New Mexico is one of those states I haven’t spent nearly as much time in as I would like to have, and is a place I plan on visiting more in the future. My first visit to New Mexico came as we headed to Four Corners during the western leg of our 1997 road trip. We started our day in Durango, Colorado, and visited Mesa Verde on our way through southwestern Colorado and onto Route 666 towards New Mexico. We enjoyed the geographic oddity that is the Four Corners area, and spent some time in four states simultaneously before heading into Arizona toward the Grand Canyon.

My next visit to New Mexico came on our first summer road trip in 2006, and we spent a little more time in the state, albeit mostly along Interstate 40, tracing the path of the old Route 66. We spent the night of the Fourth of July at the iconic Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari. We drove the town’s main street, enjoying the great neon signs, and watched the fireworks display from the local elementary school parking lot while eating our Sonic Blasts. Perfect.

The next day, we headed west through Albuquerque, where we had lunch at the massive Frontier Restaurant, and into Sandia Crest, twenty minutes outside of the city, where we found the mind-blowing Tinkertown, another only-in-America roadside tribute to one man’s obsession, well worth the visit if you’re ever in the area. And with that, we headed to Arizona, to the Wigwam Motel, and onwards to California. I hope we return to New Mexico soon – I know we haven’t even scratched the surface.