ANTELOPE CANYON EXPEDITION!

This blog is for someone planning a trip to Antelope Canyon, near Page, Arizona, to show them the "nittygritty" of how it works.  The first thing you need to do (after you have decided on the calendar days that would work for you) is book your tour with one of the Navajo-owned companies, that take visitors through the canyon.  You can go to the website for visiting Page, Arizona (www.pagearizona.com) to see the various tour companies in that area.  I used Antelope Canyon Tours (www.antelopecanyon.com), and their office location in Page, Arizona (which is also where you board the vehicles that take you to the canyon) is shown in photo below:

After you have checked in with the office, you will be assigned a tour group truck number.  The driver of that truck will call out for his passengers, and direct them to the specially designed, open air pickup trucks.  The information on the website makes it clear that the tour is NOT wheel-chair accessible, and that participants need to be in good enough physical condition to walk, climb the bus ladder, and climb stairs over a small mountain, at the end of the tour.  There is a video on their website of a person with a "GO-PRO" style camera completing the stair climbing and walking trail the participant is required to navigate, so the prospective visitor can assess their ability to safely meet the criteria.  When I was there in May, 2022, the website also had repeated alerts, saying that face masks were required in the office, on the vehicle ride, and during the entire tour (including having your photo taken while inside the canyon).  One needs to be able to climb the small ladder shown in this photo, to get into the back of the truck:

The  truck travels city streets of Page for a few miles, and there are seatbelts on the bench-style seats, that riders must wear. (NOTE:  The seat belts are designed for two people to be enclosed within the same belt, so expect to get cozy with whomever you might end up sitting by!)

The truck then turns onto the Navajo Nation property, that lists the location of LeChee, Arizona (about 20 minutes outside Page).  The "road" is actually a dried-up riverbed, which became very dusty with the tour truck traffic, so that I was glad I had a mask on, to keep out the desert dust!  The riverbed leads directly to the entrance of Antelope Canyon, which would make sense, since it is raging flows of water down this river bed during monsoon-season floods, that chiseled out the unique formations within the canyon walls. 

Notice  the white trucks in the parking lot are pointed forward, towards the "mountain", as the groups start to enter the canyon.  When the tour was over, the trucks had all been turned around to point in the opposite direction.  This was a nice courtesy for both our current tour truck driver and us guests.  That is because all those trucks turning around in this "dust bowl" stirs up a thick cloud of dust, that had time to settle back down, by the end of our tour.

 

Photo of white trucks that had been turned around to point towards the exit direction, after our tour was over:

Antelope Canyon is a type of "slot canyon" that occurs in various locations throughout the Southwest.  Most explorers have heard the story about people drowning in slot canyons, when they were quickly and unexpectedly, overtaken by raging flood waters.  The sign below is at the entrance to the canyon, and is a reminder that tourists drowned here a few years back during a flash flood (even though there was no rain occurring in the near-by area, at the time they started their tour).  Since that incident, improved weather tracking and warning systems have enabled officials to stop tours, well before the threat of a flash flood is imminent.

The Navajo Nation tribal rules were still requiring a mask at the time of my visit, even though they were no longer being required in Page, Arizona (which is outside the Navajo Nation boundaries).  Our guide told us this was because "the Navajo people were hit very hard by COVID19", and extraordinary measures were being continued to reduce the threat of illness.  Like many other tourist attractions, these tours were closed down completely at the height of the pandemic, and have had a gradual, "staged" return to full capacity.  Our guide told us the company had just recently gone to 75% capacity for guests, after successfully navigating the business at 50% for a period of time.  According to Wikipedia, by April 20, 2020, the Navajo Nation had the third-highest infection rate in the United States, after New York and New Jersey.  As of May 18, 2020, the Navajo Nation surpassed New York as the most affected U.S. region per capita.  It is very understandable why they are being extremely cautious!

As we entered the opening of the slot canyon, one could feel the temperature difference, with it being much cooler within the shade, provided by the tall walls of sandstone.

My son had taken the tour a while back and alerted me to the possibility of the guide showing guests how to adjust their smart phone camera, to get the best results. So I was the first one to hand him my phone, when he had suggestions on how best to photograph, what we were about to see.  He recommended the guests adjust their setting to "VIVID", instead of normal, and NO FLASH.  For guests that did not know how to work their smart phone settings, he was very patient in assisting them.  Especially before digital cameras, photography within the canyon was uniquely challenging, because of the wide exposure range, made by light reflecting off the canyon walls.  For several years, there was a specialized "photographer tour" of the Upper Antelope Canyon, where participants needed to have a tripod and camera.  In fact, the first time I remember seeing a photo of Antelope Canyon, was by a photographer I met on an art studio tour in Sedona, Arizona, several years ago.  She told me that she had participated in the special photo tour, and that openings for any kind of tour (photo or otherwise) were a hard-to-come-by prize, because of the limited size and number of tours that the Navajo Nation permits.  These specialized photography tours had been discontinued at the end of 2019, even before the pandemic hit.  I believe it was a definite blessing from God (a "God-Wink", some might call it), that I HAPPENED to be in the group whose guide just HAPPENED to have been one of those talented photographers who had led the specialized tours!  In fact, he has won awards for his landscape photography, and used to be allowed to do wedding photography inside Antelope Canyon!

Expect to spend a lot of time looking upward, as you go through, because with every step you take, the formations above and around you change shapes and colors.

I took the photo below, looking straight up, dozens of feet above my head.  The object straddling the ceiling opening, is the trunk of a tree that was washed into the canyon, during one of the flash floods. (You can see the tree trunk's "bushy" branches on the right end of the opening). 

The wave-looking surfaces of the canyon were formed by the erosion of Navajo Sandstone due to flash-flooding and sub-aerial features (sub-aerial means "under the air", as opposed to "under the water")  During monsoon season, rainwater runs into the extensive basin above the slot canyon sections, picking up speed and sand as it rushes into the narrow passageways.  Over time the passageways erode away, deepening the corridors and smoothing hard edges to form characteristic "flowing" shapes. 

All of my photos were taken in Upper Antelope Canyon, which has a ground-level entryway, and a flat interior passage way for guests; hence, it is more popular with guests than a different option, called the Lower Antelope Canyon tour.  For the lower canyon, there are ladders to descend/ascend, to get access to the interior. 

A person could go through Antelope Canyon hundreds of times, and get different views each time, depending on how the light from above is reflecting on the surfaces.  The photo below shows how in some places the passageway narrows so that guests need to pass through single file.

The photo below shows what the eye sees as one exits the inside of the slot canyon.  The curving line above the hill on the horizon, is the sunroof of the metal walkway that one must ascend, to get back to their tour vehicle, on the other side of the mountain.

Just a short distance from the end of the slot canyon, metal stairs have been installed that the guest must climb to get over this hill that is above and beside the slot canyon.

Once we ascended the stairs, the upward ramp was covered to provide sun protection:

This is what the slot canyon looks like from above:

This photo shows the full length of shaded ramp:

The sign encourages using the hand rails, and knowing this, our guide gave us all a generous squirt of hand sanitizer when we reached the bottom of the stairs.

The photo below shows my tour guide, Mr. Rick B., who was FANTASTIC!  The fact that he had heard of the Arkansas Razorbacks was also a big plus!  When I asked how he was so quick to associate my Arkansas accent with the Razorbacks, he said he had been on the Kansas JayHawks track team in college, and had competed against the Razorbacks!

Our guide had done professional portrait photography in the canyon in the past, and knew the best locations to place his guests, to provide the lighting needed for the picture to turn out:

There was one point on the tour that the guide knew the light formed a heart shape, so he took each guest's photo, within that heart shaped light.  He had a helper shine a muted flashlight on the subjects face, so that it could be seen.  Notice my lower torso is indistinguishable because of the way the light is coming through the "ceiling" opening of the canyon.  I theorized that our very experienced guide had taken photos of his guests without the "muted" flashlight used to highlight their face, and was not as pleased with the results, as when the flashlight provided just enough light to show the face.

 The heart-shaped "light painting"  on the wall is made possible, because of the heart shaped opening at the top of the canyon at this location.  You can see that opening in the photo below:

If you get to the canyon at the right time of year (between May and October), and the right time of day (around noon), and the right weather conditions (clear skies), there is a strong beam of light that shines straight down through the opening; and, once again, I just HAPPENED to book the very last noon-time opening, available for this "HAPPENING"!  The guide wanted to take each of our photos beside that beam, asking us not to stand directly under the beam:

I have been on dozens of group tours, but I have NEVER been on a group tour where the guide was so obviously enjoying taking photos of his guests at different locations!  And it was not just me---every individual, couple, or family who wanted their photo taken could hand the guide their phone, and he snapped a postcard-worthy photo of them!

Besides the heart shape in the ceiling, many guests see the outline of a tall vertical candle, at the location shown in the photo below:

Some of the guests were calling this line-up of shapes on the right side of the photo, the "Mt. Rushmore" of Antelope Canyon.

What anthropomorphic shapes do YOU see in the photo below?

The photo below shows the flat, sandy passageway that guests walk on throughout the tour:

If you wear a big hat, like the one shown in the photo below, make sure it is secure on your head, because you spend a big part of the tour with your head extended backward and upward, as far as it will go, so you can take in the incredible beauty that is above your eye-level!

One of the fascinating aspects of our tour, was when the guide took a small shovel-full of sand, and created a "sand waterfall" over the edge of one of the outcroppings:

When our guide showed us the location where many guests see the profile of "The Holy Man" (Jesus) formed in the earthen walls, I realized this could be the visual aid I needed to help me learn one of my First Place 4 Health ( www.FirstPlace4Health.com ) memory verses.  It says, "But I have raised you up, for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth."  Here I was, inside the earth, and Jesus's name had just been proclaimed, inside this very spot, of all the earth!

The tour of Antelope Canyon is something I have been wanting to experience for YEARS, and it was--- literally---something I went to sleep thinking about, the night before my tour!  The Wyndham location (www.wyndhamhotels.com) where I stayed in Page, Arizona, had a giant-sized photograph of the canyon above my bed, assuring "Mr. Sandman" would send me a (sandstone canyon) dream!  I can say with certainty, this tour of Antelope Canyon gave me "MILES OF SANDSTONE SMILES"!  Tricia 

SAN RAFAEL SWELL EXPEDITION!

The San Rafael Swell can be thought of as a "swell" or "uplifted bump" on the surface of the earth.  The exhibit below helps a visitor  see the unusual landscape in a three dimensional model:

Over time, the effects of wind, water, volcanic activity, floods, and temperature extremes,  caused the "swell" we look at today, to be full of structures with varying heights, shapes, and composition.
On numerous trips through Utah, I have driven through the section of Interstate 70 that bisects the San Rafael Swell.  The red line in the three dimensional model represents Interstate 70.

The photo below shows the divided highway snaking through the jagged cliffs of the Spotted Wolf Canyon, onto the desert floor.  The construction of the Utah portion of I-70 is listed as one of the engineering marvels of the Interstate Highway System.  As a two-lane route, Utah's I-70 was dedicated in 1970; but, the divided highway we use today was not fully completed until 1990.  Most of the area designated as a part of the San Rafael Swell is within Emery County in Utah, and you can access the Emery County Travel Bureau at www.sanrafaelcountry.com

When I visited this overlook in July, 2021, I saw people exploring on the cliffs below the parking lot, and I wanted to do the same!  However, I decided it was not wise to take off down the mountainside alone.

My son is used to rock climbing, so I waited to do my exploring until he was with me!

There are placards at the various I-70 overlooks, that tell stories about the history of this unusual area:

The Head of Sinbad is one of the best preserved ancient pieces of rock art in the world.  It sits unassumingly on a wall a dozen feet off the ground, in the desert wasteland of the northern San Rafael Swell.  Thousands of cars pass nearby every day, but most people do not know these examples of ancient art, lie just a few miles north of the paved highway.   The whole area around the anthropomorphic pictographs is named Head of Sinbad. 

Ghost Rock is a pinnacle along I-70 within the San Rafael Swell.  The legend says a cowboy on a foggy morning saw the top of the pinnacle protruding from a bed of fog, and thinking it appeared ghostly, dubbed it "Ghost Rock".

The name "San Rafael" relates to Saint Raphael, who is considered the patron saint of healing.  He is considered the special angel of apothecaries---meaning nurses, pharmacists, physicians, and others who minister to the sick.  Since both my son and I chose careers in healthcare, we could be included in that group!  Here is a photo a kind tourist took of us, as we started our trek across the rock outcropping:

I was thankful to be making a return visit to this area, so my son could evaluate the feasibility of various routes I wanted to explore.  In this photo, he is studying the rock composition, to evaluate its suitability for various types of rock climbing:

Although I am not a rock climber, I like to pretend!

The rocks here are full of cracks, that beg to be photographed!

Some of the cracks can even serve as a "chair" of sorts!

No visit to a place this amazing, is complete without a gesture of gratitude with my arms uplifted!

There are numerous layers to the landscape that make up the San Rafael Swell:

Just as this ceiling banner covers all the different rock layers of the San Rafael Swell model that is below it, so God's love covers all the different parts of our planet Earth.   And, it is God's love that needs to bind together all the various attributes (virtues) that Christians strive for.  I am using this concept as the visual aid for one of my First Place 4 Health (www.FirstPlace4Health.com) memory verses that says, "And over all these virtues, put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."  Colossians 3:14

Besides providing a visual aid for my memory verse, this trip was a wonderful time to "bind together" with my son (aka "family bonding time"), as we enjoyed the beauty of God's creation!
That is why a visit to Utah's San Rafael Swell, gave me "MILES OF SMILES"!!