Wahweap RV, Page AZ
The drive from Bluff to Page took us past Mexican Hat and Monument Valley. It was good to see these places again, so striking, and it made the drive seem quicker. And similar feeling once we got close to Page, since we were there prior to our rafting trip back in 2015.
The Wahweap Campground is part of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area , on the west side of Lake Powell. Our site faced the water and the hills behind it, just beautiful. As we were setting up, we had a visitor. A road runner stopped by - he literally just ran into the site! I took it as a good omen and named him Melvin.
The walking and biking trails in the camping area and beyond are great, nothing difficult, it follows the lake shore. Sitting out in the evening, watching the sun on the hills and reflecting in the water was relaxing.
We took a drive through Page, trying to find the house where we stayed before our rafting trip back in 2015. We searched our emails and memories and we believed we found the house. We stayed there for few days, Mark, Jim and Shirin, Rob and Pao, and Eloise and Sue. Tom had a great story about Jim, apparently, when Sue drove to the house late at night, Jim went out to the street and directed her inside. So Tom’s comment was “how do you get girls to follow you like that?” , Jim just gave him a big smile! I do miss him.
The town did not change much, just expanded more. We saw new condos and construction, lots of tourists and plenty of trailers. The locals did tell us that Big John’s BBQ got very touristy, so we ended up going to Dam Bar and Grille , some very good local beers and BirdHouse , very basic and very busy with the best fried chicken I had in a long time, probably since Pub 517 had fried chicken baskets (I don’t think they offer it now). And finally the Grand Canyon Brewery and Distillery, for great beer, whiskey and food.
I saw one excursion that was interesting, guided kayak tour in Antelope Canyon with a hike. When we were in Page back in May of 2015, we did Antelope Canyon tour, which goes through the Canyon towards the lake. The access to Lake Powell is blocked from that side so touring it from the lake side sounded very interesting. After a visit to Lake Powell Paddleboards and Kayaks , we made our arrangements.
Two days later, we met our guide Owen, and the rest of the group at Antelope Point, got our gear and started down a long, long ramp. Since the water level varies, the put in was good quarter of a mile down. That section of Lake Powell is busy, it connects the rest of the lake to Wahweap Bay, which has public access and two marinas. Kayaking was challenging, boats were going by and the wake was throwing the kayaks offs. It is about one mile to the mouth of Antelope Canyon Creek, rough going and we were in tandem kayak, you know, the divorce kayak.
Once we made it into the Canyon, it was just beautiful. No more wakes from the boats!
Kayaking the canyon was amazing! Once you are out of the main channel, the water was calm. The walls of the canyon narrow as you go along with twists and turns. After about a mile, the water gets shallow and you can beach your kayak. We then started hiking deeper into the canyon. The signs of water erosion were clear, our guide told us that the water level in July after the monsoons was about 2 feet over our heads. Tom had to go back when the trail became more rocky, we had to climb up few times and finally we stopped for quick rest. There’s a natural barrier between this side of Antelope Canyon and the Lower Antelope Canyon that we toured few years back.
Return was simple, though paddling through the main channel with boats and jet skis was not fun. Somehow, we survived the divorce kayak!
As you know, Tom loves helicopters so we decided to take an excursion to Tower Butte. The airport in Page is small, but busy with various tours. We used Papillon , same company we used in Las Vegas. Our copter took us over the Glen Canyon Dam and Horseshoe Bend before landing on top of Tower Butte. What an amazing experience! We could see Wahweap Bay and Navaho Mountain. I finally understood how expansive Lake Powell is, just huge! On the return, we flew over Antelope Canyon, we could see the Marina and our put-in for the kayaking trip. Wonderful experience!
Page and Lake Powell are is a great place to visit, there’s so much to do and I hope that we will go back there again. With the water views and activities, walking/biking trails, good food, Glen Canyon NRA in Page is also a gateway to other great day trips.
As we were breaking down for our next stop Marvin, the road runner stopped by to wish us happy trails! Good omen!
