It’s a long way between towns in the desert, and sometimes the road seems endless and lonely. I love those far lonely drives, so I wouldn’t call it monotonous, but I do have to admit that there are big stretches where nothing especially stands out.
It seems that when there is a lack of natural landmarks, people feel compelled to fill in the blanks. Occasionally strange, off-the-wall objects spark up the view in those empty miles. I decided to write about a few of them for this week’s Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: Interesting Objects.
Highway 60 in New Mexico is one of those highways. Towns are 20, 30, 40 miles apart. And when you do reach a town, don’t blink or you’ll miss it. But there are a few things out there that can shake you out of your highway trance.
One is the Very Large Array, a couple of miles east of Datil. It’s a radio telescope facility. Astronomers use radio waves to capture light in other spectrums and waves besides visible light, giving them a much more complete picture of what’s out there in the Universe than we could see if we just used visual information. The landscape is littered with humongous dish antennas, set out in a long, long line as far as you can see on either side of the highway.
A little farther west I came upon this interesting collection of windmills. There were a couple of mannequins included in the display, I guess to give a sense of scale.
Catron County is popular with hunters. In the town of Quemado, I found a Christmas tree made out of deer antlers.
When I drove through Arizona this year, it felt more like the Wild West than it ever had before. I’ve driven through the state many times, but never before have I seen so many signs and storefronts offering guns for sale. I live in Alaska, a state where most households own firearms, so I understand folks exercising their right to bear arms, but this year in Arizona it was over the top. It seemed a bit hysterical. I believe those folks are convinced Armageddon is coming. Or they want to help bring it on. In Wikieup, I guess maybe guns are not enough. They’ve got rockets!
One of the loneliest stretches of highway out there is California Highway 62, between Joshua Tree and the Arizona border. Suddenly, in the loneliest bleakest part of the road, you come to a few burnt-out foundations and crumbling walls surrounded by a broken-down barbwire fence. The fenceposts are decorated with sneakers, thousands of them. They’re mostly sneakers, but there are a few other shoes and gloves included in this bizarre display. Why did this site become the West’s athletic shoe graveyard? I have no idea.
These are only a few of the many strange and interesting objects to be found along those lonely desert highways. Maybe you have a favorite that I haven’t mentioned. Share it with us in the comments.
Thank you, Patti, for hosting this week’s photo challenge.
Love it!
Thanks, Vicki!
Hi, Dianne. This is a fabulous post! I really enjoyed your eclectic finds–the windmill “collective,” the sneaker installation….the antlers, the rocket. That is disturbing that you saw so many signs for guns. I’ve heard the same thing about the people preparing for doomsday. (Shudder.). Take care and enjoy the warmer weather and sunshine.
Thanks, Patti! I must admit your theme for this week left me stumped for awhile, nature photographer that I am. But once I figured out my direction it came together pretty fast.
Oh, this is right up my street! I love these wide open roads in the US, they’re one of the things that keep drawing us back! Those sneakers on the fence are intriguing but as a Brit I find this passion to own guns very unnerving.
We’ve actually driven that road in NM! We had a fascinating visit to the VLA which I keep meaning to write about but haven’t got around to yet. And we stopped in Pie Town, home to those windmills in the DanCyn’ Windmill Museum 😀 That I did write about, with a bit of info about the collection if you’re interested: https://www.toonsarah-travels.blog/a-pit-stop-in-pioneering-pie-town/
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for the link to your blog! So interesting! When I went by, there was no museum sign, it looked like a private residence with barking dogs, so I didn’t linger. Maybe that’s why the website is down. I did stop in Pietown for a piece of pecan pie, as well as lunch.
My thought exactly as I drove through Arizona – “If this freaks me out so much, what would a visitor from England or Sweden or somewhere think? That Americans are crazy, uncivilized and dangerous, and they would be right!”, I was thinking.
Glad you liked the post. Thanks for sharing your favorite roadside attraction, Pie Town!
Much driving makes the opportunity open to see many strange things. Interesting choices, but sad about all the guns.
What a collection you’ve shared with us this week Dianne! Loved the windmills and Snoopy on the rocket! Sad news about the AZ guns, the world is gong crazy for sure. The sneaker collection reminded me of a similar installation just beyond Zion NP. I took a photo and entered it into a NY Times photo contest and actually won. I think the subject was “Why We Travel” and you had to include an essay with the photo. Anyway, they published my image and created my very brief moment of fame LOL!
Thanks, Tina. What anexciting 15 minutes of fame! You inspire me.