Day 4: Antelope Canyon > Monument Valley

*Note: We've been doing so much camping during the first week that we didn't have internet connectivity. Blog posts were written but are only being uploaded now that we are back in the real world. More great stories to come...

On the fourth day we had a tour of the Upper Antelope Canyon which is something that is difficult to get reservations for. The ideal tour  is midday between 11:30-1:30 when the sun is at its apex and casts brilliant columns of light down onto the slot canyon floor. These reservations are booked months in advance mostly by professional photographers. We took the next best slot early in the morning for normal family vacationers which meant that we had to be at the tour office by 7:30am thirty minutes before our excursion was to begin.

Thankfully our hotel stay included breakfast and Adler loved the pancake “machine.” Push a button and a couple of minutes later out popped two pancakes. He asked for his sprinkled with chocolate chips, syrup and whipped cream. This was the perfect breakfast to get him moving this early in the day.  

Upon checking in at Antelope Canyons Tours we were issued a red color card that corresponded with our group’s guide. We boarded something that I wouldn’t call a bus or a van more like an open-air vehicle used on a safari trek. There were two back-to-back benches that ran the length of the bed. Each side sat seven people and there was a roof over our heads to provide a resemblance of shade. We had a twenty minute drive from Paige Arizona to the canyon. Even though our vehicle wasn’t first out the parking lot somehow we ended up being the first group to enter the canyon at our timeslot—HUGE plus! This meant that there wasn’t anyone in front of us.

A slot canyon is a narrow gap between two pieces of rock. The floor of the this slot canyon was at it’s deepest point about 100 feet below the surface. During the monsoon season water will push in from one end and exit out the other end somewhere around 50-60 mph and continue the smoothing and sculpting of the walls. Our guide was also a photographer so he was helpful coordinate the perfect shot. Even though Ansel Adams never visited Antelope Canyon the simplicity of the scene led me to believe every shot that I took should be perfect—if only it was that easy. The canyon was 200 yards long and it took us at least 25-30 minutes to get from one end to the other. Then we turned around and squeezed past the single file line of people behind us. We really lucked out getting in first.

Later in the day we were scheduled to drive to Monument Valley but I recognized the toll that the previous day had taken so I suggested to Adler that we change our itinerary. We made tuna sandwiches in the hotel room and packed a lunch to enjoy at the hotel pool. We swam, ate and relaxed for three hours before the next leg of our trip. It was a wise move.

Our grey tent is in the middle of photo above Adler's right shoulder

Monument Valley is one of those things that I’d seen pictures of but never appreciated before I saw it. It is on a Navajo Indian reservation so our Annual Nation Parks pass didn’t afford us any entrance fee benefits. We arrived around 4:00 and selected our campsite from the half remaining available. This only left attempting to erect our tent in 20mph winds with gusts that reached 30mph. These were not ideal conditions for erecting a tent let alone with a six year old who really wanted to help. Our tent more resembled a boat sail and was difficult to manage until a neighboring camper offered assistance. Within five minutes all was resolved and we started our drive through the reservation to view the buttes.

Monument Valley has been used as a location in countless movies. But just seeing these massive stone monoliths projecting into the sky with nothing flanking them was surreal. You wondered what happened to the rest of the rock or why these were the only ones visible for as far as the eye could see. The route takes you along a gravel/dirt/sand path traveling slowly at 15 mph which was well suited for our Pathfinder. Adler was a little restless now that it was the end of the day so we had to negotiate with each other the number of buttes that we’d stop to see. I did pay $5 to sit on a horse much like in the shot that John Ford made famous in his films.

We ate a dinner of hot dogs prepared on the propane stove followed by Adler first encounter with Jiffy Pop (also lovingly prepared on the gas stove). We were beat after the previous day’s events and eager to settle in for a much needed rest…

Today's Miles: 234
Total Miles: 1543