Small towns in the American Southwest
Above/featured: I-17 Sunset Point Rest Stop, near ghost town of Bumble Bee: Black Canyon City, AZ – 17 Oct 2018 (X70).
A memorable road trip through the American Southwest included over three-thousand miles of driving through Arizona (AZ) and New Mexico (NM). We encountered many small towns: some of them were easy to pass through, while others were “must see”. We wanted to stop in as many as we could, but time and itinerary were as always the usual culprits. Guess we’ll have to return.
A sprinkle of towns in AZ & NM
- Abiquiú, NM: about 250 people
- Bitter Springs, AZ: about 400 people
- Continental Divide, AZ: about 500 people
- Magdalena, NM: about 900 people
- Marble Canyon, AZ: about 400 people
- Pie Town, NM: about 200 people
- Quemado, NM: about 250 people
- Show Low, AZ: about 11000 people
- Springerville, AZ: about 2000 people
- Taos Pueblo, NM: about 200 people
I gathered population estimates online from Wikipedia and/or the US Census, and I’ve rounded the numbers up to the nearest 50.
Abiquiú, NM
East view from Georgia O’Keeffe Home & Studio: Rio Chama valley, highway US-84, Mesa de Abiquiú – 10 Oct 2018 (X70).
Bitter Springs, AZ
Near US-89 and -89A junction, between Vermilion Cliffs and Echo Cliffs – 13 Oct 2018 (X70).
Continental Divide, AZ
From here, rivers flow west (left) or east (right) – 12 Oct 2018 (X70).
Magdalena, NM
First State Bank (with nods to Friedlander) – 19 Oct 2018 (X70).
Marble Canyon, AZ
Overlook onto House Rock Valley & Vermilion Cliffs – 13 Oct 2018 (6D1).
Pie Town, NM
Pie Crossing – 19 Oct 2018 (X70).
Quemado, NM
Country store: grocery, hunting, fishing – 19 Oct 2018 (X70).
Show Low, AZ
Deuce of Clubs Avenue – 19 Oct 2018 (X70).
Springerville, AZ
Southeast on approach into town with the Little Colorado River for company – 19 Oct 2018 (X70).
Taos Pueblo, NM
Characteristics of this UNESCO World Heritage Site: ochres and blues, no electricity or running water – 11 Oct 2018 (X70).
1-Day Drives in the Southwest
- Overview
- Georgia O’Keeffe country: Santa Fe to Abiquiú
- Santa Fe to Taos
- Santa Fe to Flagstaff
- Flagstaff to Vermilion Cliffs
- Cliff Dwellers to the South Rim
- Grand Canyon’s South Rim, on 2 separate days
- Tucson to Santa Fe
I made all pictures above on 10, 11, 12, 13, and 19 Oct 2018 with a Canon EOS6D mark1 (6D1) and a Fujifilm X70 fixed-lens prime (X70). Thanks to AB for making this memorable trip possible. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-fwe. Acknowledgements go to Amy for LAPC no.64 (21 to 27 Sep 2019).
Fotoeins Fotografie 
12 Responses to “Small towns in the American Southwest”
This part of NM is beautiful. The landscape in AZ is vast and gorgeous. Great captures！
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Hi and thanks, Amy. I think there’s a remote dangerous beauty to the vast spaces and endless skies in both Arizona and New Mexico: very attractive and tempting, and a big reason why I’d like to go back and explore some more. Thanks again!
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Great photos, interesting towns. Pie Town! I’ve heard of that! I must go there for pie sometime. :thumbsup:
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Hi, John. If the American drive appeals to you (as it does for me) and you haven’t already done so, may I suggest US 60 as a present-day proxy (but not direct equivalent) to the old and now-decommissoned US 66. And if you do spend time on the 60, you’ll drive through central Arizona and central New Mexico, making your way through tiny towns such as Pie Town. And when you set out for the drive, may I also recommend the time between mid-spring and early-autumn for peak activity and best conditions. Thanks again for stopping by and for your comment!
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Thanks for the tips!
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I have only visited one of these small towns, but I want to visit more of them. Your shots are marvelous, Henry.
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Hi and thanks, Patti. I knew something of the allure, but driving parts of US-66 and US-60 got me hooked, and I very much want to go back. On our drive from Santa Fe to Flagstaff, Gallup was supposed to be a short 1-hour stop, but after a few hours, we had to move on; we agreed we could’ve stayed for the day. Thanks for your kind comments!
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[…] • Passing through small towns in the American Southwest. […]
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So much inspiration here! I’d love to explore the US southwest and these towns make it look exactly as I always imagined. Pie Town seems especially intriguing!
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Hi, Lucy. After many prior work visits to Tucson, I always thought some time driving through the Southwest would be a good idea. Our 2 weeks in New Mexico and Arizona turned out so much better than we had ever imagined. I would like very much to go back. For a general description of our time and individual drives, please have a look at this link to start. Thanks for stopping by and for your kind comment!
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We’re all about road trips through small towns and we can’t wait to get back to the southwest. Fun post!
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Hi, Tom and Kristi. I’d also love to go back to the southwest and do the drives even slower: cover some of these towns a little better, and discover some new ones. Thanks again for stopping by and for your comment!
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