My wife and I are planning on a trip to Lake Powell in April. We have two Easy Rider kayaks fully equipped with spray skirts, paddle floats, pumps, etc. These kayaks can also be combined as a catamaran and paddled with canoe paddles. In studying the Lake Powell map, we are looking at launching from the Antelope Point marina or Antelope Point boat ramp and paddling up Navajo Canyon. Any advice?
I don’t know if you’ve looked at these but this has come up here before. My apologies if you have already seen these - and I don’t know how helpful they’ll be to your specific questions, but it is background info that may be of use to you one way or another. Others will jump in with new help, I’m sure… but here’s a start.
There are other posts re: Powell as well - just use the search function up at the top right of the page.
The canyon country is amazing but has some unique challenges. Wish I were heading out there this spring. Best wishes.
Check out previous posts. Be ready for some high afternoon winds. Best to paddle in the morning. Best not to do long day paddles where you “have to get back to camp.” Bring your outfit with you.
Dress for immersion. Cold water in spring, warm water in the fall.
Another thing to beware of is the low water levels, which means that maps such as the Fish-n-Map one will not match what you see, shoreline-wise. This means that scouting for suitable campsites will have to be done more carefully.
Ditto the posts about wind, cold water, powerboat and jetski traffic in warmer times. And comply with the waste disposal regulations (carry “boom boxes” or “poop pipes”). Also make sure you meet any requirements for preventing spread of Aquatic Invasive Species, sometimes referred to as Aquatic Nuisance Species.
Thanks for this information. I have a collapsable camping toilet that fits in the rear hatch of the kayak. Good to know about the water levels being lower than what is shown on the Fish-n-Map. We will be camping at the Wahweap campground and making day trips.
Day trips from a base camp makes good sense for checking out a new, big area. Toss in a one- or two-night foray if it looks promising. That’s what my husband and I did on our first trip to LP. Later on we did some longish kayak camping trips.
We now live only a couple hours’ drive from the nearest access point and hope to visit this winter to hike and see what has changed. No kayaking on this trip.
Low water levels behind the dam mean bigger beaches.
More places to land. Sometimes the beach can have poor footing and difficult to get ashore.
Just returned from our Lake Powell kayak trip. The weather was perfect with temps in the low 70’s. Talking to locals, the lake is at the lowest level they have seen in 14 years. The ramp at Antelope Point was high and dry. The ramp at Wahweap still reaches the water level. Paddled into Antelope Canyon, beached the kayaks and hiked into the canyon. Our next visit we will launch from Bullfrog or Hall’s Crossing.
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Glen Canyon dam needs to go. It is the biggest boondoggle in the history of dam building. None of the water stored is used for irrigation. It is just a big evaporator pond that covers up the beauty of Glen Canyon. The water saved could be stored behind Hoover Dam near where people live.
The main value of the Lake is for recreation, but at what cost?
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