Tinkertown: Sandia Park, New Mexico

A small section of the rambling walls that surround the museum.
A small section of the rambling walls
of Tinkertown.
A lifetime of carving and collecting by the late Ross Ward is the bedrock for a sprawling and charmingly eclectic tourist attraction in Sandia Park, New Mexico, just northeast of Albuquerque on Old Route 66.

The museum is surrounded by barricades fashioned from bottles and includes a miniature town -- Tinkertown -- that Ward began carving in the early 1960s. His catchphrase: "I did all this while you were watching TV."

A quirky wooden band provides a glimpse of the wonderful oddities housed in Tinkertown.
A quirky wooden band provides a glimpse of
the wonderful oddities housed in Tinkertown.

Learn about another man's creation -- The Blue Whale -- in the next section.

Want to discover more family vacation destinations? See: