09/21 Lake Powell September 2013 Gathering

[SeaSpray]

Hi Brent and Dixie,

Hop you have a great time at Powell. Sure enjoyed boating with you in the Delta.

Steve and Karen

[Water Bill]

Brent and Dixie,

Sue and I spent four days on the lake over Memorial Day weekend. We had fantastic weather and the water temp was about 68 degrees. You are going to find plenty of new places to beach the boat with the water level down. Have a great time. Hope to see you in September.

Bill

[Chris]

An amazing shot of the work at Castle Rock Cut, Lake Powell...trying to keep it open with the low water levels. The water is now on the rise and should flood this area soon.

[jkidd]

Here's another shot. I think they cut it down to 3600 feet. On June 4th the water was at 3599.79 and it looks like it's starting to taper off. Might not be useable this year. Looks like Maytag straights is the way you will have to go to get up lake.

[Discovery]

The lake level came up about 4" in the week we were there. Normally a this time of the year it would have been more than 1'. I don't think the cut will be usable this fall, probably 10' or more out of the water. Fishing was good. Caught Large and Small Mouth Bass and Stripers. Went as far north as Ticaboo and as far south as Lake Canyon. The heat finally sent us home a day early. It was 100+ most days and shade was hard to find. We traveled 99 miles on the water and used 46 gallons of gas. 2.15 MPG.

[Lighthouse Express]

Chris,

We are coming from California to attend this gathering. We understand that we will meet on Saturday, September 21 in Oak Canyon. How many days have you planned for the event?

Thanks

Heinz & Diane

[Sunbeam]

Hi Heinz and Diane,

I'm not Chris, and have only been to one Lake Powell gathering (last fall), but I think they typically work about the same way from year to year. So...(at least until Chris pipes in)

The calendar shows the gathering running from September 21-27. So around a week (although some folks come early and some stay late).

The way it seems to work is that the Oak Canyon potluck is the centerpiece of the gathering, and the one time/place you are most "guaranteed" to see everyone. Powell is long and narrow, and the side canyons make VHF transmission (and phone) difficult, so it's very easy to not make connections with folks at other times (even if they are not very far away). All that to say, the group can tend to split up at times other than the Oak Canyon potluck.

Last fall, Chris led a group of anyone who wanted to follow around to the highlights of Powell. I was one of that group and found it a delightful introduction to not only the lake and its geology and neat spots, but also the unique cruising techniques (beach anchoring, potti stations, etc.). Some folks go their own way for parts of the week, and there are other meet-ups, but Oak Canyon is the main one.

Since I had not been there before, I read through the threads for a number of previous years' gatherings and took notes. That helped me to be prepared for some of the more Powell-specific stuff (e.g. frisbees or pie plates to keep mice from coming up your lines, dog tie-out skewers for shore ties, the Stan Jones map).

I'm hoping to be there

Sunbeam

[thataway]

Looked at the water level based on Jody's comments about the cut. Today it is 3594 and last year the time we were there it was 3621. I suspect that by late Sept it will be close to 3590--or 30 feet lower than last year!

It looks like Brent's prediction of 10 feet out of water for the cut is going to be right on.

Wish I was going to be there!

By the way, we have never relied on "dog tie out skewers" for the stern lines--we use 6 and 7# Guardian/Fortress anchors, and about 8 feet of chain (to tie around rocks or tree trunks for the stern line, if there is not sand)

Great place, great gathering lead by Chris! Great C Brats!

[Wandering Sagebrush]

[Sunbeam]

Well, I've only been once, so take my suggestions with a large grain of salt. That said, I took along two of the skewers. I ended up using the skewers fairly often, usually along with an anchor (one for each stern tie) (plus the bow anchor always). Sometimes I used both skewers, when there was good sand for both of them and it was a sheltered spot/settled weather. Sometimes I heaped rocks on them or on the anchor. So, I found them useful, but wouldn't forego anchor(s). This was stern-to, but I noticed that some folks went bow in to the beach. But, like I said, it was my first time whereas some others here have been there dozens of times.

[Lighthouse Express]

Sunbeam

Thank you very much for your reply and explanation...
We are fairly new to cruising and this will be our first time on Lake Powell.

We are really looking forward to meet new C-Brats and explore the lake...

Heinz & Diane

[beermanPDX]

Sunbeam - Thanks for providing more info on how this trip normally works. I'm seriously considering doing this trip.

From the sign-up list, it doesn't look like anyone from the PNW is attending. Since I'll be doing yet another trip solo (a one year old and a 17 hour drive do not mix), I'd love to caravan down there with someone.

Just throwing that out there in hopes that someone yet to sign up will be driving from the north or northwest.

[Sunbeam]

Lighthouse Express: Cool that you are going to attend Powell. You are definitely taking advantage of the "trailerable" in "trailerable boat"

Beerman: I hope you do attend. I'll have to look at the map to see for sure for Portland, but I went from/to the greater Seattle area last fall, and I ended up launching at Bullfrog (and not Wahweap). Bullfrog was a few hours' driving closer. That said, I probably would have gone the extra distance to Wahweap to be more in synch with the group, but because of scheduling with my travel companion, I also could not get to the gathering until three days after it started. So, I put in at Bullfrog and (amazingly) caught the group right there on their way to Defiance house. Fell in with "Thataway" and had a guide right to the first anchorage where there was one of the smaller-group potlucks that night. I don't know if you would want to not start at Wahweap (group starts there and there is easier provisioning right nearby), but if a few hours each way driving would make the difference, or if your time schedule is offset to the group, it might be an option.

I should clarify one thing on the skewers, because I see I did not word it clearly. Although I used them often, it was typically as part of a three-part anchoring setup, wherein there was a bow anchor, one anchor on a stern tie (P or S), and then a skewer on the other side stern tie (often with big rocks on top of it). That way there was one sturdy anchor off the bow and one off the stern, with the skewer. There are probably different/better ways that the folks with many Powell trips under their belt use.

I was just amazed by the whole experience: The place, the people, the weather, the light, the fresh water (ahhhh, as I'm a freshwater native), the different boating techniques, even the potti stations (they're cool!). It was fun to go to a place that previous boats could not have taken advantage of.

Sunbeam

[Chris]

I will be leaving Wahweap around noon on Sept 27...Friday. Anyone that would like to tag along is welcome. We will meet at the store on the main dock and leave from there. We will head up lake and might overnight somewhere along the way or go all the way to Oak Canyon if we are feeling energetic. The main gathering will be in Oak Canyon on Saturday the 28th. From there we will head up lake on Sunday hitting the high points of the lake. At some point we will turn around and head down lake returning to Wahweap on Friday or Saturday. We will make stops at Dangling Rope and Hall's Crossing/Bullfrog as needed for ice and ice cream.
Looks like water levels are going to be close to the levels we had on our 2004 cruise...maybe not quite that low. The Castle Rock Cut will probably not be open despite the deepening project this year.
Sunbeam made a very good suggestion. Reading through the threads from previous years cruises will yield a wealth of information...and be quite entertaining as well.
One note on travel to the lake...89 south of Page is still closed requiring a lengthy detour if approaching from Flagstaff.

[Chris]

A link concerning the 89 closure:
http://www.azdot.gov/us89/