I often have many pictures in our blog posts but this post might have just a few more than normal simply because there were so many incredibly scenic spots in the Page Arizona vicinity. I'll start with one of my favorites from Horseshoe Bend.
Horseshoe Bend from 1000' Up
Page is an easy drive from Flagstaff. It is mostly a desolate area but with some great views along the way. The drive up through Antelope Pass just south of town was particularly scenic with all the cuts made to allow a road to snake through. The video below is sped up by 8X.
We start to see what may be the most common vehicle up in these parts. No not the Ford F-150, not the Toyota Camry, but the Cruise America rental motor home. They seem to be everywhere. I suspect that all of them are being rented by people visiting the nearby Grand Canyon. Believe it or not we have been to Page before, even spent the night here. We were on our cross country tandem bicycle trip in July of 1991 and this was one of our stops. I'll admit it doesn't look familiar except for the bridge over the Colorado River just before entering town from the west. About all we really remember was the fact that the ride from Kanab Utah to Page was through Indian reservation land and we had a 73 mile stretch without any services.
These Rental RVs are Everywhere!
We had called the Page Elks Lodge the day before coming up to see how busy they were. Sounded like some people were here but it wasn't full. Plus they have a large gravel lot that may be used for boondocking for only $5 a night. Their electric and water sites are $20. I had read a review of the parking area and somebody mentioned that at least one of the spots actually had 50 amp service rather than the 30 amp at all the other spots. When we pulled in, there were a couple rigs in spots and about 5 in the boondocking lot. I checked the remaining spots and discovered one with 50 amp (I later determined it is the only 50 amp spot). So we picked this spot and got partway setup. We had gotten in before the bar opened and since the bartender is the guy to pay for camping, we decided to wait before we completely setup in case there was some issue. We walked around the neighborhood a bit and discovered that we must be smack in the middle of the church district of Page. There are easily 10 churches within a half mile radius of our spot. You pick a denomination and I bet we could find you a church here. There are the standard ones: Catholic, Episcopal, Baptist, Lutheran and even some we don't run across much like the Seventh-day Adventist and a Mormon church. Although with us this close to Utah, the latter one might not be too surprising. By the time we got back, the bar was open and we could register and pay for our spot for 6 nights. We were informed they were having dinner at 5:30 and bingo later that night.
We decided to try out the dinner. It wasn't fancy but it was a good burger with lots of fixin's. We got the first pitcher of beer we have had in ages and it was all of $5. We might need to stop back some other night. There were a fair number of people there and they were all friendly. We chatted with one couple about some of the local things to see and do while we are in town. We decided to skip on the bingo offer but they sure drew the crowd of people. The parking lot was packed. If somebody had arrived to park their rig for the night, they would have had to wait until after 10 PM to get in.
Bingo at the Elks Lodge is the Place to Be
Just a few miles back south on Route 89 is Horseshoe Bend. We had seen the parking lot for it the day before as we pulled into town and it was packed with a large number of rental RVs. By coming earlier in the day, it was busy but not packed. Really all that is there is a big parking lot and a sandy 3/4 mile trail up and over a hill and then down a couple hundred feet to the actual overlook to a pretty incredible view of the Colorado River where it makes a strange 270 degree bend. The somewhat surprising thing is that there is no type of barrier at the edge of the cliff. Some people were much more fearless of getting up close and personal. The drop off is 1000 feet, so I suspect if you did go over, there would be no real hope for you. We wandered around with the masses of people there checking out the views from different vantage points. From what we heard, we are guessing that English was far from the only language being spoken. Many of the tourists are from other countries. Again likely doing a day trip from visiting the Grand Canyon.
As Close to the Edge as Chris Could Handle
Another View of Horseshoe Bend
Patterns in the Rock
After exploring where all the people were, we decided to do an additional mile hike over to a geocache on the far side of the horseshoe. We didn't go far before the noise of the people had faded. We saw some great views of the river below as well as a large number of flowering plants. Plus the rock formations were practically unbelievable. We were still 500 feet from the cache, but in the distance I saw a rock formation and decided that is where the cache had to be and it was.
By the time we hiked the mile back, the crowds had probably doubled. Quite possibly because there were now two tour buses sitting in the parking lot below. Being such a windy day and with all these people this close to the edge, I'm amazed somebody didn't go over.
We made our next stop Marble Canyon. It isn't that far if we could fly but it is about a 45 minute drive to get over to it. The drive however is quite nice going back through Antelope Pass. The first real stop is the Navajo Bridge that takes you over the Colorado River. There are actually 2 bridges. The original built in 1929 is now a pedestrian bridge while the one built in 1995 carries traffic. The two bridges are very similar design and style with the new one being able to handle the larger trucks of today. It's about 470 feet above the water and some of the boats traveling below looked quite small. One side of the bridge had a structure built for locals to sell their crafts to all the tourists. The other side had a visitor center, restrooms and a small gift shop.
A Long Way Down
Nearly Mirror Image
Right past the bridge is Lees Ferry Road which takes you along the river and eventually gets you down to water level. There are boat ramps and access to several hiking trails. We did a short walk but it was another windy and dusty and hot day so we cut our walk short and headed home.
Strange Hoodoos Heading to Lees Ferry
The Mighty Colorado
Remains of Building at Lees Ferry
We wanted to check out the Glen Canyon Dam Visitor Center. It is one of the few things we remember about our last visit to Page, 26 years ago. On our way there we stopped to check out the Hanging Gardens Hike. It isn't a very long hike and the terrain is reasonable. Along the trail, you get good views of the Dam and the Lake. At the end of the trail is an overhanging cliff with water weeping out of the rock. All along this wet face of rock is a veritable garden. It was a pretty spot that I suspect most people miss.
Desert Blooms
Hanging Garden
Almost Blooming
Weeping Wall
We hadn't taken a dam tour when we were here last time. And we ended up skipping it this time as well since the tour didn't actually take you into the dam because of elevator maintenance. Oh well. It is still an interesting visitor center with several movies showing in the theater describing various aspects of the dam and Lake Powell.
Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell
Colorado River Just Past Dam
Just a bit north of the dam is Wahweap. It is a park run by the national park service. It includes a very large boat ramp, campgrounds and picnic area. We did a little bit of a walk before enjoying a picnic. The campground looked like one that might be worth checking out in the future.
Overlooking Wahweap
House Boats on Lake Powell
Just a bit further north, across the border into Utah, is Lone Rock Beach Primitive Camping. This was our backup plan had the Elks Lodge been full. It is also run by the national park service and cost $14 a day. There are two general areas where dispersed camping is permitted. One up the hill away from the beach which isn't huge with maybe a dozen or so rigs setup. Down by the beach are were many dozens of rigs. Several of them were as big or bigger than ours. After driving the Jeep to the beach, I'm not positive I would have felt real comfortable trying to get there in our rig. It wasn't so much that the sand was too soft but the "road" choices quite rutted. Given all that, the place was nice with great views of the Lone Rock in Lake Powell.
Lone Rock Beach
One of the main reasons to come to Page was to check out Antelope Canyon. We knew the tours are guided and run by the Navajo Nation. There are multiple companies that offer tours and they all allow you to reserve a time for a tour. When we went to book tour times about 10 days before we were here, we found the "good" times, around midday, were all taken. There are two distinct areas to visit - Lower and Upper Antelope Canyons. Not that we are experts but it appears that the Lower tours are a bit less crowded and you might be able to get on a tour without a reservation. Tours in the Upper Canyon probably will require an advance reservation.
We booked a late morning tour with "Ken's Tours" to enter Lower Antelope Canyon. Our group was split into 3 groups of eight. The entrance is within walking distance of the two tour companies located just south of town. There are a lot of steps to go up and down as you wind your way thru the slot canyon. This one is rather narrow for almost the whole length of it. Even though it was a bright sunny day, it is fairly dark once down in the slot. We took over 200 photos on the tour and there were many good shots, it was hard to pick just a few.
They have the timing of the groups choreographed fairly well so that each group has a brief time to stop at multiple places along the way for pictures and for the tour guide to tell various stories. Ours was good at helping people take pictures of various rock formations along the way and occasionally taking pictures of couples at key spots.
The formations are not like anything we have ever experienced before. Mother Nature has an interesting way of creating beauty.
This is the Canyon from Above
The next day was our tour of the Upper Antelope Canyon. This one is much further off the road so most tour companies have businesses in downtown Page and then transport people to the entrance. We went with one called Antelope Canyon Tours. Our tour wasn't until 1:30 but since the day was cloudy with a chance of rain, our missing the "perfect" light conditions at midday wasn't a real issue. We were concerned a bit about the rain. Not just because of our camera gear but we would be in a slot canyon and there could be a flash flood. Our group of 14 were loaded into the back of a modified pickup truck with bench seating. The drive to the canyon was cold and bumpy with the last several miles being over a desert "road".
Entrance into Upper Antelope Canyon
One option for tours in the Upper Canyon is called the Photographer's Tour. It is a longer tour and you are allowed to come with a tripod. It is scheduled at midday when the sunlight comes through the opening and creates unique shafts of light. Of course these spots were completely full for a couple months out. And given the lighting conditions today with the heavy cloud cover, the folks on this tour were out of luck for those special shots. We took over 200 shots here as well and have some of our favorites to share.
The drive up Route 89A from Sedona to Flagstaff is supposed to be quite scenic and is the shortest route between the two cities. However, we had been warned about not trying it in a motorhome as long as ours especially while towing a vehicle. With that in mind we decided to make it a day trip and just take the Jeep. Our first stop was Slide Rock State Park, but since we only got the standard state park pass, we could not enter for free since this was one of the several parks in the state excluded on weekends. Oh well, we continue north.
I think we found the reason driving a big class A motorhome isn't recommended on this road. There are a series of hairpin turns that don't look plausible on a map but do in fact twist and turn like that. After surviving the twisties, we hit a section of construction and then get to the Oak Creek Vista Overlook. There were a half dozen tables set up with various trinkets and jewelry items for sale. The view from up here is pretty amazing and you can even see some of the hairpin turns below.
Twisties On Route 89A
What the Map Looks Like
View from Overlook
We decide to stop at a Fort Tuthill Park next to the county fairgrounds on the south side of Flagstaff. We figure we can eat our lunch and do some hiking and geocaching in the park since there were quite a few. The first thing we notice about the park is that there are practically no people here. Did we miss some sign on the way in about the place being closed? We didn't think so but we weren't going to complain about the lack of people.
The Flagstaff Views are Very Different than the Rest of Arizona
The nearest cache was pretty new, having been placed only 2 weeks ago. Online, nobody had logged it as being found yet but having a cache go this long unfound back home would be unheard of. We start our search and after about 5 minutes, I spotted the nano cache container. A nano is small, really small. It's about the size of the tip of my pinkie finger cut off just above the last joint. It has a magnetic end so they are really easy to place on a metal object and very difficult to spot. When I opened it up, I discovered a blank log. We were first to find (FTF)! We are not big first FTF hounds having only found 10 previously. We managed to find two more in the park that hadn't been found yet. Not sure if there are very few cachers in Flagstaff or what. The hike was nice and we even stumbled onto some sort of adventure park with all sorts of zip lines and rope bridges between the big trees. Looks like fun for me, not so much for Chris.
Chris Wants to Climb Tree to Zip Line!
Padded Tree on Right to Stop Zip Line Riders
There was another hike in Sedona that might be the most popular one in town. The West Fork Trail is just a bit north of town on route 89A. This parking lot is crowded too and costs $10 to park there regardless of any passes you have. Even if you park on the street, it costs $2 per person to enter to hike! Everything we had heard about this hike led us to believe it was a must do so we did. It is a 5.2 mile trip out and back up into a canyon. With hundreds of people doing this hike day in and day out, the trail is in very good shape.
At the Start of West Fork Trail
Creek with Mountain in Background
Colorful Cliff Walls
There is actually water running in the creek. Enough water to make the 13 or more crossings interesting. If you picked your path carefully, even if you did slip you wouldn't get too wet of a foot. It was definitely a great hike with the only real downside was the sheer volume of people out hiking it and this was a weekday morning. The end of the hike brings you to some interesting erosion results. Some people will carry along water shoes and continue up the creek but we opted to stay dry only exploring a bit beyond the trail. If you are ever in the area, put this on your must do list.
Chris Carefully Crosses Creek (Alliteration at its Finest!)
Interesting Lighting on Flowers
End of the Official Trail
Chris Examines the Erosion
We ended up adding on 2 more nights to our stay at the Elks Lodge for a total of 6 which put us in the Sedona area for 12 nights. Even at that, we probably only scratched the surface but I'm sure we will be back. One last hike we did before leaving was to go back to Boynton Canyon. This time the parking lot was full but we found a spot along the street a third of a mile down the road. This is another pretty canyon hike but there is only a dry creek bed for this one. The beginning of the hike take you above and past a pretty fancy neighborhood. Some looked like single family homes while other building looked more like some sort of resort. Needless to say, that portion isn't the best especially since there was some car alarm going off that never seemed to stop. The only thing that stopped it for us was that we finally got out of range of it.
Scenic Views Along Boynton Canyon Trail
More Red Rocks
The rest of the hike was pleasant with just the last several hundred feet being somewhat challenging since it was a bit of a rock climb. I would say it's worth the climb for the view you get being above the trees. There were a fair number of people up her when we got there and more groups were heading up as we headed back. Much of the trail is in shade so it helped with the heat on the day we did it.
View at the End of the Boynton Canyon Trail
Flower Along the Way
Tall Hoodoo
Sedona to Flagstaff isn't that far except we need to backtrack a bit to make the road choice more ideal for the motorhome. Ideal might be stretching it. One we get back onto I-17 and head north, we had a multiple mile stretch of 5 or 6% grade to deal with. I have gotten accustomed to the slower pace of driving the motorhome, but this drive was pushing my limits. There were a few semis that were crawling even slower but not many. We had planned on stopping at a boondocking spot just across the expressway from Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument but we have been without full hookups for 23 nights so we found Greer's Pine Shadows RV Park just north of town. We had tried calling to check on availability but we ended up getting there before they even bothered to return our call. They did have a site and we were in, setup, had a late lunch and headed out to sightsee by 2 o'clock.
We are only here for 2 nights so we had to really limit our choices. We decided to check out Walnut Canyon National Monument which is just a few miles east of town. Yet another series of cliff dwellings. I have lost track of how many of these things have done in the past few weeks, but I'm glad we tried this one since it was one of the more scenic stops. There are basically two trails: the Island Trail and the Rim Trail. The whole area has a canyon running thru it but there is seldom water flowing in it. The Island Trail takes you around a bit of an island (or peninsula) where many of the dwellings were built. They were built in the overhangs up and down the side of the canyon on both sides. It wouldn't have been very easy for somebody on the opposite side to visit their neighbors just across the canyon. I think zip lines would have worked well!
Cliff Dwellings in Middle of Picture
I Prefer Our Home
Hedgehog Cactus Blooming
Rock Formation Has Interesting Lines
The Rim Trail just goes along the top of the canyon off of the parking area. Many flowers were blooming at this point of time. Flagstaff is around 7000 feet in elevation so the plant life looks quite different from what we had gotten used to over the past few months in southern Arizona. This stop worked out pretty well for a travel day. The walk itself isn't too long but there is a bunch of elevation change to contend with and being this high up doesn't help the oxygen levels either.
Along the Rim Trail at Walnut Canyon National Monument
The next day we headed just a bit north to check out two national monuments. Sunset Crater Volcano and Wupatki. There is a 34 mile scenic drive that takes you past one and then the other. The terrain and vegetation changes dramatically over the course of this short distance. We start at Sunset Crater with a stop at the visitor center to check in and get maps. The volcano here is relatively new, erupting less than 1000 years ago. There is a stop at one of the main lava flows. The short walk into the flow was interesting with all the strange shapes now frozen in rock.
Bonito Lava Flow Walk
Trees Growing in the Ash
At the volcano, people are no longer permitted to walk up to the top like they used to but there is a paved interpretive walk as well as a trail taking you back to the bottom of the volcano. You are still able to see the scars of the old switchbacks that were used in years past. One additional stop that isn't on the tour map but is on our geocaching map took us to a feature just a few hundred feet from the road. As we walked towards ground zero we saw an odd feature extending out to the earth. A fumarole is an opening near a volcano where hot gases escaped. Now it is a mound of lava rock with a hole large enough to enter. Without a flashlight and with the sharp edges of the rock, I only entered so far. As is exited the one hole, I noticed a smaller opening and there was the geocache.
Volcano at Sunset Crater
Looking Back at the San Francisco Peaks
Flower Manages to Survive in the Ash Field
Very Bright Fungi
Jack Gets into Geocaching
As we drove to the Wupatki National Monument, we lost elevation and the terrain started to look much like the desert we had become used to. Before the actual visitor center, we check out Wukoki Pueblo. A new walkway was being put in so the construction vehicles severely limited parking. The visitor center at Wupatki has the large and impressive Wupatki Pueblo out back along the walkway. It was amazing how it was built into the large rocks of the area. Just below the pueblo is a blow hole. The one foot diameter opening into the ground has a screen covering it to keep debris out. Depending on atmospheric conditions there will either be a strong wind being expelled from the hole or as we found there was a big rush of air into the hole. I was amazed how strongly my baseball cap was held to the screen.
Wukoki Pueblo
Wupatki Pueblo
There were a few more Pueblos to check out before leaving this place. The Citadel was situated up on an outcropping of volcanic rock. Not much of the structure is remaining so there isn't a whole lot to see. There was a really colorful lizard on one of the rocks as we left the area. Most lizards we have seen while in Arizona tend to be very skittish around people but this one seemed to have little fear and allowed me to get reasonably close. One of the caches we did in the area was at a "crack" in the ground. Pretty neat as long as you don't fall in.
Citadel
Lizard Checking Me Out
Chris Signs Geocache Near the Crack
Another Building in Wupatki National Monument
There were likely many more things we should have seen while in Flagstaff. In fact the campground we stayed at backs up to the Coconino National Forest and there was access to its trails right from the place. We will need to make a return trip and spend some more time in the area. Our next stop is just a bit further north to Page Arizona. There were several things we want to check out and a couple of them required us to actually book some tours so we are on more of a fixed schedule than we typically like to do.
More Lizard Pictures
Very Colorful
Make Sure to Click on Image to See Detail in Lizard
