Lake Powell 2011 - Wetherill Canyon
Lake elevation 3660
Lake Powell 2011 - Wetherill Canyon
Bradley looking down at Wetherill Canyon and our new houseboat Turquoise Bay
We actually went twice to Lake Powell this year. One week with the family aboard Turquoise bay and another week with customers and vendors aboard Purple Moon. We sold our share of Purple Moon some months later, she will be missed. We are now enjoying our new boat Turquoise Bay with Laketime for hopefully many more years to come.
The water level this year was the highest we have ever seen at 3660. To think only a few years ago the lake was down to 3555. What goes down always comes up.
I actually got lost for a bit near Last Chance Bay due to the high water. This year we motored up to Wetherill Canyon and found a fantastic spot way down canyon. We left some of the boys at the spot with a pop up, igloo and a chair or two and went back and informed Turquoise Bay where we were camped.
I am getting much more capable of maneuvering a large houseboat. I squeezed the Turquoise bay right into a very narrow passage and anchored her in a spot that was maybe 10 feet wider then her and in a sidewind! When you have two large engines on each side of the boat you can easily put one engine in reverse and the other in forward and turn on a dime. And for the first time ever we did not have to dig one anchor. We found the perfect spot that had large boulders galore to tie our anchor lines to.
The water level this year was the highest we have ever seen at 3660. To think only a few years ago the lake was down to 3555. What goes down always comes up.
I actually got lost for a bit near Last Chance Bay due to the high water. This year we motored up to Wetherill Canyon and found a fantastic spot way down canyon. We left some of the boys at the spot with a pop up, igloo and a chair or two and went back and informed Turquoise Bay where we were camped.
I am getting much more capable of maneuvering a large houseboat. I squeezed the Turquoise bay right into a very narrow passage and anchored her in a spot that was maybe 10 feet wider then her and in a sidewind! When you have two large engines on each side of the boat you can easily put one engine in reverse and the other in forward and turn on a dime. And for the first time ever we did not have to dig one anchor. We found the perfect spot that had large boulders galore to tie our anchor lines to.
The Dooley's at Wetherill Canyon
The Dooley Family 2011
This year we traveled with the same Dooley group (Brent Sr, Stephanie, Brent Jr, Brian, Brandon and Brad with their girlfriends, Jenn, Sara, Kristy and Adeline. Amanda (cousin), Dylan (cousin) Brady (friend) and Ashley (friend). Needless to say the children are getting older and the partying has just begun! I must say I think we drank more on this trip than all the other trips combined, YIKES!
Jeff joins the Dooleys on day 2
Jeff enjoying his first beer at Wetherill Canyon
Jeff (a friend of mine) could not join us till day 2. He has never been to Powell and is from Las Vegas, so we had quite the show for him upon his arrival. Brady (a friend of the boys) and I dressed in thong suits and motored back to Wahweap to pick up Jeff with some of the ladies (they were not wearing thongs). When we saw Jeff waiting for us at the marina we played some flamboyant music, had rainbow cut outs and were dancing on our ski boat as flamboyantly as possible wearing our thongs and waving the rainbows. Jeff saw us coming, dropped his gear and started walking back up the ramp. It was classic! We had families dancing to our music in the water and all were hysterically laughing. Jeff soon returned and was just looking at us in disgust.
I love bringing new people to Powell and witness first hand when they realize just how large and beautiful lake Powell is. On our trip back to the houseboat, Jeff kept asking how much further. Soon that look of just pure "awe" showed up on his face. It was classic. And the look on his face when he saw where we were anchored made for an even better moment. Needless to say Jeff is hooked on Powell
I love bringing new people to Powell and witness first hand when they realize just how large and beautiful lake Powell is. On our trip back to the houseboat, Jeff kept asking how much further. Soon that look of just pure "awe" showed up on his face. It was classic. And the look on his face when he saw where we were anchored made for an even better moment. Needless to say Jeff is hooked on Powell
Well once again Laketime did just fantastic as did the Turquoise Bay. Everything ran great and we had a blast!
A funny side note:
This year we went twice. Once with the family on the Turquoise Bay and once with customers and vendors from my company on the Purple Moon. One night on the Purple Moon around 8:00pm a big storm blew into Gunsight Bay and was hitting our anchorage with high winds, rain and thunder and lightning. The Purple Moon held tight with all 4 anchors and my anchor poles along with the engines running. But about 1/2 way through the storm a boat some where near ours called a mayday for the Park Service. Needless to say the park service could not help them in any way. Once the Park Service heard that they were not taking on water and had food and water the Park Service literally said, "Park Service Out!". The poor person and his young family were not happy at all and you could hear the desperation in their voice over the radio as they continually asked the park service for help. the captain actually had his family out in the storm on land in the wind and rain for he was to scared to have them on the boat. I hailed them and asked them to flash their lights to see if they were near enough for me to walk to. I could not see them so I instructed the captain to make sure no lines or equipment was near his props and to turn on his engines and turn them into the wind. He said that helped and he and I talked for a few minutes while I tried to calm him down. One other person on the radio came in on our conversation and asked if the captain had any tequila. He said "yes, but why do you ask?" The other person said, "Take a swig, wait it out and don't worry." It was actually great advice! We all know that these storms come and go and usually all is well. Always remember to dig those anchor lines in deep and make sure your not exposed to large body's of water.