My Fascination with Route 40

I was born just a few weeks before Dwight Eisenhower signed legislation creating the Interstate Highway system. So from a chronological point of view I was born before the Interstates. My parents relocated between Baltimore and Denver four times by the time I was seven years old and in addition we engaged in lengthy summer automobile vacations. By the time I was old enough to drive I was well educated in the fine art of road tripping.

In 1966 I discovered U.S. 40 by George R. Stewart. In that book I recognized familiar scenes along the highway. At that time there was very little hype about Route 66 (other than the TV series) and Stewart’s book provided me with a scholarly examination of a highway along which I had always lived. Stewart’s photographs and accompanying essays were mesmerizing and I spent many a lazy afternoon with that book in hand taking imaginary trips across the country on Route 40.

When I was old enough to drive – and able to afford road trips – I often choose Route 40 as both my path and my destination. I had Stewart’s book forever etched into my memory and I sought out the places depicted in the book and, of course, those in between. For the past 30 years I have racked tens of thousands of miles revisiting each of Stewart’s scenes and documenting them as I saw them.

In my years of traveling the highway I have experienced, as Stewart so aptly described it, a cross section of the United States. Traveling along the highway provides an excellent way, if not the best, to see the country firsthand. The varying landscapes and the myriad of cultures along Route 40 are something that no other highway in America provides. While there are certainly more celebrated highways in America, none compare to Route 40. It is an honest, unpretentious and hard working road. Even the flash of Nevada’s casinos seem like old friends as I drive by.

It took the Internet for me to discover that I was not alone in my obsession with Route 40. Through that medium I have been able to discover scores of likeminded soles with a passion for that highway. And one of my goals is to ensure that future generations with have knowledge about and an appreciation for the greatest highway in America.