Wandering shades, ghost towns, and a phantom train
The Land of Enchantment lives up to its name when it comes to Route 66 - and stories of the paranormal. With not one, but two paths to explore, the Mother Road winds through New Mexico's mountains and deserts, past ghost towns and thriving cities, and boasts more than its fair share of haunts.
Budville, once a thriving hub and stopover between Albuquerque and Grants, now lies deserted, except, perhaps, for the spirit of the last person to call it home. The whistle of a phantom train can sometimes be heard chugging alongside the highway in Tucumcari, and in Glenrio, an abandoned town the straddles the New Mexico-Texas border, a murder victim is rumored to inhabit one of the last buildings standing.
Even the New Mexico Mining Museum plays host to the spirits of miners who once worked in the uranium capital of the world, and in Gallup, the Hotel El Rancho boasts not just Hollywood credentials, but tales of otherworldly encounters.
Author Sundee Perkins explores the spooky twists and turns of New Mexico's Route 66.