Yes, I got to Grand Canyon. Yes, I took a bunch of pictures. But you’ve seen those same pictures taken by people who are much better photographers than I am. Chances are you haven’t seen this one, though. It’s a photo of Horseshoe Bend, in Glen Canyon.
This natural wonder is the handiwork of the Colorado River, the same body of water that carved the Grand Canyon out of the rock here in northern Arizona. This bucolic spot in near Page, Arizona, a town that was built in the late 1950s as a worker camp for the folks who built the Glen Canyon Dam, the little brother to the Hoover Dam.
Horseshoe Bend is just off of U.S. 89 on the way to Page. Turn into the parking lot, then walk up the hill and it’s less than a mile to the rim of the canyon.
The walk isn’t easy, but it’s reasonable—partly uphill on the red sand that was once part of the sandstone terrain. At 4,500 feet altitude, however, it left us flatlanders a little breathless. Or perhaps that was our reaction to the view once we arrived.
When you’re looking down into the canyon, follow the three-foot rule: Don’t get closer to the edge than three feet. The sandstone cliffs are striated and can break off. I got this shot by lying down across a solid looking section of rock.