Friday, January 23, 2009
CAMPING SITES & HIGHLIGHTS ON THE RIVER
A FEW NOTES FOR THE BEGINNERS IN HOPES OF ENHANCING YOUR "LAKE" EXPERIENCE
Go south to the giant water cave inside Lost Eden. Take the 2nd left turn inside the canyon & go to the 2nd large water cave. It's big enough for 10 houseboats!
See Slick Rock & Iceberg Canyons for long sandy beaches & water skiing, & jet ski paradise. Big enough for several large speedboats or more than one houseboat. There are good Anasaz Indian Ruins (behind a fence) in Slick Rock which makes a nice hike.
Easy spots to visit include Tapestry Wall, Castle Butte up north at Good Hope Bay and more great Indian Ruins you can climb down into at Defiance House in Forgotten Canyon - good camping and fishing as well, and another good hike.
There's good fishing all along the wall & along the mouth of Moqui. It's also one of our gangs' favorite camping sites at the end of the "Moki" Canyon.
Getting on the lake late, a quick escape from Bull Frog, is Hobi Cat Bay (where you can have access from your automobile to the boats), or the caves across from Bull Frog heading south. That's also a good escape from Hall's Creek, or to the canyons inside Hall's Creek Bay.
Going north along the River for approx 8 miles to the mouth of Hansen's Creek you'll find hours of water play, diving, climbing, fishing & limited camping.
Going back south for a reasonable 2-3 hour houseboat ride is the Rincon. Camping is available around the Rincon and across the river. You can fish off the back of the boat and take speed boat outings further south along the large rim wall, to the mouth of Escalante River & beyond to Rainbow Bridge.
Continuing south to the Escalante River is adventures galore & of course, the famous La Gorce Arch which is visual from both sides as the river in Davis Gulch wraps around the corner. There are many good houseboat camping sites in most of the canyons in Escalante and well worth the travel time.
A must see is the Rainbow Bridge Nat'l Monument which, presently,requires a short hike. Follow it up with an ice cream & gas at mysterious Dangling Rope Marina ran by the Navajo Indian Reservation.
Hole-In-The-Rock is famous because the Mormons created a river crossing by blasting & fabricating a road 3/4 mile long descending nearly 1,000 feet for families, wagons & animals to enter the canyon. A ferry took them all across the river beginning in 1873. Later the ferry boat was moved to what is now called Hall's Crossing Marina.
Climbing to the top is for the hearty & extremely rewarding!
Beyond this point is the "OTHER HALF OF THE LAKE" and proves to be territory yet to discover including the Rock Creek Bay, Last Chance Bay, & Padre Bay which are all enormous areas with little boat traffic as well as the San Juan River running 50 miles long. These are the points of future exploration & adventure for us!
Go all the way to Wahweap Marina with us this year, over Labor Day to see Page, AZ, Glen Canyon Dam, & meet the kids from Phoenix for the long week end.
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