Tourists may adore Santa Fe and its northerly cousin Taos, but most complain about having to fly into Albuquerque to reach those destinations. A haphazard sprawl across the high-desert valley, the city has taken some serious lumps in the press lately. I went to school here, but I get it. I’d want to get the hell out right away, too. That’s what I did as soon as I graduated college.

Of course, you could always just blast up Interstate 25 to reach Santa Fe in record time; the toilsome 55 mph limit of my youth is now a glorious 75. There’s even a train service, the Rail Runner. But forget all that. Nothing gets me into the slow, sun-seeped vibe of New Mexico like this road.