Just five days at Lake Powell…definitely not enough time!
Originally we had planned to spend 10 days here. Unfortunately, we had to adjust for a few things which whittled our time here in half. We certainly made the most out of the five days, but we could have easily stayed for a month.
Lake Powell is part of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Facilities and services were top notch. Most campsites had huge 60 feet long and 30 feet wide, level, paved pads with lots of space between sites. The laundry facility was new, clean, and inexpensive. We had wi-fi and a decent cell phone signal. The town of Page was less than 10 miles away and had everything we needed…perfect!
Visitor’s Center and then Horseshoe Bend…
Our time was limited so we “hit the ground running”. We quickly got settled in our new home and headed to the Carl Hayden Visitor Center. The nice visitor center overlooks the impressive dam and has good displays. After Arleen got her passport book stamped, we headed back south through Page towards Horseshoe Bend. As we walked the sandy trail, it was hard to believe that a beautiful river in a deep gorge laid ahead. Sure enough, we got to the edge of the pretty sandstone formations and hundreds of feet below, the Colorado River sparkled. I have seen many pictures of this spot and had always wanted to see it in person. As I stood there, I was in awe…it was amazing! The late afternoon sun wasn’t ideal for pictures, but the beautiful scene was imprinted in our memories.
Horseshoe Bend on the Colorado River
Kayak trip to Wind Caves…
We could see the caves across from the marina and knew we had to check them out. We got started a little late. It was warm and we had a light head wind making us work a little, but keeping us cool. We paddled 1.25 miles and beached the kayaks in a cove. For a tough mile, we picked our way through the surprisingly thick vegetation. The Wind Caves were much bigger than they appeared from the other side of the lake. The wavy patterns of the petrified sand were beautiful. Everywhere we looked, including under our feet, there was interesting shapes and colors. We shared some special time laying on the cool sandstone and thanked God once again for such an incredible world. Unfortunately, the wind picked up as we were hiking back to the kayaks. The 20-30mph cross wind kicked up three foot waves and it got a bit dangerous. We chose to go for it, but we had to face into the wind and waves. A direct route would have swamped us. After working our tails off and covering a mile in an hour, we took a 90 degree left turn and rode the winds and waves into the marina. (You can see the left turn in the route below.) Though going with the wind and waves was a break physically, we fought to maintain control and arrived at the truck exhausted. It was a heck of an adventure!
85F outside the tunnel, 75F inside and the sandstone was nice and cool!
Fishing the Colorado River at Lees Ferry…
Though my skills are rusty, I consider myself a fly-fisherman. I’ve read a lot about Lees Ferry and looked forward to checking it out. Lees Ferry is just a few miles downstream from Glen Canyon and as the crow flies, not far from our temporary home. However, the drive was a circuitous 50 miles and seemed to take forever because I was so excited. First, we went to the local fly fishing shop where we got the latest report and bought the “hot” flies. Now, properly armed, our confidence was high. The rock formations along the river and the Vermillion Cliffs were amazing. We put on our waders and got geared up in the 90F heat…it was hot! After an easy quarter mile hike to the river, we were even hotter, but stepped into the clear 45F water and got sweet relief! We set up exactly like we were told. We fished like we were told and we fished where we were told…the results: Three decent trout on, but none to hand. Boy, we need practice! We really enjoyed fishing Lees Ferry and look forward to doing it again.
Arleen’s Note: Before we put our waders on in the 90F heat, I suggested to Shawn I was going to carry them to the river rather than wearing them and getting overheated. His reaction, “Don’t be a such a girl! You are my fishing partner today!”
The Colorado River at Lees Ferry
Kayak up Antelope Canyon…
There are many tours in Upper and Lower Antelope Canyon just outside Page. However, it’s Navajo land and you must be guided. Of course you pay for the privilege, but the narrow chasm is reputed to be incredible. My research indicated that we could kayak into the lower canyon from Antelope Point on the lake. Pending the water level, it would be a roughly 6-mile round trip paddle. I had no idea how far we would be able to hike up the canyon. The paddle up the narrowing canyon was incredible! Right at 3 miles, the canyon closed to only 20 feet wide and the water ended…it was time to hike. Just a short ways into our hike, we ran into an old guy that shared knowledge about the area. We turned where he told us to turn and roughly a mile from the kayaks, the canyon narrowed to shoulder width and was every bit as incredible as he told us it would be…WOW!! The waving red sandstone was one of the coolest things we have ever seen! We enjoyed the paddle back as much as on the way in. After two tough kayak trips in three days, we needed a break!
Just entering Antelope Canyon
Can’t go any further by water…it’s time to hike Walls closing in
Spectacular Navajo Sandstone
One of the coolest things we’ve ever seen!
Rainbow Bridge and the collared lizards…
I read a little bit about Rainbow Bridge, but after a good friend, John, recommended we see it, we booked a tour. Not only did we want to see the bridge, but it would give us a good opportunity to see a sizeable chunk of the lake. The bridge is about 50 miles up Lake Powell and only accessible by boat. It took the tour boat two hours to get there and then we had about 90 minutes to check out the incredible bridge. Ranger Chuck was there waiting for the group. We latched onto him for about an hour and really enjoyed his stories and pictures. As he was telling us about a dinosaur print, Arleen saw a good sized lizard and pointed it out to the remaining tour group. The Ranger got real excited and told us it was rare to see a collared lizard and then another one popped up on a nearby rock! Apparently they are territorial… one lizard jumped to the other rock. They circled each other, puffed up their chests, sized each other up and then within a split second, they were on top of each other, got tangled up, and rolled off the rock! Ranger Chuck had never seen anything like that and was beside himself. I don’t know which I enjoyed more… the world’s largest known natural bridge (291 feet high and 275 feet across) and its interesting history or the two crazy collared lizards. Either way, it was special and memorable!
Rainbow Bridge
Ranger Chuck telling us the geology of the bridge Collared Lizard
The close lizard told the other one: “Hey! That’s my rock!”
WHERE WE GOT OUR MAIL:
Page, Arizona
We must spend more time at Lake Powell…The area is spectacular!
We are sending this report from Navajo State Park and the San Juan River in New Mexico. We are here for nearly three weeks to fly-fish the famous river! My parents are set to join us…we can’t wait!
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