Day 7 - Monument Valley

We enjoyed a nice sunset in Monument Valley, followed by a full-moon starlight show of the mittens.  We've made our way down to Sedona - here are a few pics from MV.



Mittens at night


Left Mitten at night


Full (nearly) moon rising over Monument Valley


Sunset at MV

Day 6 - Extra Photos

This morning we drove from Page to Monument Valley.  We stayed at Canyon Colors Bed and Breakfast in Page for 4 nights, and it was the best Bed and Breakfast experience we've had.  If you find yourself planning a trip, look up Bev and Rich and be sure to book in advance, as they are very busy (for good reason).

We'll hope for good photo conditions for sunset and sunrise tomorrow here in Monument Valley, and will give some nighttime photos over the valley a try tonight.

In the meantime, here are a few "extra" photos from the past few days



Horseshoe Bend Sunet


Lower Antelope Canyon


Monument Valley

Antelope Canyons

Today we walked through Upper Antelope Canyon in the morning on a tour, and while it was udder madness with the number of people in such a small area, we were told this was very much still the low season - can't even imagine July & August in there.  Regardless, it's an experience we would heartily recommend everyone enjoy (once).  It is truly beautiful - hence the reason for so very many people.

Lower Antelope Canyon was much more laid back, dramatically fewer people, and much longer.  The result was a more pleasant experience.

On to the pics



Looking straight up in Upper Antelope


Upper Antelope is famous for light beams


A sand-fall in in Upper - They occur naturally when it's windy above the canyon.  This was simulated from the guide throwing sand up on the ledge.


A rare moment in Upper Antelope without anyone in view


We went out to Lower Antelope in the afternoon after having lunch.  A very different set of colors.


Jennifer in a brighter area of Lower


Depending on the angle of light, it ranged from bright yellow, to brown shown here, to rich purple in the shade.


Here you can see the purple combined with the bright yellow


Terrific lines and shades

Day 4 - Secret Canyon

Shhhhh - it's Secret Canyon today.   It's a limited access slot canyon run by only one company out of Page.  We highly recommend it, we were with another couple, but basically had the entire canyon to ourselves for 3 hours.  Great colors, lines and photo ops!


Upper Antelope canyon is famous for the light beams, so we were very pleasantly surprised to find a few here


Navajo Spirit


And back to a regular light beam


Great contrasts in colors


Uh oh - getting artsy


Fun lines


Leopard Tail Lizard - she (we are told she is pregnant) didn't ride in the Hummer with us


Love the light


It's a tough existence for this bush

Day 3 - The Wave

Today we spent 6 hours hiking to and around The Wave.  It's located right at the Utah/Arizona border, on BLM land.  It's a beautiful, strange place, formed of sandstone.

To keep it preserved, only 20 people per day are allowed access.  10 people are given passes via the web 4 month in advance in a lottery, which is how we got ours.  The other 10 passes are passed out in an in-person lottery the morning before - we spoke to a group that got theirs yesterday, with 90 people crammed in the BLM office!

According to our GPS (highly recommended), we hiked 7 miles, with 3.5 hours of moving, and 2.5 hours of "not moving" (taking pictures, drinking water, eating lunch).  The trail was advertised as "flat", and while there isn't a ton of elevation change, it's hardly flat.  Lots of deep sand & uneven rocks, but it's worth it (just don't go in August when it's 110 degrees...)



A nice spot to stop for a photo partway through the hike


Early in our 2 hours at the wave - the light was constantly changing


Jennifer looking like she's in an ad for Outdoor Magazine


Love the lines


The light is totally different in the shade - deep reds.  You can see how fragile the sandstone is


More lines, and changing colors


Laurence is finally victorious over the self timer....


And feels compelled to express it!


Jennifer demonstrating the patience of a photographer's spouse

Grand Canyon - Day 2

Day 2 was another beautiful day.  Turns out this weekend was Free National Park Day - what a bonus!



Very early sunrise light at Moran Point


Later in the sunrise cycle - the colors kept changing every few minutes!



The sun had been up a few minutes - love the layers of rock



Partial moon on the drive north to Page, Arizona



Horseshoe Bend outside of Page.  It was around 3PM - basically the worst light.  We'll come back in better light, we promise!



Here's Jennifer saying goodbye on Day 2 - and designed to freak our parents out!  It's a 1,000 foot drop straight down.....

We lived to post the blog, and to head out to hike "The Wave" tomorrow!

Grand Canyon - Day 1

We are in the American Southwest for 10 days.  We flew into Phoenix from Seattle, and drove up to the Grand Canyon.  Here are some pics from our first evening and first full day:


Welcome to the Grand Canyon!



The view from part way down the Bright Angel trail



Jennifer posing on the Bright Angel Trail



Early stages of sunset at Moran Point



Self portrait - you should see the blooper reel with Laurence fighting with the self timer!



More from Moran Point



The sun sets on Day 1 (awwww)