Get your kicks in the sticks: Route 66 in New Mexico

In western New Mexico, old Route 66 wriggles over and around mesas and buttes but never strays too far from big, busy and largely soulless Interstate 40. If you glimpse a sign like this one from the interstate, it’s your chance to take the path less traveled --in this case, a path that leads to Cubero and Budville. But bear in mind those skies. Late summer is monsoon season in New Mexico. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Sept. 16, 2014 10:01 AM PT

Get your kicks in the sticks: Route 66 in New Mexico

The Sands Motel in Grants, N.M., features this great red arrow, which stands out like a pointer from God when the sky is deep blue. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

In the New Mexico hamlet of McCartys, Route 66 runs near I-40’s Exit 96 and climbs a hill to the Santa Maria de Acoma church. Nearby is Acoma Pueblo, which may be the oldest continuously occupied village in the U.S. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

One of the hamlets between Albuquerque and Gallup along Route 66’s path through New Mexico is McCartys. Next door to the Santa Maria de Acoma church, there stands a deteriorating adobe whose windows frame stark, wind-raked desert vistas. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Through Grants, N.M., Route 66 follows Santa Fe Avenue through a downtown that’s peppered with classic roadside signs and businesses, including this Chinese restaurant. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

Passing through Grants, N.M., Route 66 passes bold-hued landmarks such as Grants Cafe and the Sands Motel. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

On the western fringe of Albuquerque, Route 66 follows Central Avenue past a procession of small motels with classic signs. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)

This nice bike just pulled off Route 66 in Grants, N.M.

Check out our Your Scene gallery of Route 66 pictures--and add your own. (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)