Sure you can learn to play the guitar without lessons. I've been playing for around 11 years and haven't had the first lesson. I picked up a chord book (already had a good understanding of music from playing the piano and trumpet) and went from there. I found this site some years later, and it has helped me out a lot. There are some amazing guitarist here (especially Mr. Schmange who posted above me). If you have any questions, feel free to post them here in the forum. There's no such thing as a stupid question when it comes to the guitar!