Today was always going to be a bit of a gamble being hardly more than a break in an otherwise long section of road between Zion and Monument Valley. The road from Zion was closed and so we took the ‘old school’ route via Hurricane, pretty, but no comparison to what we had left behind or to what lies ahead.

Highway 89A brings us into Page, Arizona via Lake Powell and the Glen Canyon Dam. Lake Powell is a reservoir, created in the 1950’s by damming the Colorado River. It is smaller than Lake Mead, at the western end of the Grand Canyon, behind the Hoover Dam, it is, nonetheless, a major recreational facility and very beautiful!

Understandably proud of the engineering achievement both the dam and accompanying Glen Canyon bridge are accessible and make great photo opportunities.

The expanse of blue water lifts the soul after so much arid landscape around Zion.

One of the two main reasons for stopping at Page was to visit (if possible) Antelope Canyon, a dry ‘Slot Canyon’ in the Navajo Sandstone. The canyon is on Navajo tribal lands and access is controlled and limited to organised tour companies with Navajo native guides.

Visitors are transported to the site outside of Page and then several miles across the desert to reach the portal of the Upper Antelope Canyon.

The low key entrance gives little clue to the beauty within.

Antelope Canyon is naturally lit from the partly open canyon roof, consequently light levels are low and variable, features which only enhance the scope for arty photos, but make timing crucial. We were so lucky to find the last two places on a mid afternoon trip.

The challenging lighting conditions had me hankering for my aged Nikon DSLR, but the higher resolution and technical sophistication of the Olympus did the job admirably, so not too unhappy really.

The Navajo Sandstone is rich and red in colour, the hue varying with every change of position and angle. At different points in the canyon, a fanciful eye can identify different structures and forms in the rock. Some, such as “The Bear” and “Abraham Lincoln” are easy to spot, others such as “The Wave” and “The Dragons Eye” need careful positioning and lighting to see to best effect.

The ‘money shot’ of the visit is “The Million Dollar Wall” a version of this image was sold for 1.6 million dollars and has been widely licensed for commercial use (eg as a Microsoft wallpaper).

I hope these images can go some way to show the visual wonder and spirituality of Antelope Canyon.

The second reason to visit Page, and the second reason today that I wished for my Nikon, was to visit “Horseshoe Bend”. Located 5 miles downstream of the Glen Canyon Dam, The Colorado River here has cut a 1000 foot deep canyon through the sandstone formations and flows in a 270 degree horseshoe around more resistant rock.

The mighty river flows deep, dark, green and thoroughly majestic on its way to The Grand Canyon.