The Herrera Store still stands at the east end of Carnuel. It was built in 1951 and stayed open only until about 1961, so it ran for roughly a decade of Route 66's century, and the building is still there along the old alignment. On November 11, 2026, the route marks 100 years since it was designated on November 11, 1926. In Tijeras Canyon, the buildings that once served the road are mostly gone. The two oldest landmarks most closely tied to the canyon's story are fenced or between tour seasons. Your best way into that history this fall is a set of public places that opened in 2025, plus a library meeting room on NM-333.
What the Road Left Standing Between Carnuel and the Village
The East Mountain Historical Society has documented the Route 66 stretch through Carnuel in detail. Its record reads mostly as a list of places you can no longer walk into. In its Q1 2026 newsletter, the society says the Mountain Lodge motel was built around 1949 facing the original two-lane U.S. 66, and that it burned on December 18, 2014. New Mexico News told the lodge's longer story in a February 2026 history piece.
| Carnuel site | Route 66 era role | Today |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain Lodge | Motel built about 1949 on the two-lane alignment | Burned in 2014 |
| Linda Vista | Restaurant, bar, gas station and cabins from about 1950 | Documented as history, not open |
| Carl Webb's curio shop | Roadside shop | Documented as history, not open |
| Herrera Store | Store built 1951, open until about 1961 | Building still stands |
Anyone who has driven Tijeras Canyon for years knows the road's trading-post era didn't leave much behind here. A few miles west, Albuquerque has kept enough neon and trading-post architecture to stage a full birthday party, which comes up below. The canyon's surviving physical record is older and less showy, and much of it came before the highway.
The Kilns Came First
The East Mountain Historical Society named its new 2027 historical calendar "Kilns, Bricks and Route 66," and it promises historic photos that the society hasn't published before. Putting kilns first fits the canyon's history. Bernalillo County's 2006 East Mountain Area Plan describes large, beehive-shaped sandstone kilns in use through the first quarter of the 20th century. Workers layered limestone with fuel wood, sometimes coal, and fired it, then hauled the quicklime to Albuquerque. The plan credits several East Mountain lime operations to Charles Campos, who sold burned limestone for plaster and for preparing corn.
The plan records three Tijeras-area kiln groups whose sites were still visible but whose structures were no longer intact. One sits west of the road to A. Montoya Elementary, one east of Tijeras, and one south of Sedillo. A fourth group once stood near Historic Route 66 and Zamora Road, by Fire Station 10, and it was already gone when the plan was written. None of those locations is tied to a public trail. That leaves the calendar's photographs as the practical way to see the kiln era for now.
The Corridor That Opened in 2025 Is Where the History Is Posted
Most of the canyon's accessible history arrived in the past year and a half, through the Tijeras Creek Cultural Corridor. It's a joint project of City of Albuquerque Open Space, Bernalillo County, the Village of Tijeras and the Carnuel Land Grant, with research help from the East Mountain Historical Society. Together they link trails, landmarks and cultural sites with interpretive signs. The corridor's StoryMap lists six sign locations:
- Singing Arrow Complex
- Route 66 Open Space
- Tijeras Bio-Zone Education Center
- Cañon de Carnué Land Grant Hall
- Tijeras Creek Remediation Site
- Camino Primera Agua Park
Three of these are easy to visit this fall, and each covers a different part of the canyon's story.
Route 66 Open Space is the one most directly tied to the centennial. The City of Albuquerque opened the trailhead in summer 2025 with an accessible trail, picnic and shade areas, parking, and interpretive signs.
The Tijeras Pocket Park at 2 Camino Primera Agua opened in May 2025. Its gabion, a rock stand with an interpretive panel, tells the history of the Campo Stone House. For now it's the closest you can get to the Stone House story without an appointment.
The Tijeras Bio-Zone sensory trail is open daily from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., weather permitting. The city says monthly public tours of the Bio-Zone Center are planned to start in late 2026, with dates to be posted on the Parks & Recreation events page.
At the Singing Arrow stop, the city's sign text says visitors can ask staff about signing up for free guided tours of the archaeological site there.
Carlito Springs Open Space at 82 Carlito Springs Rd. isn't one of the six sign stops, but it's another nearby walk with recent changes. Bernalillo County has added a rainwater-harvesting installation there, where roof runoff feeds three basins and a demonstration landscape of native plants. Plan around the seasonal schedule. Hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. through October, then 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. from November through March.
The Two Oldest Landmarks Are Between Seasons
The Campo/Sanchez Stone House stands in historic San Antonio, north of Tijeras near North NM 14 and Cirquela Road. Carlos Campo bought the parcel in 1887, and by the late 1880s his store and saloon were local fixtures. The building housed the short-lived Kemp post office in 1907 and the Tijeras post office in 1917. The Sanchez family turned it into a home in 1930. The family donated the property to the East Mountain Historical Society in 2023. The society plans to rehabilitate it as a visitor center, an office, and a home for its archival collection. The society's architectural program puts the maximum construction cost at $2.64 million, including an addition of about 720 square feet. Its Q1 2026 newsletter says engineers and architects have been assessing the structure and utilities, and that an archaeological investigation using ground-penetrating technology has already been done. The next step is funding construction drawings for the first phase of repairs, and the newsletter gives 2028 as the anticipated opening. The site is fenced for safety, and the society asks people to contact it to arrange a visit.
Tijeras Pueblo Archaeological Site is also between seasons. A September 2, 2026 update to site volunteers says regular tours won't run this fall while Level 2 docent training is finished. The only exceptions are a few group tours booked long in advance. The same update says the museum's trail signs are being reviewed for accuracy, with consultation with Isleta Pueblo on the new sign content planned for later this fall.
The Rest of the Calendar, From Village Hall to Central Avenue
The East Mountain Historical Society's Route 66 Centennial Speaker Series has run all year on fourth Saturdays at 11 a.m. at the East Mountain Public Library in Tijeras. It's free and open to the public. October's talk, "Tijeras Canyon: Five Miles and Hundreds of Stories" by Hazel Lathrop, was scheduled for October 24, with a focus on the communities between Carnuel and the Village of Tijeras. The series ends in November. Here's what's left of the centennial calendar for East Mountain residents:
| Date | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 7, 2–3:30 p.m. | EMHS Annual Member Meeting: Stone House update, panel of longtime East Mountain residents, silent auction of history books, 2027 calendar | Tijeras Village Hall Council Chambers, 12 Camino Municipal |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | "Chrome & Neon at 100," free birthday event with a time-capsule burial, neon-lighting ceremony and Central Avenue cruise | Starts at Enchanted Trails, Albuquerque |
| Sun., Nov. 8, 2 p.m. | Talk on Route 66 neon | Albuquerque Museum |
| Wed., Nov. 11 | Route 66's official 100th birthday | |
| Sun., Nov. 15, 2 p.m. | Staged reading of Mother Road | Albuquerque Museum |
| Thu., Nov. 19, 5–8:30 p.m. | Free Route 66 dance party | Albuquerque Museum |
| Sat., Nov. 28, 11 a.m.–12:30 p.m. | "The KiMo Theatre: Fact and Folklore" with Jacqueline Murray Loring | East Mountain Public Library, 487 NM-333, Tijeras |
Both November 7 events fall on the same Saturday. The Chrome & Neon at 100 listing describes cars, music, cake, a photo stop at the Hubcap Tree, a visit to a newly opened Neon Park, and an evening neon cruise. It celebrates the road as it looked from the driver's seat. The EMHS meeting that afternoon is the only event on the list where the program is the canyon itself: an update on the Stone House and a panel of longtime residents talking about growing up in the East Mountains, with time for attendees to share their own memories.
For a meeting spot before or after a library talk, the closest is Manzanita at 488 NM-333, the multi-use space opened by the team behind Rock Canyon Cider. It serves house-made ciders, local wines, beer and mixed drinks. Co-owner Ian Hefkin told New Mexico News that the goal was "to create a space for people in the community to conduct business and enjoy themselves over a drink." The Stone House Planning Committee has held its monthly meetings there.
Here's one centennial Saturday you can do entirely in the canyon:
- Walk the Route 66 Open Space trail in the morning and read its interpretive signs.
- Stop at the Pocket Park on Camino Primera Agua for the Stone House gabion.
- Get to Tijeras Village Hall by 2 p.m. on November 7 for the panel of longtime residents.
The Lovely Home Company team keeps up with the East Mountains the way residents do, from trailhead openings to the Stone House timeline and the lime kilns that came before the highway. If you're thinking through a move in or around Tijeras and want a local read on what's changing along NM-333 and NM-14, schedule a free consultation with us.
