And people teeter on the edge, unaware that the stones beneath their feet are sandstone and could be loose and crumbling. It’s actually quite a dangerous spot – the unforgiving cliffs shoot straight down hundreds of feet. Best to get to the site well before sunset because otherwise you’ll never get a spot on the cliffs without someone standing in front of you. Which means it is overwhelmed by tourists unloading from giant tour buses, complete with flip flops and selfie sticks. From the dirt parking lot just off the highway, it is only a 3/4 of a mile (roundtrip) stroll through the red dirt to get to the bend. Unfortunately, Horseshoe Bend is also very close to the highway just outside of Page, Arizona. The place for viewing the bend is perfect – high cliffs overlooking the winding river, facing west so that you can get a lovely view of the sun setting over such a beautiful part of the natural world. Horseshoe Bend is a beautiful example of an entrenched meander – it is where the Colorado River winds its way around a chunk of land and folds itself 270 degrees, making it a lovely horseshoe-shaped bend in the river. Instead, spend your time in the many, many beautiful and off the beaten path spots that are so close to Antelope Canyon.

Horseshoe Bend is worth a quick stop, but I’d skip Antelope Canyon and rely instead on the beautiful photographs of the canyon taken by the professionals. But there have been a few places, for various reasons, that fit this bill and among those are the tourist traps that are close to Page, Arizona. On this trip, we have rarely seen a place that we didn’t think was worth the effort or that we wouldn’t recommend to someone – so much of the states that we’ve covered have been just spectacular.

So of course we thought – we have to go see these stunning places! And stunning they are … gilded but not gold because of the crowds that taint the experience of gazing on such beautiful places. Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon, both just outside of Page, Arizona in the very northern part of the state on the border with Utah, are “must see” spots – touted on top 10 lists and with beautiful photos included in the guide books.

Is horseshoe bend in antelope canyon