Horseshoe Bend | A must-visit place in Arizona

Horseshoe Bend: Prepare for a breathtaking view at this must-visit Arizona spot

I can only really recall two things from my geography lessons at school. The strongest memory is that our teacher, although something of a dragon, had the most beautiful handwriting. I was fascinated by the curvature of her g. (It was outstanding.)

The other strong memory I have is standing in streams during the winter, fatigued, wearing Wellington boots not quite tall enough to avoid a foot dunking, and sticking rulers in the mud and rocks to learn about how the rapids shape the river.

So, for the longest time I’ve always thought all river curves were caused by the flow being faster and stronger on one side, causing the other side to slow. Give it an eon and you get spectacles like the Amazon.

Anyway, apparently Horseshoe Bend in AZ is a little more complicated than this. Sure, there’s plenty of sandstone, but there’s also tectonic stuff and bedrock and many other things I don’t think I can fathom. But I do know that standing up there looking down is absolutely mad and breathtaking and amazing.

And we nearly didn’t go! I have to thank Gus and Ahmad, two new friends we met at Antelope, for sharing their plans and inviting us along. It was absolutely stunning. After this fantastic detour, we headed out for the long drive to Grand Canyon North Rim, stopping off in Bitter Springs and Marble for sunset views and a spot of dinner.

And here should explain the blurry nothing I’ve included at the end of the album. (Props if you’ve stuck with me this far.) I was completely mesmerised. It had a huge proboscis, mad hovering skills, and flight patterns so similar to a bird I genuinely wondered if nocturnal hummingbirds could even be a thing.

They’re definitely not a thing. I was watching a white-lined sphinx moth grabbing some breakfast. Their wingspan can extend up to 3 inches and, if they're the diurnal kind, they prefer brightly coloured flowers. I know you’ll also be interested to know that the further north you go, the shorter their tongues are; the northern ones don't have to travel so far to lay eggs on the right kind of plants.