| STJOSEPH | City in NW Missouri, US; starting point of the Pony Express in 1860 |
| STJOE | City in NW Missouri, informally |
| USPS | Org. that trademarked "Pony Express" in 2006 |
| NUDISM | Minds us starting to change, being without dressing |
| SACRAMENTO | City which was the western terminus of the Pony Express during its 18 months in operation (10) |
| BRACKENRIDGE | Marian, US sculptor who modelled bronze markers for the 1960 centennial of the Pony Express (12) |
| MISSOURI | State at one end of the Pony Express |
| INDEPENDENCE | City in Missouri, US; point of departure of the California, Oregon and Santa Fe Trails in the 19th c |
| CHAMONIX | Short name for the resort on the north side of Mont Blanc that hosted the first Winter Olympics and is the starting point of the Haute Route ski touring trail ending in Zermatt (8) |
| EDALE | Village in the High Peak of Derbyshire; the starting point of the Pennine Way (5) |
| OSAGE | ? River, tributary of the Missouri, US that flows into the Lake of the Ozarks reservoir |
| HANNIBAL | City and port on the Mississippi River in Missouri, US; boyhood home of Mark Twain (8) |
| MUSTANG | Ford that's the namesake of the "pony car" class of autos |
| LIEGE | Belgian city, the starting point of the gruelling Marathon de la Route classic rally, first run in 1931 (5) |
| TROY | Start of a word ladder (and the starting point of the journey) |
| FARNHAM | Town in North West Surrey, the western starting point of the North Downs Way (7) |
| XIAN | Chinese city that was the starting point of the Silk Road |
| GUAM | USA starting to get in to a sticky situation in the pacific (4) |
| STLOUIS | Port on the Mississippi River; largest city in Missouri, US (2,5) |
| NEOPHYTE | Convert to the Pony Express, initially (8) |
