Antelope Canyon trip

Itchy feet or happy feet, call it what you may, but Noah had to do something to catch up with his hyperactive hooves. This time they took him to a barren place by the lake Powell in Arizona, a place called the Antelope Canyon. This trip started in the wee hours of the morning at the Westgate Resort Flamingo in Las Vegas where three families were billeted for a five-day vacation.

There were two cars for this expedition and 

the Tahoe held this bunch: Jo ann, Ariel, Ethel

Benny and Noah. The Lexus had Bryan, Aya, Iya

and Elaine.

The cold morning dawns as they drive through

St. George, Utah. That's Signal Peak laden with

snow and covered by a blanket of clouds. You can

forgive this couple for posing beside state-line

signs (below) since it's not every day that they 

get to drive through these highways.

With the word "canyon" what immediately comes to mind is the greatest and grandest canyon ever - the Grand Canyon. The smallest and yet spectacular canyon is often left out by tourists due to several reasons: 

1. Distance: The Antelope canyon is located at Page, Arizona - a power-generating town by the banks of lake Powell. It is about 272 miles from Las Vegas, 386 miles from Salt Lake city and 273 miles from Phoenix. By car, it would take about 4 hours drive from Las Vegas, which is the most common route taken by tourists.

2. It is very small: the upper antelope canyon is 200 meters long while the lower antelope canyon is 407 and the depth is only about 37 meters. This will show that one of the two canyons itself is just slightly bigger than a football field.

3. It was only opened to organized public tours in the year 2,000. Prior to that tours where not supervised by the state and were too risky.

4. The canyon is closed at about 2 hours before sunset and when the weather is too hot or it is raining or there is a weather forecast of imminent rain. This means that even if you have booked and paid for a tour and you may have traveled the whole day, your tour can be cancelled due to the conditions mentioned above.

5. The Antelope canyon is hid from view: You don't see it when standing on the desert plain/hills. All you see is a large crack/fissure on the desert floor.

 This is the location of the Antelope canyon, but 

where's the canyon? The arrows at the left point

to the exact spot of the canyon, which is actually

sub-terranean or underground.

 entrance to the canyon is via some

metal steps that were constructed to

make it easier for tourists. Noah had

a gopro ready for the tour, but the guide

said that videos were forbidden. He didnt

suspect that Benny had a snap chat video

lens in his sunglasses and that's why the 

two photos are spherical in shape.

the steps take you down to the bottom

of the canyon from where you work your

way through it so a spot where another

set of stairs take you...

...up, back to the surface. this is 

the exit from the lower Antelope canyon.

The huge fissure is the only ventilation

and lighting for the tourist in the canyon.

Here are the photos that were taken while the group was snaking their way through the canyon.

 a group photo at a spot that was 

wide enough to accommodate the shot. The

next 4 photos were taken looking upwards

to the fissure on the top.

that's "sitting buffalo" - the 

Mojave indian tour guide. He had

all the answers to our questions and

a lot of tales to boot. 

 While the group was intently listening

to sitting-buffalo this dame had to have

some photos taken.

 this is proof that aliens once roamed

the desert plains. They left some images.

 that's her again... i mean the

gorgeous dame, not the alien.

from this point it is up a flight

of steps...

...back to the desert floor.

From this point the group motored to the "horse-shoe bend" - a spectacular spot on the Colorado river. Coming up next.