) 100-1Salt River Canyon 95San Agustín Cathedral 258San Angelo 259-60, 263San Antonio 233, 266-7San Antonio Hot Springs 169San Carlos Apache Tribe

Reservation 95-6

San Felipe de Neri Church 224

San Fernando Cathedral 267San Francisco Hot Springs

202-4San Juan Hut System 319San Juan Skyway 315-23San Marcos 237San Miguel Mission 200San Patricio 217Sand Mountain Recreation

Area 336Sand Springs Pony Express

Station 336 Santa Barbara Trail 145Santa Fe 26, 42, 45, 143, 149,

156, 157, 222-3Santa Rita Chino Open Pit

Copper Mine Observation Point 193

Santuario de Chimayó 143Scenic Bajada Loop Drive 101Scenic Byway 12 283-9Scottsdale 130-1Scottsdale Historical

Museum 130Scottsdale Museum of

Contemporary Arts 131Sedona 12, 85, 109, 113Seligman 55Shalak’o ceremonial dance

209Sharlot Hall Museum 82Shiprock 164, 222Shoe Tree 337Show Low 94Sierra Blanca Peak 220Silver City 192-3, 197, 204,

205Silverton 318-19, 323Silverton Museum 318Sitting Bull Falls 188Ski Santa Fe 144Slide Rock State Park 109Slotzilla 37Smokey Bear Historical

Park 218

smoking 352Snow Canyon State Park 275Socorro 200-1, 205Soleri Bridge 131Sonoita 102South Padre Island 254, 255Spaceport America 152Spanish Governor’s Palace

267speed limits 345Spence Hot Springs 169Springdale 276, 281Stampede 261state & national parks 355,

see also individual parksSteamboat Springs 330St Francis Cathedral 222-3St George 275, 281St Joseph’s Miraculous

Staircase 223Sunset Crater Volcano 129Sunset Crater Volcano

National Monument 126Superstition Mountain

Museum 96swimming 109, 217, 231, 250

TTaos 15, 148, 149, 176-7, 181Taos Pueblo 148Taos Ski Valley 144telephone services 23, 356Telluride 322, 323Terlingua 246, 247Texas State Aquarium 254Texas State Capitol 264Thumb Butte 82time 23Tinkertown Museum 154tipping 355Titan Missile Museum 103Tlaquepaque Village 110Toadlena 164toilets 356Tombstone 66, 69

365365

IND

EX R–T

Tombstone Courthouse State Historic Park 66

Tonto Natural Bridge State Park 92-3

Top Gun Raceway 335Torrey 287, 289tourist information 356-7Toy Train Depot 187Trail Through Time 309train travel 350transport 350, see

also drivingTropic 280, 281Truchas 145Truckee River Whitewater

Park 335Truth or Consequences 152,

157, 194Tuba City 127Tucson 64-5, 69, 105, 132-3Tucson Museum of Art 132Tucumcari 50-1, 57Tumacácori National

Historical Park 102-3Turkey 261Turquoise Mining Museum

155-6Turquoise Trail 151-7Tusayan 86Tusayan Museum & Ruin 88Tuzigoot National Monument

83

UUFOs 217Union Station, Denver 342University of Texas 264USS Lexington Museum 254

Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum 310

Uvalde 258

Vvaccinations 353Vail 327, 331Vail to Breckenridge Bike

Path 327Valles Caldera National

Preserve 170Valley of Fire State Park

38, 120Valley of Fires 220, 221Valley of the Gods 304Varner-Hogg Plantation 251V-Bar-V Heritage Site 112vegetarian food 23Vermilion Cliffs 74Vernal 310, 313Very Large Array Radio

Telescope 196, 201Virgin 275visas 22Vulture Mine 89

WWalnut Canyon National

Monument 126Washer Woman Arch 293Wave, The 76weather 22Weatherford Hotel 135websites 23, 348West Columbia 251Western New Mexico

University 193

Wheeler Peak 145White Mountain Apache Tribe

Reservation 95White Sands Missile Range

185White Sands National

Monument 17, 185-6whooping cranes 251-2Wickenburg 81, 89Widforss Trail 76wi-fi 353Wild Rivers 181Wild Rivers Recreation Area

177Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary

209-10Williams 43Wimberley 235-7, 239wine 21Winslow 53-4, 57World’s Oldest Rodeo 82Wupatki National Monument

126

YYavapai Geology Museum 44Yuma 116, 121Yuma Quartermaster Depot

State Park 116Yuma Territorial Prison State

Historic Park 116

ZZion Canyon 276-7, 281Zion National Park 12, 38Zuni Pueblo 209, 213Zuni Tourism Office 209Zuni Tribal Fair 209

366366

IND

EX T–Z

STEPHEN LIOY

Stephen Lioy is a photographer, writer, hiker, and travel blogger. A ‘once in a lifetime’ Euro trip and post-university move to China set the stage for what

would eventually become a semi-nomadic lifestyle, based on sharing his experiences and helping provide that initial push out of comfort zones and into all that the planet has to offer. When Stephen isn’t at home in Kyrgyzstan, which is more often than not, he can usually be found leading very large tour groups of very small children or, in between work periods, out in the mountains sleeping in a tent and eating the sort of things your stomach warns you about. Follow Stephen’s travels at www.monkboughtlunch.com or on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, or Google+ for regular photos and occasional witticisms.

CHRISTOPHER PITTS

Chris’s first expedition in life ended in failure when he tried to dig from Pennsylvania to China at the age of six. Hardened by reality but still

infinitely curious about the other side of the world, he went on to study Chinese in university, living for several years in China and Taiwan. A chance encounter in an elevator led to a relocation to Paris, where he lived with his wife and two children for over a decade before the lure of Colorado’s sunny skies and outdoor adventure proved too great to resist. His website is www.christopherpitts.net.

RYAN VER BERKMOES

Ryan Ver Berkmoes has written more than 110 guidebooks for Lonely Planet. He grew up in Santa Cruz, California, which he

left at age 17 for college in the Midwest, where he first discovered snow. All joy of this novelty soon wore off. Since then he has been traveling the world, both for pleasure and for work – which are often indistinguishable. He has covered everything from wars to bars. He definitely prefers the latter. Ryan calls New York City home. Read more at ryanverberkmoes.com and at @ryanvb.

BENEDICT WALKER

Ben was born in Newcastle, Australia, and grew up in the ’burbs, spending weekends and long summers by the beach whenever possible.

Japan was the first gig he got for Lonely Planet, in 2008, and he’s been blessed to have been asked back often since then. He really is someone who is living his dreams, though life on the road can have its ups and downs. He’s also written and directed a play, toured Australia managing the travel logistics for top-billing music festivals and is playing around with photography and film-making. Join him on his journeys on Insta gram: @wordsandjourneys.

CAROLYN MCCARTHY

Carolyn McCarthy specializes in travel, culture and adventure in the Americas. She has written for National Geographic, Outside, BBC

Magazine, Boston Globe and other publications. A former Fulbright fellow and Banff Mountain Grant recipient, she has documented life in the most remote corners of Latin America. Carolyn gained her expertise by researching guidebooks in diverse destinations. She has contributed to over 30 guidebooks for Lonely Planet, including for Colorado, USA, Argentina, Chile, Panama, Peru and the Trekking in the Patagonian Andes and USA’s National Parks guides. For more information, visit www.carolynmccarthy.org or follow her Instagram travels at @masmerquen.

©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd

OUR WRITERS

HUGH MCNAUGHTAN

A former English lecturer, Hugh decided visa applications beat grant applications, and turned his love of travel into a full-time

thing. Having also done a bit of restaurant reviewing in his home town (Melbourne, Australia), he’s now eaten his way across Europe and North America, and found the best way to work up an appetite for the USA’s great, gut-busting food is spending all day cycling through its stunning landscapes. He’s never happier than when on the road with his two daughters. Except perhaps on the cricket field …

AMY C BALFOUR

Amy practiced law in Virginia before moving to Los Angeles to try to break in as a screenwriter. If you listen carefully, you can still

hear the horrified screams of her parents echoing through the space-time continuum. After a stint as a writer’s assistant on Law & Order, she jumped into freelance writing, focusing on travel, food, and the outdoors. She has hiked, biked, and paddled across Southern California and the Southwest. She recently criss-crossed the Great Plains in search of the region’s best burgers and barbecue. Her top picks for US adventure include the cables of Half Dome, the South Kaibab Trail to Phantom Ranch, the road to the Racetrack Playa in Death Valley, the Gauley River during dam release, and the doorbell at LA’s Museum of Jurassic Technology.

OUR STORYA beat-up old car, a few dollars in the pocket and a sense of adventure. In 1972 that’s all Tony and Maureen Wheeler needed for the trip of a lifetime – across Europe and Asia overland to Australia. It took several months, and at the end –

broke but inspired – they sat at their kitchen table writing and stapling together their first travel guide, Across Asia on the Cheap. Within a week they’d sold 1500 copies. Lonely Planet was born.

Today, Lonely Planet has offices in Franklin, London, Melbourne, Oakland, Dublin, Beijing, and Delhi, with more than 600 staff and writers. We share Tony’s belief that ‘a great guidebook should do three things: inform, educate and amuse’.

MORE WRITERS

Although the authors and Lonely Planet have taken all reasonable care in preparing this book, we make no warranty about the accuracy or completeness of its content and, to the maximum extent permitted, dis-claim all liability arising from its use.

Published by Lonely Planet Global LimitedCRN 5541533rd edition – February 2018ISBN 978 1 7865 734 52© Lonely Planet 2018Photographs © as indicated 201810 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1Printed in ChinaAll rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, except brief extracts for the purpose of review, and no part of this publication may be sold or hired, without the written permission

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©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd

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