The small town Page is located outside of the national parks that are part of the Grand Circle. As we noticed in the last couple of weeks, it is always a good idea to look a little further and in Page there is lots to discover. It is located at the lower end of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, which was created with the construction of the Glen Canyon Dam and the damming of Lake Powell.
Lake Powell Campground
Because we last washed our laundry over 2 weeks ago in the Zion National Park, we secured a spot at the Lake Powell Campground in Page. The “gravel parking lot” on which we stood here was not really idyllic. And when we were told that clotheslines was forbidden, we were a bit lost. We were told to use the dryers instead. So far so good. But we also have some things with us that are not allowed in the dryer (e.g., our Merino underwear, hiking socks, or jeans that should fit afterwards). The fact that there are some fabrics that are not supposed to go into a dryer seemed to be absolutely new to the employee. And of course, we had already washed by then, so we spread them out on our picnic bench to avoid further discussions. Rules like that are nice and good, but then it would be nice if they could provide a few rotary clothes dryers (as on almost all campsites in Australia or New Zealand).
Glen Canyon Dam
As described above, Glen Canyon Dam dams up the Colorado River to Lake Powell. From here, the river continues to dig into the rock and finally flows through the Grand Canyon (our next national park). We made use of the visit in Page and paid a short visit to the dam. From the lookout we had a good overview.
View from lookout following the river
Horseshoe Bend
Shortly after the dam we got a first taste of the Grand Canyon. Here the Colorado River flows horseshoe-shaped through the rock. And from the lookout above we got really great views. But in most areas the edge is not secured by a railing and so you have to be careful when hunting for the best photo.
Although we were relatively early, it was already pretty crowded. That and the $10 parking fee clouded the great view.
Antelope Canyon
The absolute highlight in Page is a visit to Antelope Canyon! You can choose between the Upper and the Lower Antelope Canyon, in other words the upper or the lower area of the canyon. We decided to visit the lower canyon. In any case, one has to book a guided tour. And because for the next days almost all tours were already booked up, we booked the first tour at 7:15 a.m. – and to Christiane’s regret we had to be there half an hour before to check-in 😉
However, getting up early was fully worth it. Our guide first showed us how to adjust our smartphone settings for the photos and took some with our devices himself. The colors and shapes in the canyon are simply mind-blowing and the good 50 € per person for the one hour tour were really well invested money.
In the end the guide wanted us to show the “sea horse”. When we were standing there, posing for the picture, we had now idea what he was taking about. Only when he showed us the pictures, we knew what he was talking about:
Before we left Page we took the opportunity to refuel “relatively cheap” (Fuel prices range here between $2.67 and $5.55 per gallon) and to buy some fresh food at the Walmart.
