It’s Day Eight of our Route 66 road-trip, driving from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Gallup, New Mexico. Who are we? Jeff and Jane, expat Brits living in Santa Monica, California. We have just finished our number one bucket-list item – driving Route 66 from Chicago back to our home town. Our mission? To Eat Vegan on Route 66 and share our experiences with you.

Route 66: New Mexico Enchantment

Well, if you love deserts, then New Mexico is the place to be. And we do! The incredible blue skies, vast vistas of flat scrubland topped by immense red rock formations are stunning. Cue, multiple stops for photo ops. Notably, look behind you as you drive West out of Albuquerque as there is a spectacular view of the city nestled against the Sandia mountains.

The drive today followed a lot of the I40 freeway, but the best scenery was found in the short (and many) detours onto Old Route 66. For example, don’t miss Owl Rock between Mesita and Laguna along a meandering sideroad. Here, we passed by the settlement of Mesita, which was closed off for a Native American ceremony. A reminder that much of this landscape is part of the Laguna Reservation – and that, sadly, Native Americans continue to live in sub-standard housing with poor access to healthcare and employment. Way back in 2011, I also heard an impassioned speech from Wahlea Johns, from the Navajo tribe, about the exploitation of coal from her homeland – and the devastating drought it caused.

As we neared Gallup, the Red Rock Park and White Cliffs were absolutely stunning in the evening light.

How to Eat Vegan on Route 66: The Iconic Hotel El Rancho

Eat Vegan on Route 66

The iconic Hotel El Rancho definitely lives up to its Route 66 reputation. This historic beauty opened in 1937 and was the base for many movie stars filming Westerns in the area in the 30s and 40s. Nowadays, the building has been upgraded but without losing its charm. Even if you’re not lucky enough to stay there, the magnificent lobby and quaint bar are must-sees. We dined in the hotel restaurant on the stand-by of bean burrito, rice and beans – quite a windy night followed!

Next morning, we discovered the rather charming but sleepy Downtown Gallup. The community cafe Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe again had no vegan options, but the friendly staff concocted Sonoma Wraps without cheese or honey-mustard but with avocado.

Tip of The Day – don’t despair if there is nothing vegan on the menu. On many occasions we had to discuss and explain our dietary lifestyle to the wait staff. Not once did we have any negativity – and we were able to Eat Vegan on Route 66 wherever we landed!

Finally, use my public shared Google Map Route 66 Vegan to locate all the places mentioned on this trip.

Miles Traveled Today: 143

Total Miles Traveled: 1578

Next stop – Flagstaff, Arizona.