Mr. Write's Page

More on my November road trip to the Southwest…

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Cameron, Arizona

35 miles east of Grand Canyon National Park, well into the Navajo rez, is the venerable Cameron Trading Post, established on the banks of the Little Colorado River in 1911.

This remote place is a veritable oasis. It consists of the trading post, restaurant, motel, gas station, RV park, gift shop, and, one of my favorite stops, a truly awe-inspiring art gallery.

Everything in the Cameron gallery is premium quality, some of it modern, some of considerable age, all for sale. Most of the merchandise sells for many hundreds, even thousands of dollars.

Pay no attention to that man behind the pottery.

But I think of the gallery as more of a museum than a store. I go there to admire and enjoy the merchandise, not to buy anything. The touristy gift shop next door is more my speed.

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Tuba City, Arizona

25 miles beyond Cameron is Tuba City, one of the larger towns in Navajoland.

Traffic when I arrived was unusually heavy, and, in fact, eventually stopped moving at all. Police vehicles were directing drivers in both directions to pull over.

In the distance, I could see why. A hundred or more men on horseback were approaching in a slow, solemn procession. The only sound was the clopping of hooves on the pavement.

I knew immediately what was up. The next day was Veterans Day, and the Tuba City veterans had turned out for a Saturday morning parade. In the procession with the horsemen were several cars carrying older veterans.

The scene was genuinely moving. Despite a lump to my throat and a tear in my eye, I grabbed my camera.

After I shot the video, a young rider peeled off from the group and rode over to my RV. The van sits high, so we were at eye level.

“Yah-ta-hey. Where you from, sir?” he said. I told him.

“You a veteran?” I said I was indeed.

We shook hands and introduced ourselves. He said he was in Afghanistan with the Army. I told him my service was Air Force, Vietnam era. He tipped his hat, wished me a safe trip, reined his horse around, and rejoined the procession.

I later learned it was Tuba City’s first Veterans Day parade. A lavish lunch was waiting for the veterans and their families next to the local VA office.

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Ganado, Arizona

The Navajo town of Ganado is the home of Hubbell Trading Post, founded in 1878 and now a National Historic Site.

Hubbell is still in business. In addition to being a grocery store for the locals, it has an eye-popping selection of Navajo rugs and baskets, old and new.

By sundown, I had crossed into New Mexico and was back in Gallup.

The trip home continues in my next post.