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| Day 6 Route |
Two of the three sites on our list for today were near our hotel. Our first stop was Horseshoe Bend. The Colorado River is flowing through Glen Canyon making a 270 degree curve in an entrenched meander. The river flows from the right side of the view, around the bend, and exits to the left. The hike to the site is just under a mile. The temperature was just below 100 and there is no shade in this area. We broke a sweat!
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| The Trail to Horseshoe Bend |
The orange rock is Navajo Sandstone, the largest sandstone layer in the US. Composed of sand dunes in the Jurassic age, it stretches from Northern Arizona into Wyoming. At some points it is 2,000 feet thick. Horseshoe bend is an incredible site but one that also had our knees feeling weak. It makes me nervous even just watching others stand right at the edge...
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| Get a Little Closer.... |
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| Horseshoe Bend |
We have reservations with Kens Tours to visit Antelope Canyon at 9:30 so we headed a few miles north to the location. Antelope Canyon has an upper and lower option. After reading numerous reviews we chose the lower option as human traffic only goes in one direction in the lower canyon. We checked in and waited for our tour time. The temperature was 104 and there is no shade here. When our tour group was called we were taken to the canyon in groups of 15. All of the tour guides are young Navajo people. All were very informed on what we were about to see and about their culture and land. Tara was our guide and she did a great job leading us through the canyon.
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| Get the Shot! |
A slot canyon is a narrow canyon, formed by the wear of water rushing through rock. A slot canyon is significantly deeper than it is wide. Many slot canyons are formed in sandstone and limestone rock, although slot canyons in other rock types such as granite and basalt are possible. Antelope Canyon is through the Navajo Sandstone and what a site it is to see!
To enter the canyon you descend five flights of metal staircases. One of them is very steep and requires you to focus. Once at the floor of the Canyon it is a mile walk to the exit. Some spots get really narrow while others have rather large openings. It is an incredible experience. And it is ten degrees cooler in the canyon than on the surface! I am not sure if the pictures will capture what we experienced, but we gave it a try!
On leaving Antelope Canyon we set our sites on Zion National Park. It is about 90 minutes away from Page. Along the way we saw the Glen Canyon Dam. Behind this dam Lake Powell has formed. Very impressive site. Our first dam!
We arrived at Zion National Park early afternoon. I had not researched this park as much as the others so we were not sure what to expect. The number of times that we said 'oh wow' in this park was far too many to count.
Once in the park there was a 12 mile drive to the visitor center. We entered through the southeast side of the park. The drive to the visitors center was stunning. There were several tunnels (through the mountains) that were so neat (see video here!). The second tunnel lasted for over a mile! Large red mountains with tons of lush greenery abound in Zion. We were in awe.
Once at the visitor's center we decided to jump on their shuttle bus system to tour the Zion Canyon area. We choose several stops at which wer jumped off the bus to explore. At our first stop, Big Bend, we were able to get into the Virgin River that has created this particular canyon. Dean took off his shoes and socks and enjoyed the refreshing water. While sitting on a rock doing that, he looked across the river and spotted a deer who had bedded down. The deer saw us looking his way, taking pictures, etc and did not move.
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| Just to the Right of Center... |
After some time in this area we hopped back on the shuttle and got off at Zion Lodge. What a beautiful setting this hotel is placed in. There is a huge grassy courtyard in front of the main lodge that had people sitting and enjoying the day.
We decided on a trail here called Lower Emerald Pool Trail. This trail would take us to a waterfall. It was a lovely afternoon with lots of shade on this trail. When we got to the waterfall it was more like a water trickle... there has been very little rain recently so we were looking at a trickle instead of a fall. Beautiful nonetheless.
This National Park felt so different from all others that we have visited. Looking back, we probably said the same thing after each visit. There was something so grand about Zion and yet it felt so intimate as well. Zion could very well be my favorite NP thus far... until the next one I guess. LOL
We drove to La Verkin, Utah to rest our heads for the night. We did enjoy some fantastic hamburgers at Meme's Cafe in Springdale first though!
Until tomorrow...
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| Sign of a Good Day of Hiking |
Pics from Day 6
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