Antelope Canyon

Antelope Canyon is a slot canyon on Navajo land east of Page, Arizona. We took a trip down Upper Antelope Canyon, called by the Navajo, Tsé bighánílíní, 'the place where water runs through rocks'. Antelope Canyon is a popular location for photographers and sightseers, and a source of tourism business for the Navajo Nation. The canyons are accessible by guided tour only. Antelope Canyon was formed by erosion of Navajo Sandstone, primarily due to flash flooding and secondarily due to other sub-aerial processes. Rainwater, especially during monsoon season, runs into the extensive basin above the slot canyon sections, picking up speed and sand as it rushes into the narrow passageways. Over time the passageways eroded away, making the corridors deeper and smoothing hard edges in such a way as to form characteristic "flowing" shapes in the rock. Flooding in the canyon still occurs. On August 12, 1997, eleven tourists, including seven from France, one from the United Kingdom, one from Sweden and two from the United States, were killed in Lower Antelope Canyon by a flash flood. On July 30, 2010, several tourists were stranded on a ledge when two flash floods occurred at Upper Antelope Canyon. Some of them were rescued and some had to wait for the flood waters to recede.