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

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 

 

Big Bend National Park

We wrap up our Texas tour with a five day stay at Big Bend National Park. This park is huge!! comparing in size to the state of Rhode Island. In many ways, it felt like coming home. On the surface, there are many similarities between Big Bend's Chihuahuan desert and our Sonoran desert - plant life, animal life and mountain elevations. One difference is it's border between the United States and Mexico, the Rio Grande River. It is impossible to explore the entire park in five days, however, we enjoy our days touring, hiking and birding this beautiful park.

We fit! I wonder who had to jog through the tunnel in her sandals to take this picture??

 

 

These pictures say it all...

 





The Santa Elena Canyon

The cliffs of  the Santa Elena Canyon rise 1500 feet
above the Rio Grande, the border between Mexico
and the United States.

 

 

 



Lovely works of art created and strategically placed for sale by illegal Mexicans throughout the park. Posted signs warn United States citizens that it is a crime to purchase these items. I'm sure it is quite tempting for hikers to purchase the beautiful walking sticks for a meager $6.00 (on the honor system) when they sell for $18.00 at the visitor centers. And me, without my wallet...