Antelope Canyon, Page
Antelope Canyon has, for several years now, been on my bucket list of places to visit. The canyons were formed through erosion, which has smoothed the sandstone walls into their current shape. The canyons have blown up in popularity in recent years thanks to social media.
Being based in Los Angeles, it is about an 8.5 hour drive away. However, I decided to fly into Flagstaff, AZ and rent a car, reducing drive time to 2.5 hours.
For years, I have seen the popularity of this place blossom on social media. As beautiful as pictures can be, they never do the real place justice.
We visited lower antelope canyon on our first day. Ken's Tours had availability without advance reservations. The tour lasted about 1-1.5 hours, and the guides can show you just where the best shots are for your photos. Try to come on a sunny day, as the beauty of the place is best captured with the play of the light on the canyon walls.
You have to descend 100 feet down a set of very narrow metal staircase to get to the bottom of the canyon. But you're rewarded when you gaze up at towering spiral arches bathed in a myriad of red and orange hues.
Gorgeous views means filters are not needed!
Lower Antelope Canyon is much more shallow than upper, thus allowing light to penetrate the inside much more easily, which makes for better photos, especially during off-season, when I visited. However, if you are able to make it during high season, Upper Antelope Canyon, which towers over you, will be absolutely gorgeous to behold because the light rays will peep down the cavernous narrow walls and reach the floor.
Our tour group was split up into multiple smaller groups with its own guide. They allow forward progress, but no backtracking. I found that the guide gave us reasonably ample time to linger in the various areas of the canyon, take photos, or just enjoy the views.
By the way, no dslrs allowed on the regular tours! If you are a serious photographer, there are specific tours for you (which are much pricier) and which also require that you have a dslr and a tripod for entry.
