STAY A SPELL IN FLAGSTAFF
Former Wild West town boasts millions of regional artifacts
You can get a natural high tripping to Flagstaff, Ariz. Its 7,000-foot (2,134 metre) elevation makes it one of the highest elevation cities in the United States. It occupies 166 square kilometres in Northern Arizona, surrounded by one of the largest pine forests on the planet.
In about 90 minutes you can reach the Grand Canyon, but don’t be in a hurry to leave the once Wild West frontier town, named for a stripped pine cone flagpole. It has much to recommend it ...
THE HOTEL WEATHERFORD
This stately showplace in the heart of the historic downtown proved a good place to start. On a previous pit stop I’d admired the exterior of the restored building, established in 1897, and this time was equally impressed on a guided tour of the old-fashioned rooms, floral stained-glass windows, elegant ballroom and three charming pubs.
Some of the 11 guest rooms in this boutique hotel come with a private bath with claw-foot tub; other guests are expected to share a bathroom. Only the three suites have a television and telephone and no one gets room service.
Guests are also advised whistles from trains along the historic Santa Fe Railroad may be heard through the night and anyone who leaves the hotel after 2 a.m. may not be able to re-enter. No apologies, though — the hotel is proud of its past, which affects the amenities it offers today.
After all, the Weatherford, named for founder John W. Weatherford, became one of the grandest hotels in the Wild West. In the day, Arizona was a territory, rife with vigilantes, we are told.
President Theodore Roosevelt and publishing tycoon Randolph Hearst stayed here as well as lawman Wyatt Earp and prolific cowboy novelist Zane Grey. The author, whose portrait adorns a wall, wrote Call of the Canyon while at the hotel. At an upstairs pub, patrons are invited to raise a glass at Earp’s (actual) Bar, relocated from Tombstone.
From the hotel’s wraparound second floor balcony, it was easy for me to re-imagine the trio of motorcyclists laden with travel gear — likely touring the famous Route 66 — as cowboys looking for lodging more than a century ago. The sight was a curiosity, too, for the Victorian-clad ladies and gents watching from a painted wall mural on the opposite corner.
Visit: weatherfordhotel.com
NATIVE AMERICAN ART
Downtown open-air art aside, we were quickly drawn inside two galleries showcasing Native American art.
We marvelled at the displays of colourful hand-carved figurines, basket weavings and paintings at Puchteca, owned by Steve and Antoinette Beiser, with Steve on hand to regale us with the camaraderie of Flagstaff’s lively arts scene. The Flagstaff Arts Council organizes a celebration of music, art and culture the first Friday of the month. Everyone’s invited to stroll the core with doors open at galleries and shops 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. “Hot spots” — often with live performers — stay open longer, with the ArtWalk turning into a street party.
Discovering local artists at work in a co-operative studio gallery provided front row insight. Brush in hand, while adding to a group painting depicting a Navajo man at lunch, Flagstaff native Bahe Whitethorne, Jr., explained the origins of his artistic passion.
His dad, acclaimed Navajo artist Baje Whitethorne, Sr., and his own love of comic books are his inspiration. He also employs his extensive computer knowledge to create graphic-style art that explores Navajo mythology and folklore passed down to him from parents and grandparents.
Across the room artist Randall Wilson tells us “colour is a healing product,” explaining why people are drawn to certain paintings.
Also a Navajo, Wilson has been creating art since a child. (A few hours later we’re happy to discover his commissioned work at the Twin Arrows Casino Resort vividly portraying the first, second and third worlds of the Navajo creation story.)
THE MUSEUM OF NORTHERN ARIZONA
The museum boasts more than five million southwestern artifacts, natural science specimens and fine art. It’s where to learn about the fascinating Colorado Plateau’s (including the Grand Canyon) natural and cultural history. Think geology dating back 4.5 billion years and prehistoric survival rituals. Living cultures of Hopi, Navajo, Pai and Zuni tribes are explored. See ancient pottery, weapons, and dinosaur discoveries dating back millions of years.
Visit: musnaz.org
THE TWIN ARROWS CASINO RESORT
The resort is a top-notch gaming facility where we enjoyed gourmet dining, fitness facilities, a large indoor pool and luxury suites.
The view from my room of the San Francisco Peaks, especially with a fresh sprinkling of snow in the morning, was majestic.
But its biggest bragging rights have to be its Navajo-influenced architecture, decor and arts prevalent throughout. From the carpets to the stunning chandelier depicting the vertical rise of the Navajo people, to the pottery to the commissioned original Navajo art, the casino complex is both a cultural showplace and modern resort.
Visit: twinarrows.com
THREE UPCOMING FLAGSTAFF EVENTS:
Flagstaff Blues and Brews, June 18: Family event featuring live blues music, craft beer, vendors and a kids’ area. Performers include: The Sugaray Rayford Band, Danielle Nicole, MonkeyJunk, The Austin Young Band, The Blues Review Band and Smokestack Lightning.
Museum of Northern Arizona’s Hopi Festival of Arts and Culture, July 2-3: The 83rd annual festival includes traditional music, dancing and food plus a show and sale of jewelry, katsinas, pottery, paintings, woodworking, baskets, and textiles from some 80 Hopi artists.
Pickin’ in the Pines bluegrass festival, Sept. 16-18: Musicians and bands play traditional bluegrass music plus old-time, Celtic and Gypsy jazz. Educational workshops and camping.