Arizona part 2

Following our trip to the Grand Canyon, the next day's expedition was out to Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon.

Driving out through the Arizona desert we stopped at a small village where there was an outcrop that caught my attention.

Spectacular formation

More rocks, the North Rim above

The carpark had many cars and buses parked. It was a walk of about one and a half miles to one of the geological wonders of the world. 

Approaching Horseshoe Bend

To the left, looking towards downstream of the Colorado River

The path leading down to the bend
- no wonder the car park was full.

The following shot shows the best I could get with my Canon 80D, at 15mm. The bend in the river is 270 degrees making it difficult to fully capture it.

The shadow in the cliff of the left has been lightened as much as possible - I wasn't happy so out came my iPhone for the next shot in panorama.

I think my phone handled the different light better than my camera. I was to find this out a few hours later at Antelope Canyon. (Phone camera do have their place but they are limited in what you can do too.)

Notice the rather low level on the river and hints of green slime.  The cause of this was obvious at our lunch stop next. 

Glen Canyon Dam

If you look on the top left you can see the high water mark. The water in the dam must have been at least 15 or 20 meters below full, hence the low flow of water seen at Horseshoe Bend. (Is this indicating drastic climate change- a megadrought perhaps?)

As a keen photographer, the problem with being on an organised tour is that you don't have time to explore different angles to get the best images. This shot of the dam doesn't show you the magnitude of it. I would have liked to have gone onto the bridge to get a better angle but time did not permit.

The bridge from the same place and the dam shot.

Next stop was Antelope Canyon, one of many in Arizona and neighbouring Utah. Such canyons owe their existence to erosion and in particular the effects of flash floods. Antelope Canyon has many recorded such events. 

A canyon renown for its narrow, twisting limestone walls became a trap for 12 hikers on Tuesday when a flash flood filled it with a wall of water 11 feet high.

The guide for several of the hikers survived, battered and his clothes ripped off by the force of the water, and the body of one woman was found yesterday. The other 10 are missing and presumed dead.

The storm came without warning. A cloudburst 15 miles away sent heavy runoff down a normally dry wash in Antelope Canyon toward the unsuspecting sightseers. ''Rain had not fallen where they were hiking,'' said Benson Nez, a ranger on the Navajo reservation which the canyon runs through.

New York Times, 14th August 1997.

A survival story of the 1997 flood.


Now days there are steel stair cases at the entrance, exit and at other places in the middle of there canyon. Strategically placed rope ladders are placed in case evacuations are needed. There are also early warning systems in place upstream in case of rising waters. The steel stair cases have been replaced several times bearing testament to the power of rapidly moving moving water. It was fine day when we were there and no hint of rain clouds anywhere!

First view when we got down the stairs.

My phone handled the bright contrast between there sky and the shows in the canyon better than my Canon.

The water worn slot canyon

Photo opportunity courtesy of our Navajo guide.

The seahorse.

Leaving the canyon we passed through Page on our way back to Flagstaff. However there were a few stops on there way.

I couldn't resist requesting to stop and get a shot of this outcrop.

One thing that I noticed was how intensely blue the sky was at the higher altitudes in Arizona. The dry atmosphere helps in the respect too.

A must do on the way back was to visit the Cameron Trading Post. Run by the Navajo, this is a huge post selling a large range of goods aimed primarily at the tourist trade. I could have bought an intricately worked gun holster fo my six shooter and matching cowboy outfit too.

Next stop was San Francisco and Yosemite NP., coming up soon.