We spend the whole day driving, first along the " Joshua National Park " and then through very nice but desertic regions
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Our excursion being planned for 12.30 we take all our time to join the meeting point.
We meet there two old ladies telling us we did'nt choose the right excursion.
You can visit either upper or lower " Antelope Canyon ".
The most spectacular is the "lower". We change our tickets and go to the lower canyon, find an excursion right away and much cheaper than the previous one.
The guide leads us to the botton of the canyon through a couple of ladders.
Once in the bottom, it's a fireworks of colors.
The walls of red sandstone have been shaped by wind and rain, into spectacular curves. Skylights sublimate the colours.
In the afthernoon we go the " Horseshoe Bend " where the Colorado river runs around huge red sandstone cliffs.
We end our tour at the " Lake Powel ". Turquoise waters shine amid white and pink cliffs, arches and sandy beaches.
We leave the park toward east, stopping at a few more overlooks, direction Page.
The city of Page has been created in 1956 after the construction of the " Glen Canyon River Dam " and is now known for its avenue with of lot of chapels and churches.
We spend the afternoon resting and booking our tomorrow's excursion.
Grand Canyon
The alarm clock wakes us up at 6 A.M., as we want to arrive early at the " Grand Canyon " to try to find a site available at the campground , and do the first loop in the afternoon.
Freezing temperatures outside (- 7°), a quick breakfast, a rapid shower and we leave at 7 am with the heating on high.
The campground refuses to let us in before noon, so we take the shuttle bus for the first loop (cars are not allowed) and also do part of it by foot.
The morning colors are great and eventhough we both had been here before, the scenery is still spectacular.
Except one ou two overlooks close to the visitor center, where asiatic tourists spend more time making selfies than looking at the scenery, we have the canyon just for the two of us. Nobody !
We make a break to have lunch and to warm up and then do the second loop with the evening colors.
Another very cold night is waiting for us (-10°).
The Grand Canyon Park is another unique geological phenomenon . It reveals a beautiful sequence of rocks layers that serve as window into time.
The carving of the canyon is only the most recent chapter in a long story.
By five or six millions years ago, the Colorado river flowed across the colorado plateau on its way from the " Rocky Mountains " to the gulf of California.
First discovered in 1540 by a spanish expedition, it's only two centuries later in 1776 that a Franciscan went down to the botton and named it " Colorado ".
Since 1885 tourist business developped tremendously. The authorities, now, turn to the site protection.
Here we are, on the road again.
We pick up our oil filters, sent from France, at the Fedex office (thanks Jeannick and Jean Claude), and go to the storage to confirm our booking for november 30th .
Bad news, they are fully booked ! We have to find another one before leaving Palm Springs. At 11 am, we find one.
We just now have to go to the golf course for a last game before leaving. It's very windy, rather cold, but we have the chance to see a coyote crossing one of the greens.
As it gets dark very early, around 5 pm, we just drive 100 km.
ROAD BOOK 028
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