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I-25, El Camino Real, US-66, Rosario, Budaghers, New Mexico, USA, fotoeins.com

US Southwest drive: road trip numbers & memories (2018)

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Above/featured: NM I-25 southbound, between Rosario and Budaghers – 5 Oct 2018 (X70).

In October 2018, we embarked on a modest 2-week driving trip through parts of New Mexico and Arizona. We began in Santa Fe and Albuquerque, drove west towards Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon, south to Tucson, and finally, northeast on the return to Santa Fe. With our first-time attendance at the Balloon Fiesta and first-time visit to the Grand Canyon accomplished, we’d like to examine further the Grand Staircase geographical formation beyond the Utah-Arizona border region and the historical remnants from old highway US route 66.

Some Numbers

  • 17 travel days: arrival 4 October, departure 20 October.
  • 15 driving days: 5–19 October inclusive .
  • 3138 miles (5049 kilometres) driving distance recorded by odometer.
  • 3 sightings of the Little Colorado River1 in Arizona: Cameron, Point Imperial, Springerville.
  • 5202 total images: 3019 (58%) with a Canon 6D, and 2183 (42%) with a Fujifilm X70.
  • 10-k image counter reset (“flip”) on the X70: at the junction of US routes 89 and 89A.

29 spots

  1. Santa Fe, NM
  2. Albuquerque
  3. Sandia Crest
  4. Tucumcari
  5. Abiquiú
  6. Taos & Taos Pueblo
  7. Embudo
  8. Continental Divide
  9. Gallup, NM
  10. Petrified Forest, AZ
  11. Holbrook
  12. Winslow
  13. Flagstaff
  14. Cameron
  15. Bitter Springs
  16. Marble Canyon
  17. Point Imperial, Grand Canyon North Rim
  18. Cape Royal, North Rim
  19. Little Colorado River Navajo Tribal Park
  20. Desert View, Grand Canyon South Rim
  21. Grand Canyon Village, South Rim
  22. Hermit’s Rest, South Rim
  23. Tusayan
  24. Sunset Point (Black Canyon City)
  25. Phoenix
  26. Tucson
  27. Salt River Canyon
  28. Springerville, AZ
  29. Pie Town, NM

•   See also: Passing through small towns in the American Southwest

5 memorable experiences

  1. Hot air balloons launching in morning light in Albuquerque, NM.
  2. Georgia O’Keeffe Home-Studio in Abiquiú, NM.
  3. Echo and Vermilion Cliffs, along US-89/89A between Cameron & Marble Canyon, AZ.
  4. First-time at and -view of the Grand Canyon, from the North Rim, AZ.
  5. Chat with Kathy Knapp in her pie kitchen at Pie-O-Neer in Pie Town, NM.

•   See also Albuquerque: highlights in the Duke City

5 great eats

  1. Mary & Tito’s Café, in Albuquerque, NM: carne adovada sopapilla with green chili.
  2. Taco Fundación, in Santa Fe, NM: lengua taco, beef cheek taco, deep fried avocado taco.
  3. Santa Fe Bite, in Santa Fe, NM: home of the “green chile cheeseburger”.
  4. Satchmo’s, in Flagstaff, AZ: shrimp po’boy sandwich, spicy tots, red beans and rice.
  5. Pie-O-Neer Café, in Pie Town, NM: delicious pie, made with a lot of love.

•   See also: Cozy cafés, Southwest sabores.

1-day drives

Drive map, Google Maps, Arizona, New Mexico, fotoeins.com

Mapped distance 4539 km (2821 mi), recorded odometer distance 5049 km (3138 mi). The difference of 510 km (317 mi) arises from unmapped intracity drives and stops in Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Flagstaff, and Tucson. The black horizontal bar represents a distance of 50 km (31 mi).

Continental Divide, New Mexico, I-40, Interstate 40, Entrada sandstone cliffs, Iyanbito member, middle Jurassic, United States, USA, fotoeins.com

Red Entrada sandstone cliffs northwest of Continental Divide, NM – 12 Oct 2018 (X70).

1 “Paayu” in Hopi, “Tółchíʼíkooh” in Navajo, “Colorado Chiquito” in Spanish.

I made both images with a Fujifilm X70 fixed-lens prime; alle Fotoaufnahmen sind mit Wasserzeichen versehen worden. Thanks to AB for making this memorable trip possible. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-czc.

28 Responses to “US Southwest drive: road trip numbers & memories (2018)”

  1. Tom

    Nice introduction about this recent road trip. I am currently making similar plans, but slightly different. We’ve done Grand Canyon and other Utah national parks, but we want to see the Petrified Forest in Arizona, Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Taos, and then north to Colorado (they have 3 national parks and numerous National Monuments) and finish in Denver.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
    • fotoeins

      Hi and thanks, Tom. I like your plans because they’re ambitious. I’m sure you’re already aware, but I’m still gonna say it: give yourself and your family plenty of time. You’re spending a lot of time driving between destinations, and you should allow yourself more time in a given location in case you really enjoy the visit. I thought we might do a quick dash in the Petrified Forest, but our fantastic visit lasted hours. Thanks for your comment and for stopping by!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
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  26. Wind Kisses

    Wow!!! Your trip was amazing! I will have to look closer at another time. I am on my way to the airport in a bit.

    You certainly know how to plan. A favorite city is Santa Fe. I certainly look forward to seeing what your impressions were from there.

    Well done. And a nice way to organize your blog.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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