This morning I woke up at 6:30 AM in the Walmart parking lot in Page, AZ. An article I read yesterday mentioned that the best time to tour Antelope Canyon was between 11am and 3pm, when the sun would be shining into the canyon. Therefore, I had about 4 hours to spend before driving to antelope canyon. At about 7am, I drove a couple of miles to the Horseshoe Bend trailhead and hiked the bland .75 miles to the overlook (1.5 miles roundtrip). At Horsheshoe Bend, the Colorado River curves at a 270 degree angle. It’s a beautiful site and very similar to the viewpoint at Dead Horse Point State Park. The river was at almost a standstill and barely looked to be moving, which likely has to do with the Glen Canyon Dam regulating the water flow a couple miles upstream. At 7AM, there were only a couple of cars parked at the large trailhead parking lot, but when I passed the trailhead at about 10AM, the huge parking lot was completely filled and cars were even parked outside the parking lot on the side of the highway.
After Horsheshoe Bend, I still had a few more hours before 11am and decided to hike the Hanging Garden Trail, a 1 mile roundtrip trail that ends at a shaded rock wall with a garden growing underneath it. Considering the dry/desert environment, the Hanging Garden was a unique /unexpected sight.
A couple miles down the highway was the entryway to a Lake Powell marina, lodge, and day-use area. I was able to enter the recreation area for free because of the Interagency Annual Pass. This is probably an amazing vacation spot for a boater or for someone that has an interest in water sports. About 50 miles from the Marina, there’s an arch named Natural Bridge, which is the largest Natural Bridge in the Southwestern US. The Bridge is only accessible via foot (multi-day backpacking trip) or boat ($90 Half-day tour). It would be quite an adventure to rent a boat and navigate to Natural Bridge.
At the suggestion of a Lake Powell park ranger, I drove to Scenic View Drive in Page, where there’s a discrete turnoff and viewing area of the dam. After descending a few steps, the dam (upstream view) and the Colorado River (downstream view) were both visible with unobstructed, direct views.
Finally, at 10am I decided to just head over to the antelope canyon parking lot. I ended up signing up for the 11AM Upper Antelope Canyon tour. The tour was $48 including parking , which seemed really high to pay but I decided to go along with it anyway because of the thousands of 5 star reviews on Trip Advisor. The slot canyon is located on land that is owned by the Navajo Tribe. Additionally, the tour is operated by local Navajo tribe members. I couldn’t help but notice that the overwhelming majority of Navajo Tribe members were overweight. After conducting a google search, the Native American population has relatively high levels of obesity and diabetes (about 1.6x the national average) which is caused by the reasons describes in the following article:
http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/03/nutrition-a-pressing-concern-for-american-indians/
In the 10-person group, our tour guide was Clifford. Clifford introduced himself and began the tour. The tour started (and ended) with a 15 minute drive through a wide, dry river bed which ended at the slot canyon. Unfortunately it was a cloudy day so we didn’t have an ideal experience (with sun rays shining into the canyon through the overhead openings) but it was still a beautiful canyon to walk through. The tour was .25 miles each way through and out of the other end of the canyon (.5 miles roundtrip). When we arrived at the other end of the canyon, Clifford talked about how piyote (a hallucinogenic drug) has been used in Navajo culture to enhance spiritual connections and prayer. He then proceeded to sing a historical Navajo song in the native language and then he pointed out that two of the parents in our tour group (who were approximately 60 years old) were “grandparents” and “old people.” At first, I was taken aback and thought this came across as offensive/insensitive, but later on he explained that elders are highly respected in Navajo culture so he was actually complimenting them.
What I liked about the tour:
- Beautiful scenery
- Exposure to the Navajo culture
- Considerate/helpful guides
What I didn’t like about the tour:
- The beauty/nature was too commercialized and business-oriented. There were probably 300 people by the slot canyons and it was very rushed/hurried with the primary intention of profiting (not as much people/experience oriented as I would have liked)
- There were too many tourists with cameras. It seemed like everyone on the tour was solely concerned with taking selfies and photos for social media. At every turn inside the canyon, the guide pointed out how we could take the best photos (“Chrome” setting, camera direction/angle, etc.). Of the photos below, about the first half were taken in default setting and the second half were taken in “chrome setting.” Chrome setting displays more vibrant colors, especially in darker settings. I don’t like the use of “chrome setting” because to the naked eye the colors don’t appear as vibrant as they do in the photos (hence, photos are misleading). I’m not sure if this was the intention, but if the tour guides are photo-oriented because they know that these photos will create additional demand for their “one and only” tourist attraction, that’s genius of them. But after a few minutes it becomes annoying to feel like one in a herd of sheep that’s being rushed through a canyon while trying to take pictures to impress other people with. During each one of the last 10 days, I’ve seen more awe-inspiring sights and views than on this tour.
After the tour, I drove toward North Rim, planning on stopping along the way at Vermillion Cliffs. On the way, I drove over Navajo Bridge and stopped at the associated rest stop and visitor center. The original Navajo Bridge was built in the 1920s but was too narrow/weak for subsequent wider and heavier cars. Therefore, a newer similarly-looking bridge was later built spanning the same gorge. Now, the 1920s bridge is used as a pedestrian bridge and tourist attraction.
Questions for thought:
- Is it racist to say that Navajo culture is more primitve, non-advanced, and less intelligent than European/American/Middle Eastern culture during that same time periods?
- How much of the blame of Native American obesity is attributable to the Navajo people? How much is attributable to structural/ government reasons? If I was a Modern-day Navajo would I have the same unhealthy eating habits/lifestyle? How much of our success can we really take credit for?
- How is technology (digital cameras/social media) changing our experiences of reality? Are we living with a “social media perspective” (focused on making our experiences look cool in other people’s eyes)? What are the downsides of living like this? How can I avoid this conceited, empty,unsairsfying way of life?
Afterwards, I drove toward the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. The North Rim opens for the season tomorrow morning at 8am. On the way, I stopped at a gas station/travel stop/motel/restaurant about 50 miles before the Grand Canyon. After a bout of excitement and considering hiking R2R, I decided to explore/hike around the North Rim tomorrow which I’really looking forward to. Tonight, I’m parking and sleeping on a forest road about a mile off the highway. It’s very quiet, surrounded by trees, and there’s not a person in sight. The solitude reminds me a lot of backpacking the Tahoe rim trail and finding a place to sleep near the trail. Free camping on government land is a well kept secret, huge money saver, and definitely something I’ll be taking more advantage of in the future.
Here are some songs I’ve heard on the radio recently:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2CELiObPeQ&w=560&h=315]
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3m_V1XNPxA&w=560&h=315]
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8F9LCu5PJU4&w=420&h=315]
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ3fjQa5Hls&w=420&h=315]
