The wind reached 35mph at 3am. the small tents stuck in the sand were pinnacles of darkness in the night of rain and wind. at about 5am the wind finally calmed a bit and the cold front had passed. this is the beginning of day 4, sea kyaking, on Lake Powell, in the Glen Canyon, Utah.
Spring break usually involves some
kind of beach party, tons of alcohol, drugs, and a general attitude of getting wild. For some however, spring break is a chance to break out and spring from the usual and fund the extraordinary in the wild. this group of 9 from Western State College headed for the amazing Glen Canyon.
It was clear from the beginning that this was no ordinary trip. The water, unlike paddling a river, were coming from all directions as did the wind. on day two we caught some large and imposing waves, by day three there were waves 2 feet high out on the water, and we chose not to paddle. that night it was clear that the weather was bad as many times we awoke to the thunderous flapping of our tents in the wind and rain. However the wind blew itself out by 5 or 6am and it turned in to one of the best days of paddling we had; followed by two more in a row.
Our camp for two nights was an arm of the canyon uncovered by the low water levels apparent in the white walls extending 30-60 feet above the waves. the sunset was really something to see.
The night passed quietly and on Wednesday morning we went on our way up Iceberg Canyon.
The name fit well as we found while paddling the 3 miles in. The walls were white and had the look of ice in its final stages of melting into red sand and water. The Second curve brought it to an over hang and possible cave, though the sea kyaks would not fit all the way back.
Then I saw a truly amazing and slightly eerie sight. Cottonwood trees that must have once stood hundreds of feet tall, now drowned in the water and merely peeking out into the late afternoon canyon sun. As I paddled into the grove of trees they seemed to be mourning their former glory. Then I saw what they really had to say, and they spoke for themselves, as I looked back down the canyon.
The day ended a bit early and we had time for exploring more of the camp site area. there were some great rolling sand stone, and climbable cliffs to the north of camp. so naturally we headed for them.
After exploring as high as we could go on the small rolling ridge we went to explore the bouldering opportunities near camp. naturally they were epic.
As was also epic the view back north where we had paddled from, and the next day were returning to.
The final day brought us to the dock, yet only after one more night out, and some pretty strong wind and 2 foot waves.
the whole trip was toatally worth the time and was tons of fun. I love paddling instead of motoring. Paddling is like to walking on a nature trail instead of driving in a clustered city. I would never want to leave the first two, and could live a lifetime withou the other.
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