Lower Antelope Canyon

 

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Paul L.

Canoga Park, CA

9/30/2008 8 photos

There are actually two Antelope Canyons.

The Upper Antelope Canyon is featured on numerous television commercials and print ads.  If you want to see it, you have to check into the increasingly touristy compound on Route 98 and take a tour that runs you through the slot canyon like a golf ball on a driving range.  Most folks are happy with that and the experience is not without its little rewards.

The Lower Antelope Canyon is across the road from the three tall chimney stacks of the Navajo generating station off Route 98.  Just drive up to the little shack, pay the entrance fee, sign in and wiggle into the canyon yourself.  That's right, wiggle.  It is a slot canyon, after all.  You're on your own here, so descend into the upper canyon via a sturdy series of metal catwalks.

You're scared? On my last visit, I encountered a pack of octogenarians -- one with a cane -- who ambled through and lived to tell about it; so, if you can walk through a shopping mall without exhausting yourself, you can probably handle this canyon.  (Just leave your latte at home.)  It takes about an hour to go from one end of the canyon to the other in a hurry.  Of course, if you hurry you don't belong here.

What's so nice about Lower Antelope Canyon?  Well, you're on your own and you can stay here all day wiggling through passages while snapping enough photos to run out of batteries on your point-and-shoot.  The rich Navajo sandstone drinks in the sun and reflects richly hued shades of purple, yellow, orange, and red.  It's like the stone has been plugged into the generating station across the road and turned on at full power.  You may be underground, but the sun filters through so well that you don't need the flash on your camera.

If you allow this place to have its way with your senses, you will cross into a true spiritual experience and you might not want to climb the metal stairs back into real life.

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