Slot Canyon #5 - Mountain Sheep Canyon

Someone remarked that all the canyons looked very similar.   While the pictures of the sandstone do seemed alike, the canyons themselves are actually quite different with their own character.  They may all have swirls, but the stone texture seemed different in each of them and they were all different heights and widths, thus creating different feel when you were actually in them.  You have to be there.

Mountain Sheep Canyon is the longest canyon of the five (about 1.5 miles) and there is probably a good reason why it's named after the Mountain Sheep - you have to climb up and down quite a few times inside the canyon, like mountain sheep.  The step ladders were secured, but one of them was quite long - climbing up seemed easier as long as you don't look down, but climbing down is not for the faint of heart as you do have to look down to make sure you don't miss a step.  And you have to go back the same way as there is no other way out.   To add to the drama, it was our last canyon of the day, everyone was tired - but we survived.

The entrance to Mountain Sheep Canyon

A well-camouflaged lizard

First time we saw any plant life in the canyons

This canyon is much more rugged than the other four.  You can see that in the stone texture and the harsher lines of the swirls.  

That was a fairly long climb up to a not very steady platform...

Looking down from the platform 

Even the arches you see in this canyon are not as smooth as the ones in the other canyons

Compared to similar shots in the other canyons, you can see the lines here are much more rugged.

And that was the end of our day-long tour of the slot canyons - it was a spectacular adventure!