BANAL, UGLY, SELF-INDULGENT AND NECESSARY An Epic Road Trip on Route 62

There are thoroughfares that garner esteem effortlessly, delighting road-trip aficionados and inspiring nostalgic whimsy—like Route 66. And then there are those roadways that live in the shadows of their more impressive counterparts, like the Canada-to-Mexico Route 62. Of course, it’s tempting to explore the lesser-known arteries of the country’s highway system—but is it advisable?

By Derek Smith

I am confident that the road-travel junkies reading this fine publication are familiar with the numbering system for US Highways (even numbers run east–west, odd numbers north–south). But only one even-numbered route in the United States Highway System stretches all the way from Canada to Mexico: US Route 62. Route 62 never received the sort of pop-culture recognition that Route 66 once did—and to a certain extent still clings to today. I have never heard a song about Route 62, never watched a movie in which it’s featured—I haven’t even seen it discussed in road-tripping blogs or niche literature. Route 62 is Main Street in my hometown of Frewsburg, New York; and it’s South Park Avenue outside the apartment in Buffalo where I currently live, 80 miles northeast. When I’m…

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ROVA (Digital) - 1 Issue, Twenty-Eight: December/January 2021-2022

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