The most famous slot canyons near Page are definitely Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon, but these aren't the only slot canyons in the area. Buckskin Gulch, Waterholes Canyon, Zebra Canyon, Peek-a-Boo Canyon and the Zion Narrows (part of the Grand Circle) are quite popular among the self-guiding, canyoneering community. If you aren't an experienced enough to take on a slot canyon on your own safely, that doesn't mean Antelope Canyon is your only choice.

1. Antelope Slot Canyon
2. Page Az Slot Canyon Tour
3. Antelope Canyon Tours

Antelope Slot Canyon Tours by Chief Tsosie is located in Page Arizona, right next to the great Lake Powell, and in the center of the Grand Circle. Navajo owned and operated by Rosalind Tsosie, you’ll enjoy our personal tour of the breathless Antelope Canyon and other spectacular adventures! Lower Antelope Slot Canyon is one of the most exquisitely photographed attractions in the American Southwest. This incredible canyon has been created over millions of years by the relentless forces of water and wind, slowly carving and sculpting the sandstone into forms, textures, and shapes which we observe today.The views in Lower Antelope. Antelope Canyon is an example of a geological curiosity known as a “slot canyon.” As the name suggests, slot canyons are tiny canyons formed when water finds its way into a crack or fissure in the bedrock. Occurring largely in deserts or areas with low rainfall, a slot canyon is the result of thousands of years of weather extremes. Lower Antelope Canyon is a longer slot canyon (600 yards), situated below-ground. Touring it requires descending and ascending a series of ladders, and stepping over a few boulders. Access to the canyon is directly from the Tribal Park Gate on US98. Tour Starts at Antelope Slot Canyon Tours on Main Street - Please remember NO bags of ANY KIND - Guided Tour to Upper Antelope Canyon – Chief Tsosie’s guides know all the hot spots and they will guide you through an amazing natural wonder of Antelope Canyon.

A few lesser known slot canyons have opened up to the public over the years, that is, with the permitted access of a tour guide company. Most of these slot canyons are on Navajo land and are a very important part of their culture and heritage. It's a priviledge that these canyons are being shared with us. Some of these other slot canyons are Cardiac Canyon, Secret Canyon, Rams Head, Ligai Si Anii and Wind Pebble Canyons. Most of these tours, if not all, are operated by Navajo tour companies and require paying an $8 Navajo Permit Fee in addition to the tour package price. Going on one of these slot canyon tours is a fantastic way to avoid the crowds and have a more relaxed experience in these truly magnificant canyons.

All of the slots east of Page are tributaries of Antelope Wash or Waterholes Canyon, with the exception of Cathedral. Cathedral drains via Honey Draw and flows into the Colorado just northwest of the Page McDonald's. The western slots drain into either Wahweap Creek or the north shore of Lake Powell. Further from Page are the main and east forks of Upper Kaibeto Creek, and Peach Canyon. These slots are closed to all visitors and are not covered in this article. They flow into Lake Powell via Face Canyon.

Photographing Slot Canyons

Slot Canyons are among the most difficult to photograph subjects in the southwest. They are narrow and crowded which makes tripod setup difficult. Slot canyons are dark, you'll have trouble focusing and seeing your camera settings. If you're on a tour you'll feel rushed, and dynamic range is high so exposure bracketing is often needed. Here are some suggestions to make your life in a slot easier:

• Think portrait. Vertical features like slots are normally best captured in portrait mode.
• Shoot towards the top of the slot but do not include sky. You want a mix of light and dark colors in your composition. Angling Up also keeps people which walk by out of your picture.
• Bring a tall tripod. You will often be shooting upwards and a tall tripod will help you compose. A tripod with a center column that moves in any direction may be of help.
• If you cannot bring a tripod shoot wide-open and increase your ISO until the exposure time is at most 1/15 of a second if your camera and/or lens is stabilized. If they are not stabilized the exposure time should be at most 1/(2*focal length), e.g at 24mm the exposure time should be at most 1/50 of a second. In my experience you will need to increase your ISO to betwen 800 and 3200 to get 1/15 of a second wide open. I would try several different ISOs as doubling the ISO increases the noise and decreases the dynamic range by about one stop. Since you are shooting wide-open depth of field will be limited so focus bracket. After the bracket is complete shoot a faster additional last frame to make sure that the highlights are not overexposed.
• Bring a small flashlight to help with focus and viewing camera settings.
• On windy days bring a rain cover for your camera to protect it from sand floating in from above.
• Expose for the highlights.
• Exposure bracket heavily, if you are including the brightest areas near the top of the slot exposure could vary by more than ten stops.
• Turn off image stabilization unless you know that your lens supports the use of IS on a tripod. IS on older lenses and long exposure times (> 0.5 seconds) guarantees very soft pictures.
• A flash is useless; it will wash out the colors in your image and will cast harsh shadows.
• Bring a scoop or cup to throw sand. Sand and dust in the air emphasize light beams and can also be used to create 'sand falls'. The sand in slot canyons may contain the potentially deadly hantavirus. If you do throw sand I suggest you bring it in from outside the slot canyon.
• Have both wide and normal lenses and a way to store them compactly. On many tours a camera bag is not allowed.
• Stop down to get needed depth of field, or focus bracket. Bring a depth of field calculator which shows you where to focus and what aperture to use, like my DOF Easy.
• Work the geometry. The camera angle doesn't matter, i.e. the camera does not need to be level.
• Watch for flare.
• And most importantly, stay cool. Things will go wrong. Expect that people will walk through at just the wrong time or bump against your tripod legs.

Upper and Lower Antelope Canyons

Both Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon are incredibly popular and will be crowded, but a one-time visit is worthwhile. To get to either canyon from Page take 89 local (Lake Powell Boulevard) to Coppermine Road, follow Coppermine Road to Highway 98 and make a left. Take 98 about 2.5 miles to the sign for Upper Antelope Canyon on the right. To get to Lower Antelope make a left on 222 just beyond the entrance for Upper Antelope Canyon. Both require the full time presence of a guide while touring them.

As of late 2017 there are three companies leading guided tours to Upper Antelope: Antelope Slot Canyon Tours, Antelope Canyon Tours, and Adventurous Antelope Canyon Photo Tours. All three offer both scenic and photo tours of the canyon. Scenic tours last 90 minutes, no tripods or bags are allowed in the canyon, monopods may be okay. Photo tours last two hours, tripods are required to participate. Upper Antelope has very high walls and is one of the darker slot canyons. A tripod is required to get good quality pictures, so you should book the photographers tour if your primary interest is coming back with a good photograph. Scenic tour rates for the three companies are similar, as of 2017 scenic tours cost approximately $58 during prime time (roughly tours starting between 10:30 and 1:30) and $48 other times. Rates for photo tours vary considerably by company, check them via the links above. Upper Antelope Canyon is only 100 yards long and generally gets better color than Lower Antelope.

There are two companies offering scenic tours of Lower Antelope Canyon: Dixie Ellis Lower Antelope Canyon Tours, and Ken's Tours. Both companies forbid the use of tripods. Rates for scenic tours are currently the same for both companies. During the winter months (November 1 through February 28) Ken's offers a two hour photo tour, this is not offered during the rest of the year.

If you visit Upper Antelope Canyon you should go during the morning as this is when the ray of light enters the canyon. I have been to Lower Canyon in both the morning and afternoon and didn't see much difference in conditions, although I have heard that morning is better. Lower Antelope also gets rays of light during part of the year. In Upper Antelope the best light is often near the top so you'll be working with a normal or short telephoto. Occasionally you will want to go wider than 24mm.

Lower Antelope is about 1/4 mile long and ends abruptly with a 100 foot drop off. The canyon continues on to Lake Powell but never slots up again after the drop. In Lower Antelope Canyon there are some ladders to climb so bring a light pack if allowed. When you get to the drop off in Lower Antelope you can either exit the canyon by climbing up a ladder and then rim walk back to your car, or you can backtrack up the canyon. Both canyons are closed after heavy rains or when rain is threatening.

Lower Antelope Canyon is covered by the Page topographic map and Upper Antelope by the Lechee Rock topo map.

Antelope Slot Canyon

Other Antelope Drainage Slots

Page Az Slot Canyon Tour

Antelope Canyon Tours

Many other slot canyons feed the antelope drainage. Here is a partial list: