Nathaniel Whitfield’s friend from the climbing gym in Los Angeles recommended checking out the Merry Go Round the next time he was in the quaint mountain community of Lone Pine.

So the 33-year-old found himself eating pan-fried noodles 200 miles north of the megalopolis in a restaurant shaped like a carousel. Inside, dainty horse figurines painted in pastels peek out from nooks and crannies. Buddhas, too. Though a vintage neon sign out front advertises steaks, barbecue and lamb chops, the fare is Chinese.

From the patio, diners can gaze at the jagged crown of Mt. Whitney, the tallest mountain in the contiguous U.S. at 14,505 feet. And just down the road roll the epic, rounded Alabama Hills, famed in part for their rocks twisted into natural arches. Once a backdrop for countless western f

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