Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend

The Shoe Tree

I thought I would start this post out with an interesting and amusing spot in the Nevada Desert. Somewhere past Fallon Nevada is the "Shoe Tree". Not only are there lots of shoes in the tree, there are just as many if not more around the base also. I did not have any shoes I wanted to part with here but saw a couple of good pairs of hiking shoes I almost grabbed (kidding)

Illumination

When I left the Grand Canyon I made a last minute change in plans and went to Page Arizona which is about 60 miles from where I was at the North Rim. At Page is the Horseshoe Bend and also a wonderful "slot" canyon called Antelope Canyon. My purpose was to get a Sunset and then Sunrise shot of Horseshoe Bend but I got here early with plenty of daylight left so I thought I would try to make it to Antelope. I was here two years ago and did the normal "tourist" tour where you are shuffled thru with a large group and not much chance of getting any good shots. Several tour groups comprising about 300 people total are meandering thru the canyon on a constant basis throughout the day. This time I was fortunate to get in on a "Photo Tour" where the guides have the power to hold up the other groups and keep them out of sight while you get your good shots. They also get you to the "light beam" areas at the right time.

Abstract Synapse

A very pleasant Navajo woman named Carol Bigthumb runs the photo tours and her family owns the land where the canyon lies. I asked her to show me her big thumb and she held it up but then said that the real big thumb comes from her husband and that he would tell me the story of how that name came about. He started to tell me but then got caught up with customers so I'll have to get the full story next time I'm here.

It was interesting that as I was here there was a "pro" photographer conducting a workshop. As I was listening to the questions his group was asking and the answers he was giving, I thought "Man, I could do that!" Perhaps I might start doing that later on, not at the moment though.

Ephemeral Falls
to see photos in gallery click here

During a sand storm, these sand falls occur naturally, but during the tours the guide throws handfuls of sand up there and then you get your shot. I was very happy with the shots I got here. Eleven photos total uploaded into this gallery. Please view them larger.

Bending Space and Time
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This was my second time here and it still took my breath away as I stepped to the edge. Not that I was afraid of the height but that as the title alludes, you cannot help but think of the time that it took the river to cut this and the space that you can actually "feel" across the expanse.

I was again fortunate to get a fantastic sunset. As I sat at the edge waiting for the right light,........ and I was literally sitting about a foot from the edge with my tripod low and setup where my lens was actually peering over the ledge, I met a nice young French couple who I saw twice again over at Zion NP. Also a very nice Asian woman named Jean came up for a moment, looked around and went off to another area with the little bell she had on her camera backpack tinkering away. I met up with her also again on my last day at Zion. That's when I learned her name and that it really was her here at Horseshoe because of her bell.

If you view this photo larger in the gallery, you can make out some river kayaks down at the edge of the water. Several docked there and it looked like they were going to camp for the night. I would love to do that trip sometime.

Stay tuned for Zion Nation Park and "Angels Landing"