Coming into Chama

New Mexico 17 and US 64-US 84 in Chama

It's unusual for New Mexico to mark the beginning of a route (New Mexico rarely marks the end of a route, for that matter), but that's what it did on this single-panel junction sign in the Río Arriba County village of Chama. NM 17 is a relatively short route: 9.5 miles between this point and the Colorado border, where the highway continues as Colorado state route 17.

Even it was the latter half of May 2008 when this photo was taken, there was still snow on top of the San Juan Mountains!