[USA Travel] The beauty of Mother Nature - Antelope Canyon, Page, Arizona

June 23, 2016

After staying for 2 nights in luxury and excess, it was very hard to say goodbye to Vegas! We made a quiet vow to come back again as Vegas fulfilled our entertainment and shopping desires, and I personally rank this city as a firm favorite!

We checked out from the Bellagio in the late morning, as our next destination was in Page, Arizona. We needed to be there by 3pm in order to arrive in time for our sight-seeing tour to the Antelope Canyon, which we had booked online prior to our trip.

On the road trip to Arizona, we stopped by at the Glen Canyon Dam which is on the Colorado River. The construction of the dam created 'Lake Powell', the second largest lake/reservoir within the United States.

OMG! I love the emerald green water and the breath-taking scenery of the lake!

We arrived at Page with about an hour to spare before the tour commencement, so we decided to check into our hotel first. Our hotel at Page was the Best Western View of Lake Powell Hotel! Wi-Fi was complimentary for all in-house guests, but there was a note from the hotel mentioning that network was weak due to the area being surrounded by mountains. I felt that connectivity was pretty alright. We were glad that the hotel was decent, as it was spacious, neat and well equipped with basic necessities.

After leaving our belongings in the room, we went to the town for our lunch fix. We settled at Starlite Restaurant, a Chinese-western fusion eatery and it was a decent place. Apparently this eatery is the first Chinese restaurant in Page to have opened, and it's been around for at least 30 years!

Have you ever heard of the Antelope Canyon before? Chances are probably 50/50! Baby has a hobby of reading about everything under the sun, so he heard about this place, and showed me photos of the canyon during the planning phase of this holiday. We agreed to come here after seeing amazing photos of the scenery.

We reported to the tour agency for our sight-seeing tour and there was a bunch of people there too. We were divided into small groups for the departure, and we took a 15 minute ride on a pick-up truck! It was a bumpy journey as the drive required us to go off road and on to a beaten track in order to arrive at the entrance of the Antelope Canyon.

On arrival at the Canyon, our local guide, a Navajo, or in layman's terms, a Native American lady, gave us an oral guide on the history of the area. The canyons looked like caves to me, but it seems that these 'caves' were formed a very long time ago as it used to be a flowing river within these canyons. Apparently there is a still a danger of flash floods within the canyons if it is the rainy season, so the guides have to monitor and be very careful. Certain times of the year are closed off to tourists as it is dangerous. The guide also taught us how to take some great photos around the canyons. In all, the tour lasted about an hour, but it was a fantastic experience!

The Antelope Canyons are located on scared Navajo lands within Arizona, and one cannot access these lands without a local guide via the tours. It seems the canyons are a world famous location for photographers, as light beams during the day shine down within the narrow canyons to give very artistic and gorgeous photos of nature's splendour. You can also see that the canyon glows with a beautiful fire orange, and is very vibrant!

The stunning views of the slot canyon left us in awe, and I am glad that I've experienced it for myself! I can now happily cross this off from my bucket list!

After the tour ended, we were back in town. However, baby insisted on driving to another viewpoint nearby, and we drove for about 10-15 minutes on the outskirts of Page. Our objective was 'Horseshoe Bend', which on arrival, we had to park and take a mini-hike up a hill for about 20 minutes on a sandy and rocky surface track!

Once we reached the rim of the canyon, we were greeted by a jaw-droppingly beautiful scene. The Horseshoe Bend is called exactly what it is, as it is a large canyon shaped like a Horseshoe. The edge was very scary, as the cliffs are very steep and there were NO guard rails at all! If you ever visit this area, please be mindful of your step! It is very very scary at the edge and a slip will send you over!!