In the heart of the Navajo Indian Reservation, Cameron, Arizona, lies on the south side of the Little Colorado River Gorge. It is best known for the picturesque Cameron Trading Post, which sits by the side of the original old swayback suspension bridge. The trading post, which these days is busy with tourists shopping for souvenirs, now hosts a fine hotel and, for the self-contained camper, an RV park. There are other campsites within an hour's drive.
Commerce in Another Time
The swayback suspension bridge provided the first easy access across the deep gorge of the Little Colorado. After its completion in 1911, the brothers Hubert and C.D. Richardson set up shop next door. Back in that era, Hopi and Navajo people would travel for days by wagon to visit the brothers in their new trading post, where they'd barter their livestock, tightly woven baskets and beautiful woolen blankets for dry goods. Descendants of the brothers still run it.
Near Cameron: Grand Canyon
Driving from Cameron is the most scenic approach to the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. Desert View is right above a large bend in the Colorado River 4,000 feet below. The monumental Watchtower, inspired by native Americans and designed by Mary Jane Colter, stands near the edge, affording an even more dramatic view, as the breeze whistles through the junipers and ravens glide by.
Desert View has a multi-use campground--which, at 32 miles away--is the closest one to Cameron. The 2010 camping rate is $12 per night plus an entry fee.
Near Cameron: Lake Powell
From Cameron, you can drive due north on US 89 to the shores of Lake Powell, 86 miles through the high desert. The drive skirts along below the Echo Cliffs, then climbs from Bitter Springs up over the Petal Hill through Antelope Pass. Just out of Page, you can visit Antelope Canyon by taking the tribal tour or taking a boat out into the 160,000-acre lake. Wahweap Campground sits above the lake, with over 100 tent sites available at $19.00 a night (as of 2010).
Navajo National Monument and Monument Valley
Traveling north on US 89 to US 160 then northeast across the Navajo Reservation you can visit Navajo National Monument, 87 miles away, to overlook the Betakin cliff ruins across the canyon--and stay in the campground for free. The 16 sites are on a first-come, first-served basis.
Farther on,128 miles from Cameron stand the majestic mesas of Monument Valley--a site that should not be missed Camping rates here, as of 2010, are $10 per night on top of a $5 admission fee.
Other Places to Camp
Twenty-six miles beyond Desert View is Mather Campground, in Grand Canyon Village. At Sunset Crater National Monument, 34 miles south of Cameron on US 89 and just north of Flagstaff, is Bonito Campground. The 2010 rate is $18 per night on top of a $5 entry fee. Greer's Pine Shadow RV park lies on the west end of Flagstaff. Cameron Trading Post's RV park charges $15 plus tax per night or $65 plus tax for a week.
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