Around the corner

Guide books seem to be rather a necessary evil. I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with them.

Yes, it's good to know if a museum is closed on Mondays or the road to the beach is only accessible by jeep, but I'd rather not know about the hike that goes across private land and might be trespassing but you should do it anyway. Or the hike that requires you to climb a 20-foot rock wall with a rope before getting to the stream you have to swim through to get to the waterfall -- or at least I'd rather my husband not know about it.

Everybody on the Big Island recommends a particular guide book, and it has helped us tremendously in finding good beaches and even knowing where on each beach to find the best snorkeling. Imagine our surprise when it recommended Costco pizza in the restaurant section.

Sometimes it's almost scary the detail and accuracy involved, and leaves too little to be discovered. In looking for a lunch spot on the north end of the Big Island, we read of a bakery that got a low ranking because the selection was limited and the people were unfriendly and it closed for an hour at noon. We spotted the bakery and, since the book was a few years old, decided we'd try it out anyway. Sure enough, the selection was limited, the people were unfriendly, and the sign said it was closing for the lunch hour.

Sometimes we see everyone with the guidebook tucked under their arms eating at the same restaurant, and sometimes we have to eat at that same restaurant. Because it says to. And you just get in a habit of following the recommendations. But sometimes we go for something different.

And that's the secret to using a guide book. Use it but don't let it use you.

Talk to fellow travelers or better yet-- locals -- and see what they like to do. Try a restaurant not listed. Catch a sunrise in the very spot it recommends a sunset. Wander around the corner to see what you can find on your own.

It's the secret to more than just travel.

Here are a few discoveries from our last trip. Things not mentioned in our guide:

And no, I'm not telling where they are. You'll have to discover your own surprises.