The Colorado River lazily meanders around Horseshoe Bend, in Page, Arizona.

I read earlier this month the Horseshoe Bend National Park are his going to start charging an admission fee. Another casualty of Instagram, the park has seen a dramatic uptick in visitors recently, and needs to upgrade its facilities. A few years back, before all the changes were planned, I made the trip to Horseshoe Bend and enjoyed the very reason those changes are needed.

It was 2015 and the calendar finally worked out in my favor. The first weekend of October was the Albuquerque Balloon Festival in New Mexico, and the second weekend was a lantern festival in Las Vegas, Nevada. If I gave myself a couple of days, I could do the drive and swing by Horseshoe Bend along the way. But, this post isn’t about my adventures driving a Ford Mustang across the Southwestern United States, its more about Horseshoe Bend being one of America’s smaller, yet less-restricted National Parks.

Before the park’s changes, one could drive up to the small gravel lot, park and make the short hike to the canyon’s rim. There was a walking path, but no gates, fences or admission fees. It’s just a lot of you and nature. And very little light pollution. People were friendly and taking a lot of pictures for each other; some sat quietly to enjoy the sunset, while others constantly scrambled for just the right view. Either way, it was a nice change, as so many parks in the United States are regimented with boardwalks, padlocked gates and hours of operation.

While at Horseshoe Bend, I gave myself one sunset and one sunrise. After dinner on my only night, I wandered back and had Horseshoe Bend to myself to try some astro-photography. While my attempts at shooting stars over Horseshoe Bend failed miserably, it as still magical to have the place to myself. While I completely understand the need to protect people from themselves (like getting too close to the edge in the middle of the night), I am even more aware of the necessity to protect nature’s beauty from the damage tourists can do.

The planned admission fees are to pay for upgrades to the park, to help it better tolerate tour busses and make the park survive better for generations to come. I’m certainly not opposed to any of that, but I do appreciate the opportunity to explore the park before the changes were put into place.

1015. (1966)