GOOD FRIENDS & SLOTS

Antelope Canyon
Page, Arizona
     After leaving Oregon, to escape the bad weather which had been hanging over our heads we decided to take a sharp right-hand turn when we were halfway through Idaho.  What a great decision! By the time we arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah, there it was--a great big shiny sun...and warm weather.  We were so happy.
Temple Square
Salt Lake City
Home of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
     Downtown Salt Lake City is gorgeous with the Mormon Church having a major influence.  We decided to get a little religion and visited Temple Square, the home of the Mormon Church.  The square was full of church related buildings in a pretty park-like setting.  On the day of our visit, there were close to 80 weddings occurring.  The place was littered with brides.
Temple Square
Salt Lake City
Temple Square as viewed from
City Creek Center in
Salt Lake City
      While in Salt Lake City we heard that Dick and Gaila Mallery were in Bryce Canyon National Park.  So off we went to visit this wonderful couple.  We have been friends since 1980 and our reunions are always the best!
A window to a view of a castle
in a Bryce Canyon.

Bryce Canyon National Park

Dick Mallery.
Dick & I hiked the Fairyland Trail
in Bryce Canyon.
     Bryce Canyon is Nancy's favorite national park.  Hence the name of our first daughter--Bryce.  As many times as we have visited, we never tire of this unique place. We had 3 nights/4 days with our good friends so we toured the park's highlights, hiked, and just hung-out catching up with each other.


Scenes from Bryce Canyon National Park.
     Nancy and I even had the time for a nice bike ride to many of Bryce's overlooks along the park's bike trail.  Nancy is becoming very annoying with her new electric bike as she zooms past me on long uphill stretches and gloats from the top as I arrive all out of breath and sweaty.


More scenes from Bryce Canyon National Park.
     From Bryce we traveled all of 1 hour to the cute western town of Kanab, UT.  Kanab sits on the edge of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.  The national monument should be a national park as it is huge, full of scenery similar to Bryce Canyon and Zion, and it is loaded with slot canyons. Also, it is the home of The Wave, a popular screen saver on millions of computers.  To get to the wave you must win the lottery at the daily drawing in Kanab.  Only 10 passes are drawn every day and while I was there well over 150 people participated in the daily drawings.  Needless to say, I went 0-for-3 days.
Wire Pass Slot Canyon.
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

The entrance to Wire Pass Slot Canyon

Lick Wash Canyon.
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. 
     Failing the drawing for The Wave, the national monument is still loaded with opportunities. Nancy even was able to do a couple of short hikes on the Toadstool Trail and into the Lick Wash Slot Canyon.  I was able to hike the Wire Pass Slot Canyon which joined with the Buckskin Gulch Slot Canyon.  I love slot canyons as they are so different from any other hiking I have done.  Often the canyon rises hundreds of feet above shoulder width passageways.  Very exciting stuff!



Scenes from the Toadstool Trail in
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.
     Page, Arizona was our next stop.  Page is another interesting western town and is best known for being the location of the Glen Canyon Dam which forms Lake Powell.  It is the releases from the Glen Canyon Dam that feeds the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon and allows for all that great whitewater.  Lake Powell has to be the world capital for giant house boats which dock in the Page area and cruise this gigantic man-made desert lake.


More images of Antelope Canyon
     The highlight of Page is its proximity to Antelope Canyon.  Antelope Canyon is a combination of 2 slot canyons-the upper canyon and the lower canyon.  Not only does this slot canyon narrow down to a squeeze-through width, but it is composed of red sandstone.  When the sun is shining brightly, the red sandstone glows as the daylight shimmers throughout.  The variety of of colors, shapes and shadows created in this fantastic canyon is stunning.
Antelope Canyon.
The colors created by the glow from
the sun are almost surreal.
Antelope Canyon
Antelope Canyon
     Antelope Canyon ranks up there with one of the most unique and beautiful places I have ever seen.  We are already planning to return in the spring to not only re-experience the canyon, but to take another shot at The Wave.  Anybody want to come and join the Page/Kanab party?


More of Antelope Canyon.

     CHEERS!  
Antelope Canyon

Comments

  1. So jealous! We have yet to be to Antelope Canyon and really want to get over to that area. Very beautiful pictures....Nancy, way to go on the new bike!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Love Antelope Canyon. Where are you wintering? We are in Mesa until the first of the year.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment