Capture the spirit of a slot canyon in the Arizona high desert. Antelope Canyon in Page, Arizona, is owned by the Navajo Nation, and tour companies are authorized to give tours by the Navajo Nation’s Parks and Recreation Department.
Guided Tours Only
In August, 1997, 11 tourists were drowned in the lower end of Antelope Canyon by a 50-foot wall of water and mud that came raging down the canyon from a thunderstorm five miles away. Since then, the Navajo Nation has been diligent about limiting access, with visitors permitted by guided tour only.
Photography Tour of Antelope Canyon
Antelope Canyon, also called Corkscrew Canyon, is one of the most photographed slot canyons in northern Arizona’s famous sandstone country. The red-orange sandstone changes color, turning to purple depending on the light coming into the canyon. The twisting, curving walls create natural sculptures at every bend.
Antelope Canyon Tours
Antelope Canyon Tours offers a regular tour for $32 or a photo tour for $50. Knowledgeable Navajo guides take visitors out to the canyonlands in four-wheel-drive trucks and leads them through the slot canyon while telling stories of Navajo traditions, culture, and contemporary lifestyle.
The photo tour takes fewer participants, giving them extra time within the sandstone cathedral, when beams of light filter down into the canyon. The guides allows photographers to set up their tri-pods, keeping other visitors out of the way while dozens of pictures are taken by professionals and wannabe professionals alike.
The beautiful sandstone rooms are enchanting. Each room receives its small daily allotment of light. The guides know when and where to be for the perfect pictures, helping nature along with a handful of sand tossed at just the right time for the dust particles to reflect the light, spiraling into an updraft to create a solid beam of light—a perfect sunbeam.
Antelope Slot Canyon Tours
Antelope Slot Canyon Tours is run by “Chief” Ray Tsosie, a Navajo man who grew up with the canyon as his personal playground. His love and knowledge of the Navajo culture is shared with a personal flair—occasionally playing a native flute on his tours. Coming from deep within the canyon, the gentle music sounds like an ethereal song leading to a spiritual path.
The exquisite beauty and peacefulness that permeates this elegant place challenges the imagination. How did the forces of nature create such a phenomenon?
The people of the Navajo Nation have great respect for what nature has given to them, and they’ve learned to be in harmony with something greater than themselves.
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