Lake Powell Houseboating Trip - Part 1

I recently got the opportunity to houseboat on Lake Powell with wife Helen, photographer Gary Ladd, and some other friends both new and old. While many people poo-poo the reservoir as devoid of anything natural, we found many places where the scenery was spectacular and the geology was interesting. I took a lot of photo's so this this is the first of three parts about this 7 day adventure!

Reflections from the marina where we started our trip

The Antelope Cut is closed due to low levels in the reservoir. The level of water for this trip was approximately 3602'. Here Art maneuvers our 53' Adventurer in the old channel of the Colorado River, now some 500 feet beneath the lkae.

Dominguez Rock is a fabulous landform with a base of Navajo Sandstone, a lower apron of the Carmel Formation, sheer walls of the Entrada Sandstone, and a cap of the Romana Sandstone

A typical landing along Lake Powell. Note the gang way that extends from the bow to allow for dry landings!

Three dinosaur footprints preserved in the Navajo Sandstone. On this trip we would see numerous and excellent trackways.

More reflections on a calm winter day

With the reservoir dropping (a normal occurrence in the winter), many pools of clear water can be found perched above the lake. The colors are fantastic.

Darryl angling for as good shot

The master at work. Be sure to see Gary Ladd's portfolio of Lake Powell photographs in the current (April) issue of Arizona Highways magazine.

This pond is about 10 feet above the lake waters below it

A view up Last Chance Bay

Glen Canyon was drowned with rhew filling of Lake Powell but an outer canyon still exists here

Barb Denney and wife Helen enjoying the deck of the houseboat. Barb made a slide show of our adventure and you can watch it here: . Thank you Barb!

See the dinosaur trackway in the shadows of the ledge? These are in the Ramona Sandstone and were made by a dinosaur called Megasauropod.

These are miner's stairs chipped into the Navajo Sandstone along the shoreline. Miners may have been descending to sand bars along the Colorado River for flour gold.

Receding lake levels leave a beautiful pattern of striations on the shore. Each line generally represents a single 24-hour period and this sequence represents almost a month of declining levels.

A drowned ghost forest of tamarisk

Photographers heading up the slickrock for a view

Here is some of what they saw

And this

And this! A snow covered Navajo Mountain in the far distance is a Colorado Plateau laccolith.

Gary brough out his 4X5 camera for the first time in a year and a half

Sunset over Lake Powell