November 6th, 2022
We were having a great time in New Mexico, but it was time to move on to other adventures in Utah. We would go right by the Glen Canyon Dam, through the southern tip of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Normally, we go see the sights near places where we are staying, but many national parks have good RV parking at their visitor centers. Glen Canyon was no exception, so we planned a few hours there. The drive was gorgeous.
We wandered through the visitor center, learning about the dam and taking pictures of the big canyon below us. There was a lot of information to gather, because the whole, huge water of Lake Powell only had two motorboat-accessible ramps open. One was much farther north, and the other was near the dam. We left the motor home at the visitor center and drove the boat out to the ramp to check things out.
The ramp was huge! The original ramp didn't reach the water anymore, so you left the cement and headed across a lot of gravel to get to an auxiliary, cement ramp. That ramp was steep and very long. We didn't see many people, but it still took us a while to get launched because the walk to and from the car and trailer took a bit of time.
We finally got on the water and zoomed off into the scenery. The walls were so cool, with layered sandstone stretching above us. Margot found a cove (her favorite kind of boating), and we headed in. Even though the water level was drastically lower than its high point (you can see the "bathtub ring" that shows that high level), there was still a lot to see.
The canyon we were in got tighter and tighter as we went, and we shared the space with kayakers. The water was clear and beautiful, but then that gave way to water completely covered with debris. Small sticks and logs completely blocked our view of the water.
Our Australian Labradoodle doesn't really like getting her face wet. She won't jump out of the boat into water without a lot of coaxing, and she usually manages to not get her face wet. When we beach the boat, she is usually the first one off, instantly running around. Unfortunately, the debris-covered water looked like land, so Lacey jumped off the boat and into it.
There was no shore, just steep rocks on both sides. She started swimming away, looking for land, so we frantically called for her to come back. Luckily, she turned around and made it back to the boat, covered in stuff. We thought it might be a while before she throws caution to the wind and jumps off of the boat again.
Even though we only had a short time to spend in the area, it was worth it to get into that slot canyon on Lake Powell. We got out of the water in daylight, but that put us at our destination (Hurricane, Utah) in the dark. That was kind of a drag, but we made it work. On to our next adventures!
