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John Cletheroe's
USA and Canada Holiday Hints |
Therefore I can only suggest that you obtain printed maps or access online maps from other sites. The following sections offer some recommendations for each of these possibilities.
Many of the free tourist publicity booklets produced by states, provinces, cities, towns and regions include useful maps.
Most motel chain's directories include simple maps of the USA and Canada showing the towns where they have locations, usually at the front or back. Sometimes there are also maps at the start of the entries for each state or province. The detailed entry for each location normally has a diagram indicating how to get to it from the nearest main highway.
Free printed road maps are available from car rental company offices when you pick up a car, usually in the form of large sheets on a tear-off pad on the counter. These sheets usually have a regional map, a local map of the city and a close-up map of the airport area. They are well worth remembering to pick up.
Printed road maps are issued by each American state and Canadian Province and are usually available at state and province welcome centres (frequently found on Interstate highways as you enter each state) and at Chambers of Commerce or Tourist Information Offices in towns. These maps often have useful information about the state or province's attractions on their reverse side, such as scenic byways and state or provincial parks. All the official American state highway maps are clearly marked "For free distribution only" - anyone attempting to charge for them is breaking the law (but state highway maps published by companies commercially aren't free of course). Some Canadian provincial maps are in theory intended to be sold for a charge but are often available free of charge.
The USA Today newspaper and the weather section of its web site contain very useful weather maps of the USA and Canada. (External link verified Sep-02.)
A detailed map of each area administered by the US National Park Service is always supplied as part of your entrance fee whenever you enter each area. These maps also contain other interesting and useful information and are well worth studying. You should always be offered a map when you pay your entrance fee or show your National Parks Pass or Golden Eagle Pass; if not, just ask. Maps may also be supplied at Canadian National Parks, US state parks and Canadian provincial parks but availability is much more variable and a small charge may be made. Where no entrance fee applies, such as the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Natchez Trace Parkway, maps are often available at visitor centres.
On road maps, the same designs as on highway marker shields are used to indicate Interstates and US Highways. However, State Highways are usually indicated by a circle or oval containing the road number, and county roads by a rectangle containing the road number.
Most recently modified 28-Sep-02