Most desolate stretches of highway in NM (Roswell, Farmington: motels, homes)

[lukeache]

What are some of the most desolate stretches of highway in New Mexico?! I dont know if this would be the one, but I remember Highway 285, between Roswell and Vaughn! Scary! 96 miles of nothing, no gas stations, no motels, maybe a handful of homes? You drive almost 60 miles to get to a tiny village called Ramon, NM in the middle of nowhere. Then, you drive another 35 miles to get to Vaughn,NM population: 539. It would be scary to break down somewhere between Roswell and Vaughn

[mike0421]

I would vote for Rt 3, which hugs the Mexican border, almost in its entirety, and then into the bootheel. There is a border crossing at Antelope Wells in the bootheel that gets 4 cars a day, on average. Hidalgo County is simply not believed until seen. Not the part where I-10 goes through, but south of there. Just about every road there has no homes or hint of settlement.

[LRUA]

I agree about rt 285 ...also rt 20 from Ft Sumner to rt 285 ...just a few tumble weeds ...rt 81 from Hachita to Antelope Wells ...rt 371 from Crownpoint to Farmington...no towns at all ....worst desolate rt I've been on is rt 14 from Chaco Canyon National Park to Seven Lakes ..it is a "washboard" dirt rd that almost killed my suspension....(shud be for jeeps only ) I actually like most of these "desolate" roads ...but I wouldn't want my car to breakdown !

[DOUBLE H]

It might not be the longest, but a very dangerous one is the state road that goes from Eunice and heads south into Jal and ends up in Kermit, Texas. Very narrow and loads of potholes. One good thing about 285- thank God they finally four laned it. Same goes for hwy. 44 (now U.S. 550 from Farmington to Bernalillo)

[Cathy4017]

Originally Posted by DOUBLE H

It might not be the longest, but a very dangerous one is the state road that goes from Eunice and heads south into Jal and ends up in Kermit, Texas. Very narrow and loads of potholes. One good thing about 285- thank God they finally four laned it. Same goes for hwy. 44 (now U.S. 550 from Farmington to Bernalillo)

550 from Farmington to Bernallio is very good....and I thought it was very scenic. I really enjoyed that drive!

[TKO]

I love the bootheel. You'd never go there unless you had a reason (glad I did) but it's really pretty. There was a lot more plant life than I expected. I was working out there and rarely did I see another car. The roads north and west of Silver City can be pretty desolate too during the week at least.

[GregW]

So many roads, so little time. I gotta get out of this place!

Rt 12 from Reserve to Magdalena is not exactly overpopulated and the VLA site might as well be on another planet.

[Zoidberg]

I highly recommend US 56 between Springer & Clayton for testing your vehicle's top speed. The road is one of the straightest and flattest in NM, and the entire time I drove through there, I saw one car coming the reverse direction the entire time.

[Towanda]

Zoidberg,

I agree. We just drove the Springer to Clayton route last week .... we did encounter more traffic than you did, but the road is indeed flat and straight for miles and miles.

[catman]

Highway 64, from just north of Taos to Tierra Amarilla, is desolate, especially the part from Tres Piedras west to T.A. That section is ensconced in rolling terrain, and I was shocked to see a sigh that said I was at 10400 feet in elevation! It seems almost unearthly up there, beautiful but strange.