Arizona Trip - Part 3

This is the last group of photos from my Arizona trip, then I'll be back to posting more of my usual stuff (weddings, engagements, etc.) Don't forget to check out parts one and two if you didn't already.

After an awesome time in Sedona and at the Grand Canyon, we headed to Page. That whole section of the state is a photographer's dream! There is crazy cool scenery almost everywhere you look. We spent Sunday morning checking out Horseshoe Bend. No joke, this is one of the wackiest things I've ever seen. Truly unbelievable, and these photos don't even begin to do it justice. This panorama is actually five photos stitched together. Can you see the little tiny white speck in the water on the right side of the river? That's actually a boat, to give you an idea of perspective.

Here's a short video I shot - it's a little shaky, but that's mostly from fear. I was laying face down on the rock, poking my head over the side just enough to snap a few photos. I don't really think of myself as having a fear of heights... but this might have changed my mind. At the very least, I discovered I have a huge fear of falling. Ha.

My position on the rock:

John's position on the rock (yeah he's nuts to be standing there):

Our next stop was Upper Antelope Canyon. The canyon walls are smooth and wavy because of the way water has basically molded the sandstone through years and years and years of erosion and flash flooding. I think God's natural beauty like this is the most awe-inspiring.

The really cool thing is if you time it just right (which of course we did), sunlight shines through slots into the canyon, creating these bright, concentrated beams of light. (Which are then enhanced for your photos by a bunch of Navajo tour guides tossing dirt into the light beam, but hey I'll take what I can get.)

With a little free time left in the afternoon, we headed up to check out Alstrom Point, around the north side of Lake Powell. The drive was so pretty, and we had such a nice time stopping for photos along the way.

Here's a 4-photo panorama I stitched together: (click on it to view it large for the full effect)

As we continued down this dirt road for the 20 miles to Alstrom Point, the skies grew darker and prettier. 

Almost there...

And at what we thought was the top: (I just read online today that we were still 1.5 miles away from the top top.)

It was beautiful and breathtaking and everything I hoped it would be, but it had started to sprinkle and the sun was setting fast. With visible rain in the distance, we figured it would be a good idea to head back. We made it maybe eight miles before we realized we were in for some trouble, and maybe two more before we got completely stuck. The road is on Topic Shale, which created a pretty serious mud bog - no match for a 4-cylinder, rear-wheel-drive truck. So we sat there, an hour-and-a-half from Page, cell phone batteries nearly dead but luckily with enough reception to call Progressive Roadside Assistance (might be the best investment John made all year.) Took four hours for three guys in two massive off-roading vehicles to pull us out of the mud and it took another two hours for them to tow us back to paved road. Kinda crazy.

Fortunately, the next day was a little less stressful. We started the day off with a tour of Glen Canyon Dam, a very large and impressive sight in the small town of Page.

I saw lots of these little lizards!

Then we drove up to Monument Valley, where I felt like I was in a scene from a movie. I thought a dinosaur might step out from behind a butte at any moment.

 

What a trip! Even with seeing so much, I think there was still a lot we missed. Maybe next time...