Indian Country - Navajo Hwy 12 and Gallup NM

Navajo Hwy 12

After exploring the north rim of Canyon de Chelly, we turn south on Navajo Hwy 12 towards Window Rock. Our guide books tell us it's a beautiful drive and it does not disappoint. With few other cars and a beautiful day we kick back enjoy the scenery on this stretch of road.

Free range horse graze on the roadside

Colored sandstone cliffs await being  in a Hollywood movie

Window Rock 

In just a few hours we arrive in Window Rock, which takes it's name from a rock formation just north of town. We had expected to visit the Navajo Tribal Park and Veterans Memorial containing both Window Rock and a Code Talker Museum (the spoken Navajo language was the ONLY code never broken during World War II).  Peter elects to nap in the IQ while I check out the Navajo Museum Library and Visitors Center.

Entrance to Navajo Museum Library and Visitors Center

Navajo constellations

Although they do have an excellent exhibit on the Code Talkers, I am more interested in the Navajo people themselves.

Traditional Wedding basket for bride to wash her hair before ceremony

Wedding dress?

Weapons used against the Spanish Conquistadors

Weapons used by Spanish Conquistadors

Red Rock Park

Being Mothers' Day weekend, we decide to spend two nights close to Gallup NM, but do not want to repeat the mistake of staying in town.  Last year we spent a miserable night at USA RV Park being constantly awoken by train whistles and jets flying low overhead on night maneuvers. Someone told us over 200 trains come through Gallup each 24 hours... making one about every 15 minutes. From our experience, that sounds about right. We are lucky to find Red Rock Park with our RV Park Finder App. It's next to the rodeo grounds in Church Rock and enough distance away from the trains tracks (and flight path) to sleep at night.

The next morning we decide to hike up the canyon to the Church Rock formation from which the town gets its name.

Red Rock Park

Our campsite

Anasazi (?) roof pole holes in the side of the canyon

Church Rock

Gallup

After a nice hike, we head into Gallup to check the pawn shops for Hopi silver and Navajo rugs.

I should have waited to get a train in this shot

Copper surrounds for city trees

The downtown area has some wonderful old Art Deco buildings. We especially like the El Morro theater which appears to still be in business.

El Morro Theater

and box office.

One of many pawn shops.

Gallup does indeed have more than its share of pawn shops and it's not hard to find them.
As we round one corner, we discover the most renowned of all - the Richardson Pawn shop that's been run by the same family since the early 1900's, in contrast to many of the other pawn shops which now appear to be owned and managed by people from the middle East. Richardson Pawn covers half a city block and is chocked full of native arts and crafts. Unfortunately, their prices reflect their reputation and we don't find any bargains. I did find a beautiful Navajo rug I would love to own but balked at the $24K price tag. The salesman immediately dropped 1/3 of the price off to $16K as the Crownpoint rug auction had just been held the night before (arrrrgggggh - we missed it by 24 hours). Needless to say the salesman was somewhat chagrined when informed he'd have to drop some zeros off the price tag to bring it down to my price range. Too bad we didn't get a photo of his face upon his hearing my retort.

Kachinas crowd together in a store window

Richardson Pawn sigh

Now that's a great Navajo rug showroom

We did find better prices in the shops at the edge of town. In fact I bought a Navajo Wedding Basket which had a cotton plug in the center. The Navajo saleslady explained it was used as a stopper to better hold water for the the bride to wash her hair before her wedding. Since this basket had water marks on it, it must have been used. Turning it over in my hands, I wondered what kinds of misfortunes had lead the woman who owned this important memo of her wedding to pawn it.

We settle on having lunch at the El Rancho Hotel on old Hwy 66. Both Peter and I remember having lunch there with our families as we traveled back and forth across the country. Traveling gets ingrained growing up as a military brat.

The hotel was built in 1937 by R. E. Griffith, brother to D. W. Griffith famous early Hollywood movie director. R.E. was encouraged to build the hotel to be used as a base for film crews making western movies as their equipment could easily be shipped via the railroads (before Hwy 66 was built).

El Rancho Hotel

Classic car in El Rancho parking lot

It was a "build it and they will come." Indeed the film crews and stars did come and stay at the El Rancho. The walls are covered with autographed photos of many recognizable stars (and many not-so-recognizable stars). By the way we did enjoy our lunch there - the food was good but the service was more than a bit slow. Plan to take your time over lunch.

Hollywood star photos

The lobby of the El Rancho

with a fantastic fireplace

Galloping out of Gallup

Just before we leave Gallup, we stop at a laundry. As Peter naps in the IQ, I give the machines a workout. A pleasant Navajo woman asks me where I'm from and we strike up a conversation. She's a third grade teacher in Chinle who happens to be a cousin to Francine, my guide on the jeep tour of Canyon de Chelly (small world). She's come down to Gallup today as she got a "check engine" light come on in her car and thought she'd better take care of it today.

I tell her of my trouble trying to learn three simple phrases in Navajo (hello, goodbye and thank you) and only causing my two teachers in Tuba City to double over in laughing at my pronunciation. She says my suspicions are correct that Navajo is a tonal language and slight intonations can have entirely different meanings. For example the word "Dine" often used for the Navajo people means that if said in a flat tone, but if a high tone is used, it means the man, and if a lower tone is used, it means the ground or earth. Humm no wonder I had so much trouble. What was I actually saying that made my two teachers laugh so much?

On our way out of town, Peter and I get a big kick out of some of the signs and buildings we pass. It's clear Gallup has become more complex culturally.

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A Mosque in Gallup??