Sunday was a long day.  We began our boat trip at 7:30 am and continued about 7 1/2 hours.  We saw many huge rock formations on our way to the rainbow bridge, which is a giant natural stone arch with several colors in layers that suggest the name "rainbow."  The hike from the boat dock to the rainbow bridge was 1 1/2 mile in a very hot sun.  That was after a hot boat ride, then another hot ride back after the hike.  Everyone drank a lot of water.

The huge rock formations along Lake Powell have been used by Hollywood movies for their setting for many movies.   Scenes for "The Ten Commandments,""The Greatest Story Ever Told,""Planet of the Apes," etc were filmed here.  The original "Star Wars" movie was shot in Death Valley.  The scale of these rock formations is hard to reproduce in photos.  It truly is otherworldly in appearance.  One's imagination could drift significantly if you spent much time hiking around these enormous structures.  The early Mormons arrived here in the nineteenth century and easily found food for their imagination in forming their new way of life and belief.  Following their "prophet" Brigham Young through so much difficulty and accepting a religion divorced from all historic and orthodox confession and creed (yet continuing to call it Christian) was likely aided by the mesmerizing effect of their surroundings.  They thought that they were fleeing to the ends of the earth only to wind up in a place people travel from all over the world to see.

Rock formations along Lake Powell

More rock formations along Lake Powell

After a mile hike in desert heat we arrived at the Rainbow Bridge

Steve and Betty in Front of Rainbow Bridge

Monday (Labor Day) we got up early again to have breakfast at the Wahweap Resort restaurant.  We then left for a tour of the Glen Canyon Dam. The visitor center there had three very nice movies on the origin, building, and operation of the dam.

After the dam tour, we had lunch then left for a tour of the Antelope (Slot) Canyon.  Betty and I had taken that tour in October of 2010 and was very pleased with it.  Back then, the day of our tour followed a flash flood that cleared out the dust and left the ground a bit muddy.  Monday was very different.  Early September this year is very hot and dusty.  In addition, the volume of people herded through that narrow canyon has grown to a mob in one another's way.  This time I was not allowed to take my tripod, which is vital in so dark a setting.  I nevertheless saw Indian tourists with tripods!  I am not even sure I want to look at the results of my photographic efforts.

Example of view upward through slot canyon

View out slot canyon exit

After that I walked the long pathway to the Horseshoe Bend Overlook to see if I could get a good photo of something I had seen in photo journals over the years. What I found was a very hot trail of nearly a mile with mobs swarming all over the area. Then, once I arrived at the rim, I found no normal overlook. There was no place to set up my tripod along the rim.  The rocky edge jutted out so that you had to lean over the edge to get the whole subject area in the frame of the camera.  I tried several places along the rim to no avail.  I eventually stuck out my hands over the edge and shot several angles, hoping that something would turn out OK. That was all I got for the long hot walk carrying my camera bag and tripod.

After that we went shopping in anticipation of leaving Tuesday for a new RV park.