Lake Powell camping

[jondavies]

My 14-year-old son and I are planning our first boat camping trip to Lake Powell at the middle of next month and would appreciate any recommendations that would make it more enjoyable.

We will launch our 15' Avon inflatable from Wahweap and spend 2, 3 or perhaps 4 nights camping on shore as we make our way around the lake. We plan to travel in the morning before the winds pick up (boat is very seaworthy but wind chop can be uncomfortable) and spend the rest of the day fishing (I'm hoping to target bass on the fly), hiking, relaxing etc. We'd like to check out Rainbow Bridge and some of the scenic boat-in slot canyons. Given the time available, I figure we'll limit ourselves to the southern end of the lake on this trip.

I've got several maps of the lake and I've been getting great info from www.wayneswords.com but I'd love to hear some feedback from experienced Powell boaters.

The boat has a range of about 50 miles with a 12-gallon tank and I'll bring a couple of 5-gallon cans as a reserve.

We're fairly experienced campers (backpacking and car camping) so we know the basics but it would be helpful to hear any specific boat-camping recommendations as well as tips on particularly cool locations to check out.

Cheers,

Jon

 

[mike343]

Re: Lake Powell camping

Lake Powell campsites depend a lot on the water level but you should be ok in the south. some canyons have no beaches , however.
Rainbow bridge is 40 mile or so from Wahweap now that the cut is open, but you can get gas at Dangling rope

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Lake Powell camping

Jon, I can't speak to the southern end of the lake since we launch from Bullfrog, But like Mike stated you can gas up at Dangling rope which should be within your range which means you can get to Rainbow Bridge but that doesn't help you much I know. I have been to Dangling Rope and I believe you can camp in that cove, I don't believe there is any camping up Rainbow Bridge canyon, there are a few places up the San Juan river arm as well as way up the Escalante River arm. At that point I think your out of range without taking some serious gas, Halls Creek bay has lots of camping but its in the same area as Bullfrog and Halls Crossing and I don't think there is much Camping between the Escalante River and Halls Creek Bay. Your going to have to be very smart on Powell with a 50 mile range, there's not much room for error so be careful, if you have never been to Powell the further North East you go the more steep the canyon becomes and fewer places to camp and there are lots of others that camp on shore so campsites go quickly, I have always been amazed how few campsites there are on shore at Powell, just a heads up

I have had some luck getting Stripers making silver shad fly's or some variant of them, I am by no means a pro at tieing fly's but if you catch Stripers boiling they don't seem to mind my horrible fly's, if you have never seen the Strippers boil you will not forget it, catch a boil and try to drop slightly ahead of them, I got hits on mosquito's too, I don't remember how big though but always around a boil.

 

[jondavies]

Re: Lake Powell camping

Thanks guys -- great info.

I'll be taking two extra gas cans that will almost double my range so I'll have a little more leeway but I'll be sure to gas up at every opportunity.

I had the impression that campsites were easy to come by so it's helpful to know that's not the case. One of the maps I have notes where there's good camping available so I'll definitely pay more attention to that.

As I start to pack our gear, I'm wondering whether we should plan to take some firewood (I'd like to build a small fire for cooking etc. and we'll pack out the ashes). I've heard conflicting reports about whether driftwood is easy to find. I'm guessing that it depends on the time of year and being earlier in the season there's probably more around?

Good recommendation on the flies -- I'll be tying up some of these:

http://littleriveroutfitters.com/littleriverjournal/storiessep09/shad/index.htm

I'll post a report when we get back.

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Lake Powell camping

driftwood is touch and go so I would bring some if you would like to have a fire. If someone told you that campsites are easy to come by I would be interested in what they consider a campsite!! I may have to get some of those flies before I go back out there, they look way better then the ones I made!

 

[shoestring]

Re: Lake Powell camping

you must have a porta potty to camp on Powell. I have houseboated it twice for a week each time. I was there last june and there wasn't much as far as sandy beaches go. I wouldn't go without a marine handheld radio, cell phone service is very spotty. your map is a must have to keep track of where you are, and where you want to go. some of the coves are as big as the channel and one wrong turn can cost alot of gas. I remember there were a few nice sandy spots behind gunsite butte, meaning from wahweap, you need to go just past the butte and hang a left and go as far as you can, back in a little corner. Be careful of camping anywhere that may look like a wash. I was there during the monsoon season in '07 and it dosen't take alot of rain to start getting runoff. escalante arm is awesome but may be out of range for you. rainbow bridge is a must see and it is very near dangling rope (gas dock). cathedral canyon is beautiful. I don't have a map infront of me right now but i will look tonight and post a few more destinations. Page AZ. has a super walmart that has pretty much everything you might need. I travel there from so. cal. and go empty, buying everything once in town. i wish i was going this year, maybe next year if i'm lucky. Powell is the most beautiful place I've seen! take lots of pictures and post them for us!!

 

[QC]

Re: Lake Powell camping

Yeah, I agree about behind Gunsite. Near Rainbow is a houseboat hangout area called Oak Bay. I spotted it from Google Earth and you could see that there were a lot of houseboats in there. Seems maybe backwards if you're looking for solitude, but I figured they must know something, so it was on my agenda to get there by day 2, and decide what to do from there. We stayed four nights there.

It is a quick ride back to Dangling Rope, 5 minutes to Rainbow, and 2 minutes across the main channel is Twilight Canyon which became my personal favorite. There is some sand in Oak Bay, various flatter spots, and there's even a floating head. What I think we enjoyed most was every night the houseboats would engage in what we called Skyrocket Wars. Basically a few of the higher end guys would fire them off over the bay towards each other, and it was awesome. Loved it.

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Lake Powell camping

Good info guys, hopefully I will be able to houseboat Powell next year. QC thanks for the heads up on Oak Bay I passed right by it twice last year and never even knew about it, that's what I get for doing 55mph. I Really want to do the houseboat thing but finances just have not worked out so far.

 

[QC]

Re: Lake Powell camping

Yeah, for clarity, there's nothing that great about Oak Bay itself except for proximity, some protection and lot's of good places to beach a housboat and maybe camp too. The lake was another 30 ft. down when I was there, so that changes things. But take a look at Google Earth, I forget how I got dates, but I could kind of tell what water level the sat pics were taken. Then just look for beached houseboats. That will tell you where the best beaches are . . .

 

[shoestring]

Re: Lake Powell camping

lipp, yeah the houseboats are a little pricey for sure. they are fairly new models and are in pretty good shape. I try to get two other families to go in with me to help ease the pain in the wallet. I'm not sure how to say this without sounding rude but, I feel the higher prices at Powell really adds to the experience. Keeps the riff-raff away. I say this because of my last trip to Havasu, my teenage daughters got scared because of the attention they were getting from some unsavory guys around the marinas. Powell is a step up for sure.

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Lake Powell camping

I hear ya Shoestring, I have teenage daughters as well but I always bring a few guests with me, Gaston Glock and his little brother go with me where ever I go plus I always seem to get the urge to go Bow Fishing when teenage boys come into camp, not sure why that happens, I think its a coincidence but the girls have a conspiracy theory about it....Something about teenage boys seeing a Mathews Drenalin Compound bow in the hands of a young ladies father...they always seem to have the wrong camp?

I have been trying to talk my normal boating friends into a Houseboat at Powell but have had to settle for renting a house in Ticaboo which sounds bad but its really been fun, we boat all day and then ATV all evening and sometimes all night but I have to do the houseboat thing, I love Powell, I think I may retire there someday.

 

[shoestring]

Re: Lake Powell camping

I hear ya Shoestring, I have teenage daughters as well but I always bring a few guests with me, Gaston Glock and his little brother go with me where ever I go plus I always seem to get the urge to go Bow Fishing when teenage boys come into camp, not sure why that happens, I think its a coincidence but the girls have a conspiracy theory about it....Something about teenage boys seeing a Mathews Drenalin Compound bow in the hands of a young ladies father...they always seem to have the wrong camp?

I have been trying to talk my normal boating friends into a Houseboat at Powell but have had to settle for renting a house in Ticaboo which sounds bad but its really been fun, we boat all day and then ATV all evening and sometimes all night but I have to do the houseboat thing, I love Powell, I think I may retire there someday.

i like your style!

 

[95WellcraftExcel19]

Re: Lake Powell camping

Sounds like a fun trip you have planned. I live in Page currently and have for most of my life. You really need to fish Warm Creek or possibly Navajo Canyon on your way up to Rainbow Bridge. If you make it all the way up to the San Juan Arm, you can really get into a lot of good fishing. Like others have said, you will need to bring your own fire wood. You will also need to have a portable crapper to avoid any fines. And the biggest thing is ALLWAYS have extra fuel. The lake looks deceiving on a map. Its a huge Lake! Stay clear of unprotected areas when the weather gets bad. Its nothing to see 5 to 6 foot waves in bad weather. If all goes well my new boat (well new to me) will be delivered this friday and I'll be out fishing this weekend. Fingers are crossed.

 

[Locke]

Re: Lake Powell camping

If you do get to Oak Bay make sure you cruise up Secret Canyon which is near by. Depending on the water level you can go back quite a way and the walls get progressively taller and the waterway narrower, very nice.