Lake Powell - Wahweap

Made a trip out to Lake Powell last week.  I tried my best to do research in advance but couldn't find a lot of kayak specific information so I just decided to "wing it".

If you're thinking about kayaking at Lake Powell, the first thing you need to know is this lake is HUGE.  The second thing you need to know is that there are very few access points.  Very Very few.  This is a motor boat paradise - but we still had tons of fun on our yak. 

Coming from California, the closest access to Lake Powell is about 20 miles north of Page, AZ.  As far as we could tell, there are 2 drive-in campgrounds and they both suck.  Wahweap Marina has RV full-hook-up campgrounds for $23 per night and Lone Rock Campground has primitive sites for $10.  Lone Rock is basically a big sandy beach with a sandy area behind it.  RV's were lined up along the beach - we found a semi-cozy spot to pitch our tent about .5 mile from the shore. 

We drove down to the beach and launched our yak and fished a little around "Lone Rock" - an island consisting of a single, monolithic rock.  There was a variety of water - deep, shallow, steep droppoffs, boulder piles, etc to fish within easy paddle of either campground - but the real appeal of Lake Powell, to me, is that you can camp anywhere along the shore . .so we loaded up our boat and headed out for an overnight at Warm Creek Bay.

Warm Creek Bay is accessible via Castle Rock Cut - only open at higher water levels.  If it's not open - then you might be able to portage . . otherwise it's a 12 mile paddle to go the long way around.

The paddle from Wahweap Marina to the cut is, quite frankly, terrifying.  There are a lot of rental powerboats.  A lot of those rental powerboats are captained by drunken fools who do not obey bouys or other markers.  The worst part is getting through the cut itself. . .being passed at 40 mph in a 20 foot wide channel by a 18-22 foot long power boat is quite the experience.  A lot like the log flume ride at Disneyland!  Even though there are lots of "no wake" bouys - I noticed that only about 50% of the boats obeyed.

Once through the cut you have the option of hanging a left into Warm Creek Bay or going straight to Padre Bay.   This was a trip with the GF so death-march style paddles were out of the question . .we headed up about 1 mile into Warm Creek Bay and made camp.  I estimate the paddling distance from the launch to our campsite was about 5 miles or so . . .

Lake Powell is not an easy spot for kayak fishing but I think it's worth a visit if you can avoid off-peak times.  During peak times, I can see how house-boats on every point can make finding a good camping spot a very arm tiring experience!  Since we were coming in the early fall - after water-skiing season - we had the lake mostly to ourselves.

Here are a few facts I wish I could have found more easily during my research:
-Campfires are legal but firewood is impossible to find.  Buy some in Page, AZ  (You can pack a surpising amount in a Cobra Tandem!)

-Portable toilets are required.  You can use Wag Bags but you need a "hard sided container" to keep the bags in.  I used a 1 foot length of 4inch pvc pipe.  I put a glued end cap on one end and a threaded end cap on the other. 

-Fishing Licenses:  If you are a non-resident you can't get a Lake Powell Stamp . .. you have to get a non-resident licence for AZ or UT or both.  We got both since we were in UT and AZ . . it was over $100 for licenses for 2 people

To be honest - we decided if we ever came back we would bring or rent a motor boat - but we still had loads of fun and I would say it is worth it to kayak fish Lake Powell.  If you can paddle at least a few miles and kayak camp it's worth it . . if you can paddle 10+ miles and stay out a few days -  so much the better.

As for the fishing - we didn't really hit it big.  We caught lots of smallies and had a good time, though.  We tried lots of stuff - but trolling Rappala ShapRap was the best for us.

Have Fun!

Great report, Chris.  Looks like pretty country.   

Here is a web site that has all the up to date fishing info on Lake Powell. It is by a biologist that has worked and fished there for 25 years. Good stuff.

http://www.wayneswords.com/

Ed

I bet the stars were OFF the hook at the campsite!

A visit to my old stomping grounds! I lived about an hour and a half south of there in Flagstaff for about 8 years before moving to the Bay area. I have only kayaked once on Powell and it was amateur hour for me since I had never paddled a sit inside ocean kayak before.

But, the fishing at Powell for smallies was always a blast. In a power boat we used to cruise in close to the cliffs looking at the fish finder for suspended fish. Once found we would toss chartreuse or pumpkin colored grubs up against the cliffs and let them sink for great smallie action. Also, you can get into some great striper boils on that lake!

I sure do miss Arizona and the Colorado Plateau! 

Great write-up, Chris. I have always wanted to visit Powell.
My first question was going to be, "Did you at least let Meredith cruise the Hobie, while you paddled the P13?!" Then I realized you invested in a tandem! Oh, the horror! Hahahahaha!
Hope everything is going well in helLA. Let me know next time you're passing through the Cen Coast.
See ya,
Pat