Arroyo Seco's 4th of July Parade

minutes before the parade starts

Arroyo Seco is a small town 7 miles north of Taos on the way to Taos Ski Valley.  They bill themselves as the "Jewel of Taos" and, with their collection of art galleries, shops and restaurants set among the beautiful backdrop of Taos Mountain, this is not an exaggeration. I tend to visit often....healthy breakfasts at Sol Food Market, green chile and beer at Abe's Cantina y cocina, best ever local organic ice cream at Taos Cow, browsing the shops and art galleries....all make for a wonderful day.

But my favorite day to visit Arroyo Seco is the 4th of July for their spirited, fun, interesting and oh-so-different parade.  I describe this event as "part parade, part audience participation, part structure, part chaos" as you often can't tell what is an official entry and what is simply lack of crowd control.  Don't get me wrong, people are nice, polite and respectful...they just don't understand the concept of "staying on the sidelines and watching". This is what makes the parade so much fun. Seco gallery owner Jack Leustig puts it this way:

"The parade is partially controlled chaos with lots of local flavor, horses, kids. It’s just an odd parade with lots of different creative approaches, old cars, farm vehicles pulling trailers with people handing out hotdogs, all kinds of things. Some organizations put a lot of effort into their floats ... you never know, anybody can show up and they do.”**

The small town feel seems perfectly appropriate for the 4th of July. As a big city girl, this is what I dreamed of as a child. Locals and tourists alike fall under the spell of the spirit of the day.  I was standing next to people from Florida, Connecticut, Texas and Oregon. They all seemed charmed although, due to the "partially controlled chaos", they kept asking "Is it over?"  I laughingly kept repeating..."No, More floats are coming. We just like to wander through the road visiting in between each one".  And that sums up the parade...Celebrating the Holiday, Celebrating Friends & Family, Celebrating the Spirit of Taos. If you don't live here put this on your calendar now for next year.  Everyone should experience the Seco 4th of July Parade at least once! 

our friends sharon and richard...love running into people we know at the parade

my favorite float of the parade

Lots more Seco 4th of July photos on our facebook page
**from the Visit Seco website

my best,
diane
July 5th , 2013

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