On this dawn of a new year, I’ve set out on my latest cross-country road trip. This one travels the entire length of US Route 70, sometimes known as the Broadway of America. Like US 50 and US 60 (which I drove in 2018 and 2019, respectively), US 70 is a transcontinental road that connects many small, forgotten towns. Along most of the way, the route is a lightly-traveled two-lane road, but when it enters a town it often becomes the main boulevard . Hence, the “Broadway of America” sobriquet.
US 70 was conceived as a southern counterpart to the north’s Lincoln Highway. (The Lincoln Highway, established in 1913, ran from Lincoln Park in San Francisco to Times Square in New York.) US 70 was originally known as the Lee Highway, presumably as a political response to the northern route’s being named after the Confederacy’s nemesis. Both the Lincoln Highway and the Lee Highway were among the first transcontinental automobile routes in the United States.
US 70 no longer extends all the way to the west coast. It now begins in Globe, Arizona (population: 7,532). So, this afternoon I drove the 481 miles from Los Angeles to Globe, pretty much without stopping, since this first leg of my trip doesn’t really “count” as part of the intended journey.
I write this from a cheap motel in Globe. I’m reminded that I came through this town last spring, while driving the length of US 60. It is here that US 70 branches off southward from US 60, giving the good residents of Globe (as well as the not-so-good ones, of course) a second option for driving to the east coast. I’m looking forward to seeing how this southern route differs in scenery and culture from its mid-country sister route.
Starting tomorrow, I’ll spend a week driving the length of US 70 through Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina, ending up in the town of Atlantic, NC. I’ll then drop off the rental car and fly home. For tomorrow, though, I should end up somewhere in New Mexico. (As is known by those of you who’ve followed my earlier blogs, I have no definite mileage planned for each day; the only fixed deadline is my flight home on January 9.)
I’ll be posting about my travels daily. Until then, I wish you all a Happy New Year.
sdb
Chasing Phantoms 
Bravo Steve! Your restless hobby enlightens the rest of us more sedentary beings. “La ruta nos aporto otro paso natural.” But no photos from Day One? No mention of your day-ending beer? Travel well on 70! – Peter
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I can see book chapters forming, for a richly-illustrated armchair traveler’s guide, of the byways being brokered. “Byways,” btw, should figure prominently in the book’s title or subtitle, sez this editor.
Head east!
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