Welcome to Utah! (7/7)

7/7 and 7/8 Welcome to Utah!

Early in the week Laurel and I considered sticking around Flagstaff for the weekend to take it easy after last weekend’s adventures.  But as the week wore on, we decided we could relax in a new locale – Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.  We looked into several options including rafting Glen Canyon and kayaking Lake Powell, but decided it would be fun to just camp on the beach and swim in the lake.  Equipped with snacks and newly purchased swim floats, we headed up highway 89 mid-day Saturday.  We drove past Sunset Crater Volcano and Wupatki and through the Navajo Reservation in northern Arizona to reach Glen Canyon at the Arizona/Utah border.  It was another beautiful drive with mesas, buttes and a windy mountain pass. 

Our first stop was naturally the Glen Canyon visitor center to check out what the recreational area has to offer, double-check the campsite location and get our National Park Service passports stamped.  We also took in the view of the Glen Canyon Dam, which stops up the Colorado River on the Utah/Arizona border northeast of Grand Canyon to create Lake Powell and supply water and energy to millions of people in the region.  There is much debate about the environmental affects of the dam.  Regardless, it is a wonder and Lake Powell is a pretty amazing water reservoir in the middle of the desert. 

For the kind of camping adventure I have not had in a few years, we headed just over the Utah border for a first-come, first-served beach campsite at Lone Rock.  

Welcome to Utah!

Parking on the beach was a little nerve racking, but Silver
did a great job.  

With plenty of camping area free, we decided to hop back in the car and head to Antelope Canyon rather than set up the tent so early in the day.  Located east of Page, AZ on the Navajo Reservation, Antelope is a slot canyon made of Navajo sandstone and formed primarily as a result of flash flooding. There were hardly any clouds the day we visited, so we were not in danger, but flash foods occur in the canyon and in 1997 11 tourists lost their lives.  Because I am writing this weeks later you know that I made it out just fine.  There are two options for going in to the canyon - the upper and lower canyon tours.  Both are supposed to be beautiful, so we chose the less visited lower antelope canyon for a quieter experience.  We had a nice and patient guide named Ruben who let us take out time and capture some amazing photos.

After the amazing Antelope Canyon tour, we stopped for delicious Sonic drinks and headed to the famous Horseshoe Bend in the Colorado River.  The river is about a 3/4 mile hike from a parking lot along highway 89.  It was a beautiful hike, but also very windy.  There was a bit of a dust storm at the overlook, but it was worth it to see the green Colorado snaking through Glen Canyon.   

We finished the day with a nice dinner in Page and finally set up camp at Lone Rock after dark.  We chose a nice spot, we as good as we could tell in the dark, near the lake.  We ended up being surrounded by another camping family reunion, but we definitely got more sleep than during our Prescott camping adventure.