Monday, September 22, 2014

Zion National Park

The name Zion, meaning "promised land" is comprised of a 229 square mile mass of rock over 8,726 feet above sea level. After an afternoon and night of steady rains, we were rewarded with blue skies and amazing views of Zion National Park.
Wild turkeys seen as we leave camp




































 
 




Exiting the more than a mile tunnel thru Zion



 
Morning walk before leaving Zion
Rubber rabbitbrush
 
Utah daisy
 
 

Saturday, September 20, 2014

Antelope Canyon - at last!


After a great morning on the Colorado River we have lunch before starting out for magical Antelope Canyon. We have known about this slot canyon that is a favorite place for photographers and visitors from all over the world and are pumped to finally be here. This incredible canyon was created over thousands of years by the forces of water and wind, slowly carving and sculpting these beautiful red formations. The ever changing sun angles bounce light back and forth across the narrow canyon walls, creating a magical display of color, light and shadows. There is an upper and lower part to this canyon and we have chosen to tour the lower Antelope Canyon. The tour began with an unassuming hike on the beautiful red sandstone that Page is known for. Everyone is armed with cameras as we begin our decent into the canyon and we are quickly rewarded with the most beautiful swirling red formations we have ever seen.



Who knew what we find ahead?


 

Over the years many of these formations have been named.
Wolf''s head









Professional photographer?
Some narrow and steep passages were laddered



 
















Lady in the wind




Eagle's head








The Wave


Exiting the slot canyon









Friday, September 19, 2014

Page, Arizona - Part 1 Colorado River Boat Tour





It would be hard to imagine spending another day anywhere seeing as many beautiful sights as we have seen in one day at Page, Arizona.  Due to the abundance of photos, we are creating two separate posts for our morning and afternoon adventures. We knew there were good things in store for us upon our arrival of the Wauweap Marina and RV Resort on beautiful Lake Powell.  

 


 






                                                    

     


We had an early start the next morning as we joined Colorado River Discovery for a half day raft trip on the Colorado River beginning at the Glen Canyon Dam. Our trip began with a bus ride down the two mile long Glen Canyon Dam access tunnel.



Glen Canyon Dam
700 feet high and 1/4 mile across

Hard hats required to access raft












Pit stop at the beach








 








Short hike to petroglyphs
 
 
 
Scenic 3/4 mile hike to river overlook
Horseshoe Bend Overlook
 
 

Watson Lake near Prescott, Arizona




Jim and I have begun our long awaited trip to northern Arizona and southern Utah. Our first stay at Point of Rocks Campground in beautiful Prescott, AZ was just the warm up for many beautiful rocks to be seen.


Point of Rocks campsite


First day exploring





 



 



Watson Lake


Watson Lake boat launch













 
Nearby PeavineTrail provided a scenic ten mile bicycle ride
View of Watson Lake from bike trail


 


Kayaking Watson Lake

 






Rocks, rocks and more rocks!

Had to have one bird pic - Great Blue Heron

 
 
Next stop: Lake Powell in Page, Arizona