Before our trip route was changed due to the Brian Head fires in Utah, this was going to be our only full day in Page, Arizona so we had pre-booked tours in advance and planned for a very full day. We needed to start even earlier than originally expected to be at Page Fast Glass when they opened and take care of the windshield situation. We started off with a quick breakfast outside the camper. At 7am it was already surprisingly hot.
We arrived at Page Fast Glass at 8am on the dot when they opened. The owner was there and waiting to chauffer us over in his personal truck so we could be at Dixie Ellis by 8:20 as required for our 8:50 Lower Antelope Slot Canyon tour. The plan worked out perfectly.
Of course, as luck would have it, this was the hottest day we had in Lake Powell yet (it was about 20 degrees hotter than normal). Thankfully Dixie Ellis had a covered porch to provide shade while we waited. Right on time they asked for those waiting for the 8:50 tour to gather. We met our tour guide Will and he laid out the ground rules, which was to stay with him and not go ahead or lag behind while we were inside and he also let us know how important it was to tell him right away if we felt faint or had stomach pains.
Next we walked 1/2 mile through the hot sand with our group over to the queue to get into the Canyon. As we walked Will was letting us know the wait to get inside would be at least an hour and reiterated how crucial it was to tell him if we felt sick right away so he could help. At one point Will pointed out the end of the Canyon and showed us where we would be exiting. Thankfully there were several open air tents set up to shade everyone from the sun while standing in line. It was very organized with lots of small tour groups but there were so many people waiting. Two different companies provide these tours and there is only 1 entrance.
Once we took our spot in line Will went and got 9 water bottles (one for each person in our group) from a cooler they had set up and came back to give them out. I was surprised they provided water but was very grateful. Next he pulled out a little bag from his backpack and started handing out propel packets (filled with electrolytes) and instructed all of us to put these into our water. Then he gave Ella and Lily his umbrella to help provide them some extra shade.
Even though at parts there were awnings providing shade at it was still blazing hot and I was literally dripping sweat. At one point Adam thought I had spilled water on my arm but it was actually my sweat, ugh!
As we waited Will started asking if anyone was scared of heights or tight spaces because he wanted us to know what we were getting ourselves into. He went on to say that in the beginning in order to enter we would have to go down 5 flights of steps and they are extremely steep, especially the 3rd one. So now I was super sweaty and hot from the heat and getting very nervous as I am extremely bothered by heights. I knew we would be doing some ladders but up until this point I did not think heights would be a part of this experience. I tried to put it out of my mind while we waited. Will's guess on time was correct and it took us somewhere between 60 to 90 minutes until it was our turn. Right before we were to go down we were instructed absolutely no photographs are allowed while on the steps or ladders. He shared a story about a gentleman on a tour last summer who was taking a picture on the steps inside the canyon, causing him to fall and break his hip so they no longer allow it. Of course the stairs were those with open space in between and open space between the railings which made my fear at it's highest. My palms were so sweaty and my heart was pounding as I slowly started down the first flight of steps. Will was right and when we got to the 3rd flight it looked like it was straight down. I literally started shaking and all I could think was I do not want to do this. Will was at the landing below and he told me to take my time and take deep breaths which would cause my body to relax. I reluctantly started my way down. Will was so helpful to me as he kept repeating breath in through your nose and out through your mouth. By that point I could see the worst was behind me and I started to notice the gorgeous color of the golden sand walls just below. As I stepped off the last step and onto the canyon floor I could immediately feel the coolness of the air down here. The relief from the heat alone felt incredible, but then as I started to look around at my new surroundings I immediately knew what I just went through was totally going to be worth it.
The reddish, golden loosely packed sand beneath our feet and the high sandstone walls surrounding us was unlike anything we had ever seen before. As we made our way through the canyon Will explained how erosion continues to build as well as change and destroy the images and walls we were standing between. He pointed out the direction of the grains of sand and how you could see which way the wind and water were hitting it as it formed. On some walls there were different layers where part of the wall was on a diagonal slanting left and other parts were slanting right. At times there were some very narrow spaces to get through. There were also lots of ladders to climb up. One was very long and he let us know this was where the gentleman broke his hip. I cannot even imagine how they got him out of the canyon. At some points there were metal tubes used to create steps built into the sand to aid in getting through the canyon.
The entire slot canyon contained images formed either in the sand or in the openings between the walls. You had look at the correct angle and use your imagination but they were there. It was like finding images in the clouds. Even when there weren't images to look at, just the lines and curves within the walls was a sight to see. They would jut out and curve in. The beauty that was naturally created, I guess you could say the artwork of god and Mother Nature, was hard to wrap my head around. Below is some of the imagery we saw
Sandstone forming the outline of a chili pepper
Woman's profile with her hair blowing back in the wind
Profile of a howling Indian chief
Will had a laser pointer he would use to point each one out and all of it's features. There were a couple times where he would take Adam's camera to take a picture and then show it to us. One of these times was at a point in the canyon where if you looked up at just the right angle it looked just like a sunset over the Rocky Mountains.
As we went through I loved watching Lily and Ella experience this with awe in their eyes and absolutely zero fear. Lily went down the steps and up the ladders like a boss and was almost always the first one of us to go. There were a group of women with us and they kept looking back at Lily smiling at her and would wave to her and give her high five's. She absolutely loved these interactions with them. The sun shining through the top of the canyon would highlight the sand and create various shades of gold that often looked like the walls were glowing around us. We took a lot of pictures. Below is a slide show of some of our favorites.
At one point we came to a wider part and Will took this time to gather sand in his hands and throw it up for us to watch as it fell off the walls like a waterfall. When it was time for us to exit we were all sad for this experience to end. Sheer magnificence!
As we exited, the heat of the sun smacked us square across the face. Thankfully the walk back was not as long.
As soon as we reached the main area Will brought each of us another ice cold bottle of water. Adam called Page Fast Glass to let them know we were finished.
We thought it was packed with people when we had first gotten there. The crowd there now seemed to have quadrupled. People were standing shoulder to shoulder. While we were waiting to be picked up we noticed a worker walk up to the porch with a woman who looked very ill and was holding an ice pack to her head. She was experiencing severe heat exhaustion. They took her into a room and tended to her. Within minutes of her coming back they put a sign up saying the rest of the day's tours were cancelled due to the heat. The owner returned to pick us up in his personal truck again. As we talked to him on the way back he mentioned the closest airport to Page is 3 hours away. I had never thought about that since we drove. We are so fortunate to have an airport 30 minutes from where we live.
When we realized we would be getting a new windshield Adam figured he should take this time to get an oil change too. He had found a shop close to Page Fast Glass who had an appointment at 1:30 so he took it. We thought we would have time for Adam to take us back so we could hang at the pool while he went for the oil change. The tour took way longer than we had anticipated because of the wait time so we changed our plan. We all stayed together and went over to drop the truck off early. We walked across the street to a cute little restaurant called Stromboli's for lunch.
When we went to the restroom at Stromboli's we saw a worker from Dixie Ellis. The girls and I shared with her we just took the tour and how much we loved it. She was very kind and we talked to her for a few minutes. As we left the restaurant the girls saw there was a table with a few Dixie Ellis staff so they stopped to talk and tell them how awesome it was. They told us to be sure to come again but to try to come in the spring so it isn't a wait or the immense heat. Hopefully we will have that opportunity sometime.
Across the street from Stromboli's was the Powell Museum. After eating we walked over to check it out while we waited for the truck to be done. The kids enjoyed it here and it was a good way to kill some time and relax in the air conditioning.
Soon we received the call that our oil change was finished and we took the short walk back to the shop. From there we noticed there was a supermarket a few blocks away and drove over to pick up a few things. Adam ran in as we waited in the truck but as he walked away he looked back and noticed smoke was coming from the undercarriage. So we drove back to the shop to have them take a look. The mechanic told us he thought a little too much oil was put in so some had probably spilled out and was burning off, causing the smoke. He cleaned it up and back to the market we went. His guess must have been correct because it did not happen again.
Yesterday we left Glen Canyon Dam before the girls finished their Jr. Ranger books. They worked on them last night and were able to complete the final activities. We brought them with us today so our next stop was back to the Carl Hayden Visitor Center. When we entered we saw Laverne, our dam tour guide, and she seemed genuinely happy to see us as we were to see her. She went and got a ranger for the girls. They shared their work with him and were sworn in and received another badge.
We stayed at the visitor center for a short while to check out the exhibit they had about the dam that we didn't get to during yesterday's visit. Even though we could have stayed longer we needed to start heading back. When we got to the RV we had about an hour until we needed to be in the hotel lobby at 5:45 for our second tour of the day, the 6:15 boat tour through Antelope Canyon. The girls really wanted to go swimming so they changed into their bathing suits and we went right back out. They were able to swim for about 45 minutes.
We gathered with all of the others in the lobby and after a short wait they announced it was time to walk down to the dock. As we walked towards the boat there were many large fish swimming right by the edge of the dock.
We had the choice of sitting upstairs or down and all agreed upstairs was where we wanted to be. There was a bench open for us and we claimed our spot. Ella sat at the side of the boat and Lily was a little upset that she didn't get to sit there. I told Lily that they could switch during the ride.
Adam went to the front of the boat and got all of us a set of headphones and an audio device. When everyone on the boat was situated the captain came onto the loudspeaker to let us know we would be leaving and to cover our ears as he would be blowing a very loud horn. With a loud blast we were off and within minutes were sailing past the beautiful rock formations we admired while swimming in the lake. The captain would talk and let us know which way to look and when to listen to the audio. The boat took us to see the Glen Canyon Dam and it was very cool to see it from this vantage point.
Of course the captain made the inevitable dam jokes and the boat erupted in laughter. After turning around there we headed over towards the Upper Antelope Canyon. Lily remembered about switching seats but Ella really did not want to budge. They ended up settling it by Ella having Lily sit on her lap. This made them get a little silly at times but it was better than them fighting. Once we entered the Antelope Canyons area the captain had to go the mandated speed limit, which was at a very slow pace. It allowed us to truly take in the gorgeous views of the outside walls of the upper canyon. It was hard not to keep thinking how we were inside the lower canyon only a short while before. Both were extremely gorgeous even though they were very different in form, color and viewpoint.
The audio tour continued until it was time to make the very tight turn to start coming back to the marina. It was wonderful to listen and learn from all the information. At first I was a little disappointed the audio tour was finished. As we continued out of the Canyon walls and I looked all around letting my eyes wander about it was nice to have this experience too. When we disembarked and headed off of the marina I remembered about the fish I had seen. I stopped at the same point and there they were. We had a good time watching the fish for a few minutes before continuing on our way. By this point of this jam packed day we were utterly exhausted (at least that Adam and I admitted).
