Photo-Swap-Thursday #2

Edge View From Horseshoe Bend

Heather: Sometimes, the view itself is the adventure… Last spring I spent a week hiking around Arizona with my oldest son. I shot this photo from my own breath-taking cliff’s edge position at Horse Shoe Bend in Page, Arizona where there are no barriers except your own common sense.

“Sunset photos of Horseshoe Bend near Page, Arizona take a bit of planning.  Bursting, changing light and a cliff side tripod perch are just a couple of the challenges.  Wind and blowing sand can make the experience even more interesting…”

More photos, audio and the full story can be found here: Photo’s Edge

Heather Dugan is a writer/photographer and voice-over/on-camera talent based in Central Ohio with clients worldwide. A frequent traveler and lover of the outdoors, she is never without her camera and running shoes.

Her travel adventures are chronicled on "Footsteps" www.heatherdugan.com/blogNEW

Writing samples/article links and recording demos can be found at www.heatherdugan.com. "

Find her on Facebook here!

From Lake Powell,AZ to The Bryce Canyon,UT

On October 15, 1956, the first blast occurred and the construction of Glen Canyon Dam was officially Glen Canyon Dam on July 4th underway. Before that date, the site was virtually inaccessible and construction crews were forced to drive 200 miles to cross from one side of the Glen Canyon to the other.

Glen Canyon Bridge
was actually constructed in California, disassembled and half of the bridge was transported to each side of the canyon. By 1959, Glen Canyon Bridge was completed permitting trucks to deliver equipment and materials for the dam and the new town of Page, Arizona.

View down into deep green water coming out of the dam

The sparkling blue waters of Lake Powell
are magnificently framed by towering rock formations and soaring red cliffs which surround the area for as far as the eye can see. There is truly nothing like it anywhere on the planet. Each year millions of visitors, most from outside the United States, flock to the area to enjoy the breathtaking scenery and numerous water activities including boating, water skiing, scuba diving and fishing.

The marina at Lake Powell in Page AZ

Interesting rock formations in the Lake Powell, Utah

"The Lonely Rock" in Lake Powell, UT

We went to the Bryce Canyon National Park - another majestic view of a Canyon!

Bryce Canyon
is a small national park in southwestern Utah. Named after the Mormon Pioneer Ebenezer Bryce, Bryce Canyon became a national park in 1924.

Bryce is famous for its worldly unique geology, consisting of a series of horseshoe-shaped amphitheaters carved from the eastern edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau in southern Utah. The erosional force of frost-wedging and the dissolving power of rainwater have shaped the colorful limestone rock of the Claron Formation into bizarre shapes including slot canyons, windows, fins, and spires called "hoodoos." Tinted with colors too numerous and subtle to name, these whimsically arranged rocks create a wondrous landscape of mazes, offering some of the most exciting and memorable walks and hikes imaginable.

Hi my friends,

it was a beautiful day today with a lot of excitements, pretty sights and majestic landscapes! We've visited the Bryce Canyon, another beautiful Canyon and so totally different to the Grand Canyon! We are now somewhere in Utah on an almost deserted campground and heading tomorrow towards Salt Lake City.

I'll show you tomorrow more of the photos I made of the Bryce Canyon - it was breathtaking again!I wish I would have better words than just "beautiful" :)

Stay with me :)
Susanne and David

P.S. as always:
click in the photos to see them bigger...
and thanks for all the comments and compliments to my last post!

Living in a Desert Town

Coming from the Grand Canyon going trough "The Painted Desert" on HWY-89 North, we had to climb up this steep road, called "Antelope Pass". The light was getting just beautiful on that late afternoon!

From Bitter Springs, the highway climbs onto the Kaibito Plateau hugging the cliff face to a spectacular road cut at Antelope Pass.

We stopped at the top of the Pass to have a look back to the Valley where we came from

After climbing up the "Antelope Pass" this was the view we got to see - breathtaking!

Fantastic scenery in a wonderful evening light on the left side of the road, driving towards Page,AZ

The road to "Monument Valley"

The devils Tower, visible from Page,AZ

Devils Tower
rises 1267 feet above the Belle Fourche River. Once hidden, erosion has revealed Devils Tower. This 1347 acre park is covered with pine forests, woodlands, and grasslands. Deer, prairie dogs, and other wildlife are seen.
Also known as Bears Lodge, it is a sacred site for many American Indians.

President Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed Devils Tower the first national monument in 1906.

Approaching Page, Lake Powell and Glen Canyon dam come into view.

Page,
situated on a mesa in extreme north-central Arizona, is the gateway to Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Lake Powell. Created as a company town for the construction of Glen Canyon Dam in the 1960s, it has steadily grown, adding more and more amenities not usually experienced in a small desert town.
Read more about Page in Arizona here


Several films have been shot in the Page area including:

* Into the Wild (2007)
* Hulk (2003)
* Evolution (2000)
* Planet of the Apes (2000)
* Broken Arrow (1996)
* Maverick (1994)
* Highway to Hell (1990)
* Beastmaster 2: Through the Portal of Time (1991)
* Superman III (1983)
* Thunder Warrior (1983)
* Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)
* The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976)
* Planet of the Apes (1968)
* The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)

Hi my friends,

I'm so glad you liked my Grand Canyon shots! It was really quite a great experience to see those magnificent mountains! Thanks for all the kind comments.

Since 3 days now we are here in this pretty desert town Page in Arizona. Dave doesn't feel well, he got diagnosed yesterday with severe bronchitis, got some Antibiotics and we are stuck now maybe for another day, waiting and hoping for better days soon for him. :)

I hope you'll enjoy this post the same like you did our Grand Canyon trip.

Stay with me!
Susanne and David