Places SamWPiano Wants to Go

Some 2,000 carvings show this rare desert spring has been an oasis for travelers for over a thousand years.

The state bird of New Mexico, constructed entirely out of garbage.

This innocuous New Mexico storefront was once the secret jump-off spot for Manhattan Project scientists.

This towering volcanic plug stands out among the dramatic formations that dot this otherworldly desert valley.

When life gave this firefighter a forest fire, he made a rough-hewn sculpture park using a chainsaw.

This sparsely populated town offers a look back in time.

This museum started as a collection of Manhattan Projects and continues to add exhibits as they are declassified.

On the edge of the Valles Caldera National Preserve, these rock formations create an eerie landscape.

The final resting place of the living embodiment of the famous Forest Service symbol.

This popular pilgrimage site offers a hole filled with holy healing dirt.

It's easy to see why this eclectic architectural wonder has been dubbed the "Spaceship House."

A half-acre utopia in the New Mexico desert features a graveyard, a game of horseshoes, a library, and a mailbox.

A wealth of pop culture statuary and green chile dishes give this roadside restaurant clout.

Setting this massive marionette aflame rids Santa Fe of doom and gloom for another year.

An abandoned amusement park based on the popular 1940s Red Ryder comic strip.

A sprawling collection of over 106,000 toys from around the world.

More than 21,000 images fill this overlooked gem of a prehistoric site.

Wee (and not so wee) footprints that insects and reptiles of the Paleozoic Era left behind.

This quirky hot springs town known to locals as "T or C" was named after a radio show.

In a largely deserted ghost town, a little brick building recalls its history as a gold rush hub and haven for outlaws.

The fictional star of "Breaking Bad" is memorialized with a real-life gravestone in his hometown.

A unique geological area spiked with wind-carved rocks that resemble teepees.

"I did this all while you were watching TV."

One of the American Southwest's most extensive collections of Navajo rock art.