After graduating from college in Chicago, Sara jumped on a plane to the West Coast with just one suitcase and $100 in her pocket. She landed in crazy San Francisco, and today makes her home in a beach town on the California coast. She also spent three years living in Japan, after which she followed her wanderlust around Asia for almost a year before returning to the USA, where she has worked as a teacher, a journalist and a national park ranger. She is an all-seasons outdoor enthusiast.
Already the author of 45 travel and non-fiction books, Sara (aka Sam) has written for publishers including Lonely Planet, Wilderness Press, National Geographic, Compass American Guides and Countryman Press. Her travel writing features in newspapers and magazines around the world, as well as on popular travel and news websites. She has also written a best-selling iPhone/iPad travel app, Viva Las Vegas, Baby!.
Her top-three favorite countries (so far, that is) are Nepal, Morocco and Chile, but Iceland, Namibia and India are next on her must-see life list. Back in her own country, her favorite places to hang out are the Big Island of Hawaii, Las Vegas and the Sierra Nevada. And her most memorable travel experience? Falling off a camel at the edge of the Sahara Desert.