Travel Guide: AZ- Antelope Canyon and Lake Powell

I have lived in Arizona my whole life, but there are so many amazing places that I had never visited. This past weekend, we decided to head up to Page, Arizona to visit Antelope canyon and Lake Powell.

Antelope Canyon is a slot canyon located on Navajo Land. Because it is on the reservation, you are only allowed to go to it with a tour guide. The tour we chose was Antelope Canyon X by Taadidiin Tours, and we loved it! Our tour involved a van ride to the location and then a small hike down to the canyon. We walked through while our tour guide explained how the canyon formed, the layers on the sides, and the flow of water. It is called antelope canyon because it is the way antelope used to take to get from place to place; however, they haven't traveled through it since the 1960's. The canyon is absolutely gorgeous and they say the best time to go is between 10:30 and 1:30. This is because of the lighting that time of day. Our tour started at 10:30, but we couldn't see any beams of light coming through the openings of the canyon quite yet, so I recommend going around noon to see them.

Lake Powell is on the boarder between Utah and Arizona, most of it is in Utah. Many people vacation there every year. We decided to rent paddle boards from Lake Powell Paddleboards and paddle board on the lake. The plan was to go through the canyons, but the wind was so strong that none of us were able to stand on the board without falling off. We went later in the afternoon and we struggled to move because we always seemed to be going against the current. They recommend going early in the morning to paddle board because it is very smooth and you glide along like you are on ice. For later in the day I recommend kayaking instead, because it is a lot easier to move through the water. Although it was difficult, we had a lot of fun and the lake is very beautiful.