Planning a trip to Zion, North Rim, and Page area in June. I will be with my 11YO son. I am interested in a photo package for Lower Antelope. It looks like a tour is now required, but I don't see a tour group from Page advertising for Lower. I have also heard reports of them not allowing photo tours for all parties without DSLR and tripods. I have a DSLR and a mirror less (Nikon 1) and can scrounge an extra tripod for the kid. Think that will pass muster?
Any info on tours or walk-in process would be appreciated.
Rich,
The Lower Antelope Canyon Tours are offered by only one group, Ken's Tours. They are darn serious about meeting the requirements of the Photo Tours. They checked both my two dSLRs and the two tripods to ensure that wife and I both had the required equipment. I am not sure if the Nikon 1 will pass but you can call and ask. They even checked the tripod that my wife was carrying to ensure that it was a legitimate one.
Unless something has changed and I hadn't noticed, in Lower Antelope you just go up to it, pay the entrance fee and someone will walk you over to the entrance and you can go climb down in and have it. No need for a tour. When I have gone there, I have done Lower Antelope first thing in the morning, and then leave there about 10:30 to head over to Upper and take the photo tour there.
I read online that tours were required since May 2011. Have you been since then? I figured asking here on the forum would be the best way to sort out what I needed to do to get in. I like the idea a pay and roam. Much less stressful than upper. That was only enjoyable between tour groups.
Same report as Jim...turn up, pay, go in with a guide. If you have a tripod & SLR you can get a photo pass which allows you to have 2 hours by yourself. If you stay over the alloted time, you can pay the same amount. Last time I was there (Nov 2011) we paid for 4 hours, which worked out the same as the Upper tour!
Things might have changed, as in 2010 the year before, for the same amount, we had double the time limit!
You don't need a tour. It's just a long groove in the ground that you walk through. The only thing a tour can do for you is tell you what f stop to use! Just show up, pay and walk in.
I've been to lower twice. The first time, they just pointed us in the direction of the entrance, and we had the place to ourselves. The second time, we had a guide bring us down into the slot all the way to the the end, then he left via an exit ladder, and let us have the place to ourselves. They said it was because we were the first in that day, and they wanted to make sure no rattlers had fallen into the canyon that night. Made sense to me.
The Lowerantelope.com site has changed a lot since my last visit a few months ago.
The last time I was actually there, about a 18 months ago, a 'serious' camera and tripod got you a two hour pass and the freedom to roam w/o being attached to a guide or tour group. Now the site doesn't mention anything BUT a guided tour. If this is the case, I suspect it will be similar to the cattle drive they hold in Upper, which would severely suck! Heck, if that's the case, I may never return.
