MAY 2018 | 5280 | (^85)
This spread, from left: Jason J. Hatfield; Nathan Leach-Proffer
Did You Know?
Rare but devastating flash
floods can rip through
Antelope Canyon without
warning, typically in the
months of March, April,
August, and September. In
1997, 11 tourists died during
a guided tour of the lower
slot, and although no one
was killed, intense flash
flooding was reported in the
canyon in early August 2013.
If You Go
Antelope Canyon is located
on Navajo Nation land, and
the only way to see the slot
canyons is with a commercial
guide. According to the
Navajo Tourism Department,
there are five outfitters that
tour Upper Antelope Canyon
and two that take visitors to
the lower section. Prices and
times vary.
Did You Know?
White Sands National
Monument is surrounded by
White Sands Missile Range, an
active U.S. Army installation.
The base has a storied past:
It was a key location for the
Manhattan Project and the
testing ground for the first
atomic bomb. Today, it’s
possible for monument visitors
to come upon collateral debris
and even wayward unexploded
ordnance in the dunefield.
As such, any foreign objects
found in the sand should be
left alone and reported to a
monument ranger.
If You Go
White Sands National
Monument is open every
day except December 25.
Springtime can be windy,
but the yucca plants begin
blooming in late April, making
for gorgeous photos. Summer
can be downright hot—and
crowded. Fall is a great time
to visit, not only for milder
temps, but also because the
cottonwoods turn gold. The
entrance fee is $5 for adults;
children 15 and younger are
free. nps.gov/whsa
Scoured by lash loods and
blasted by sand for millennia,
the reddish sandstone canyons
near Page, Arizona, have been
sculpted by time into sunbeam-
lit masterpieces. he most
famous of these slot canyons
is Antelope Canyon, with its
trademark smooth rock, which
appears to be lowing hori-
zontally. Antelope is actually
split into two sections—upper
(pictured) and lower—both
of which are worth a visit. If
you’re seeking to photograph
those signature rays of light,
though, you’ll need to take a
tour of the upper slot between
late May and late August.
Coloradans are not unfamiliar with
illogically placed sand dunes; after
all, Great Sand Dunes National
Park and Preserve’s 30-square-
mile duneield is one of the state’s
most spectacularly weird settings.
Yet White Sands National Monu-
ment in New Mexico ups the ante
on bizarre in several ways. First,
the giant duneield in Tularosa
Basin encompasses 275 square
miles, an almost incomprehensibly
large swath of land. Second, most
sand on Earth is made of quartz;
however, 99 percent of the mineral
deposits at White Sands are pure
gypsum sand—an oddity because
gypsum is water soluble, like salt.
Finally, the lourlike color of the
dunes makes for an ethereal envi-
ronment with a mood that shifts
as light and shadow dance across
the sand.
TULAROSA
B A S I N
DUNEFIELD
White
Sands
N.M.NM
ANTELOPE
CANYON
Navajo
Tribal
ParkAZ