We decided to go "off-Klaus" and take our own side trip today. The hotel we were staying at in Page, AZ had tons of photos up of beautiful red rock formations and we wanted to go see them for ourselves. A t-shirt in the gift shop revealed that the red rocks were "Antelope Canyon" (not a mystical talking t-shirt, it just had a picture on it...) so we decided to head out there.

Antelope Canyon is located on Navajo land so tours are operated by Navajo Nation Parks & Recreation. We were a little annoyed because you have to pay $8 to enter the park and then the only way you can see the canyon is with a guided tour which costs $40, however it was worth every penny.

You are taken to the canyon in small groups in a massive truck. I had issues getting into the truck (because I can't lift my foot up to my ear and then step up...) so had to use a stool - rock and roll! The journey to the canyon is a little bumpy as you cross a dried up river bed. Apparently, the canyon floods during storms and smooths out the road again but the summer had been really dry so there were a lot of bumpy tire tracks. On the way over Dan asked our guide how they stop people getting into the canyon. She just said "My Mom lives up the road and she has a huge shotgun!" - brilliant.

Our tour guide was called Lori (I've probably spelled that completely wrong...) and she was great. She knew a lot about the canyon and even what settings you should use on your camera or phone to get the best photos. As we walked through the canyon she told us where to stand to get good shots of the "monuments". My favourite was "the bear" (pictured). I couldn't see it at first but if you stand in just the right spot then the canyon forms the outline of a bear. There was also a rainbow, flame, wave and Abraham Lincoln (took me a while but I saw it eventually).

After the canyon we stopped at a scenic spot by the Colorado river before heading out to Bryce Canyon, and at a picnic lunch. Felt good not to be eating fries for a change (seriously, I never thought I'd see the day when I order salad with my meal instead of fries but it's arrived. America! Put down the potato, dude!).

Phrases coined today: "The best setting for <insert anything> is... Chrome."

Top Tip: Do not eat at the diner at Bryce Canyon.