Flowing Sandstone and The Flame, Antelope Canyon
Page/Antelope Canyon
After the austere hush of the desert in Arches and Monument Valley, Page, Arizona was a relative cacophony.
There’s not much to Page, it
just happens to be at the crossroads of the few highways in the areas, and lies
in the shadow of the Glen Canyon Dam and a gargantuan Navajo power generating
plant. We spent the night at the Page Lake Powell Campground (which was
essentially a parking lot with trees.) We pitched our tents in the rocky dirt of
a glorified median under the wary eye of a couple Harley-driving bikers. After
several days wandering the wilderness, the sojourn into town for Mexican food
and some ridiculously large margaritas was almost a shock to the system.
The next day we set out to Antelope Canyon, a slot canyon
and Navajo Tribal Parks natural site. Like Monument Valley, you’ve probably
seen pictures from Antelope Canyon, whose twisting, flowing red rocks and
brilliant sunbeams are perennial photo fodder. It’s not an overly large place…a
small slot canyon with high walls carved out of the surrounding formation by
wind and water. With the right camera gear though, the opportunity of a
lifetime. I did not have the right camera gear.
Our two (required) Navajo guides were very personable, but
it was pretty clear they weren’t going to take any guff from a bunch of
tourists. I tried my best to get a few good pictures, but the light was against
us (overcast) and I had no tripod. This and the nearby Wave formation are
places I absolutely need to get back to some day.
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| Lady of the Desert, Antelope Canyon |
Navajo Guides and The Flame, Antelope Canyon
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| Sandstone Curves, Antelope Canyon |
While in Page we also stopped by the vertigo inducing heights where the Colorado makes a hairpin turn at Horseshoe Bend. Horseshoe is one of those places that your brain can’t initially process…It tries to make it less big than it actually is, to translate it to some relatable scale. The moment you see something human scale (in this case a passing motorboat) in that frame, your perspective is shattered, and the immensity of the world rushes in at you again. Back in the human scale of the SUV, we left town on the way to Zion.
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| Horseshoe Bend panoramic, Page, Arizona |
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| Desert Storm Colors, Horseshoe Bend, Page, Arizona |
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