I wonder if the NPS or Aramark has ever tried to inventory the number of viable houseboat sites on the lake. Doubt that they have, especially because the number of sites changes greatly as lake goes up or down, so any inventory is almost outdated as soon as you complete it. That said, I've actually taken a preliminary stab at that exercise, in the sense that I've put together a narrative and maps (unpublished) of where all the possible sites are in each canyon at different lake levels, but it's only somewhat useful, because even a 5-foot rise or drop can make a formerly great site impossible in some cases. Although the number seems almost limitless in places like Padre Bay, once you get north of there, and certainly past Rock Creek Bay, it's almost possible to count them, and there's not as many as you might think.
I bring this up because in the Beach Bag campaign, the presumption is that at lower lake levels, there are fewer available sites for large boats that don't otherwise require pinning. That may be true (although some new beaches are created at low levels), but it would be interesting to compare the houseboat capacity of the lake (and the Padre/Gunsight area in particular) at, say 3600 and 3530, and see what kind of capacity is actually gained by the Beach Bag program as a response to lower lake levels. My point here is that if it's not a substantial difference (although it may be), then the Beach Bag program is solving a "problem" that doesn't really exist, with the prime beneficiary being Beach Bags itself, as well as a few behemoth-sized boats that otherwise might have some difficulty finding a spot. This would speak to the necessity (if there is one) of the program.
I think I found another good research project for someone.
