Unlike other towns in the area, Page was created in 1957 to house workers and their families during the construction of nearby Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River. Its 17-square-mile (44 km2) site was obtained in a land exchange with the Navajo Indian tribe. The town is perched atop Manson Mesa at an elevation of 4,300 feet (1,300 m) above sea level and 600 feet (180 m) above Lake Powell.
After the dam was completed in the 1960s, the town grew steadily to today's population of 6,800. Because of the new roads and bridge built for use during construction, it has become the gateway to the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Lake Powell, attracting more than 3 million visitors per year. Page is also the home of two of the largest electrical generation units in the western United States. Glen Canyon Dam has a 1,288,000 kilowatts capacity when fully online. The other power plant to the southeast is the Navajo Generating Station, a coal-fired steam plant with an output capability of 2,250,000 kilowatts.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Page,_Arizona)Had a tour booked to see the Upper Antelope Canyon. It was a cold, overcast day, some rain sprinkles so we didn't get the full effects of light in the Canyon, if you go to google images and put in Antelope Canyon you will see some stunning pics, ours are more subdued.
As we were early drove up to a lookout to see Lake Powell, the dam and of course a power station. Coz and Rob said they believe this is what Mars will look like when they start the terra-forming, and one can see what they mean, water in red rock!
Antelope Canyon is at once one of the most breathtaking and tranquil places on earth. Gently carved from the Navajo sandstone over the course of countless millenniums, the slot canyons are majestic and narrow passages, just enough space for a small group to walk the sandy floor - and for the occasional shafts of sunlight to shine down from above.
It is really two separate canyons - Upper and Lower Antelope. Each contains the hidden "slots" carved from the swirling sandstone, and both drain from the south into Lake Powell (once the Colorado River). The canyons are so narrow in places that one can stretch out his or her arms and touch both sides.
The Navajo name for Upper Antelope Canyon is Tse' bighanilini, which means "the place where water runs through rocks." Upper Antelope is at about 4,000 feet elevation and the canyon walls rise 120 feet above the streambed. Lower Antelope Canyon is Hasdestwazi, or "spiral rock arches." Both are located within the LeChee Chapter of the Navajo Nation.
Though dry most of the year, Antelope Canyon runs, and sometimes floods, with water after rains. It is the water, slowly wearing away the sandstone grain by grain, that has formed the beautiful and graceful curves in the rock. Wind has also played a role in sculpting this fantastic canyon.
You must have an authorized guide to Upper and Lower areas of Antelope Canyon. You can contact one of the outfitters below, to make reservations.
HISTORY
A long time ago, herds of pronghorn antelope roamed freely in Antelope Canyon, which explains the canyon's English name. It is not known exactly when people first discovered Antelope Canyon. According to local Navajos, who have lived here for some time, the canyon and the LeChee area were places where cattle grazed in winter.
To older Navajos, entering a place like Antelope Canyon was like entering a cathedral. They would probably pause before going in, to be in the right from of mind and prepare the protection and respect. This would also allow them to leave with an uplifted feeling of what Mother Nature has to offer, and to be in harmony with something greater than themselves. It was (and is) a spiritual experience.
(http://www.navajonationparks.org/htm/antelopecanyon.htm)We drove down the wash - dry creek bed- to the canyon opening, inside it gets very narrow and one can see by the debris left behind how high the water rises, the walls are sinuous and smooth, winding in and out and revealing new visual treasures around each bend, and the young ones just loved the sand!!
Howling Coyote
On the way home tried out the video on the camera, I haven't done this since the sea otters, have not had the big memory stick in camera,but it was fun. In the dusk, from the back seat of a moving vehicle, what you would call an unsteady cam, however does give and idea of the country and how it changes, from desert rocks, to low level shrubbery, and the sight of the San Francisco ranges in the distance with their dusting of snow to highlight the contrast of this country. Hope to get some of driving around town now that I have caught the bug. They are taking forever to load onto flickr though so might not do tooo many.
Anyway here is one. see the others on flickr
I thought you went to good ole USA, in fact-you hitched a ride on a Klingon freighter to Mars.
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Drats, I revealed my real zann plan, the Klingons were a booking error, meant to go on a Vulcan ship, better food.
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