Along with the usual Route 66 range of funky motels and rusty neon signs, the former mining boomtown of Grants has the unique attraction of the New Mexico Mining Museum (closed Sun; $3; 505/287-4802), right downtown on old Route 66 (Santa Fe Avenue) at the corner of Iron Avenue. Most of the exhibits trace the short history of local uranium mining, which began in 1950 when a local Navajo rancher, Paddy Martinez, discovered an odd yellow rock that turned out to be high-grade uranium ore. Mines here once produced half the ore mined in the United States, but production has now ceased. From the main gallery, ride the elevator down (only one floor, but it feels like 900 feet) to the highlight of the mining museum: a credible re-creation of a uranium mine, complete with an underground lunch room emblazoned with all manner of warning signs.
If you’re lucky, the Uranium Cafe will still be in business across the street from the Mining Museum, serving up breakfast and lunch every day but Sunday. Just look for the atomic neon sign, a rarely lit Route 66 landmark.
