Deepening the cut?

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Meatwagon

Meatwagon

Keeper of San Juan Secrets
I was wondering if there is any talk of dredging the cut any deeper? I thought they fractured the rock even deeper than they able to take out. Seems like it would be a good time if it's out of water again and if it has dried out enough for them to move the equipment in.
 
The Castle Rock Cut has been deepened with heavy duty excavation equipment on 3 occasions beginning at a MSL of 3622. The cost was over 1.5 million dollars each time The more recent excavation dropped the level down to 3580. Here is more information with pictures:

Wayne's Words

Home to the Lake Powell fishing, boating, and outdoor recreation community.
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The Lake level this morning is 3575 which is 5 feet down below the last excavation. This is important because the busiest marina in the southern lake is at Wahweap. Those launching there to head uplake must now go toward the dam and then through Antelope Marina until they reach the mouth of Warm Creek which is 13 miles further than the short trip through the Castle Rock Cut, via Warm Creek, to the main channel. That adds 26 miles to a round trip to Padre Bay and beyond.

The worst part is the large number of boat wakes rebounding off the 16 miles of narrow canyon walls from the dam to Padre Bay. The Cut is really needed to conserve gas consumption, reduce boat wakes, and increase boater satisfaction for those that launch at Wahweap or Antelope Point.
 
How nice would the cut deepening be for all us on the south end but am afraid it may be a very slippery slope, When do they say enough is enough. I certainly would be all in. That represents 4 additional hours to get uplake and back pulling fishing boats behing a houseboat.
 
Goblin said:
Well maybe not quite that far:
View attachment 3928
At over twice the distance each way it is approximately 16.4 miles added to a round trip. But, on a busy day in the washing machine, it seems like a much longer trip indeed.

And you should have seen the one that got away🤪,
Goblin
Click to expand...

Great Map - the mileage difference is that I added the Maytag straits from the mouth of Warm Creek (buoy 12) to the mouth of Gunsight (buoy 17) where you finally break out out of the rough water caused by everyone's boat wakes that makes the trip uplake. I did not subtract the mileage through the cut to Buoy 12. Thanks for adding that. I guess we both agree that it would be a lot nicer to go through the CRC than to make the entire trip from Wahweap Marina - Antelope Point- Maytag straits. And the extension adds a lot of time, bumpy water and gas money to the trip.
 
Wayne, between the 2nd and 3rd dredge did they drill and crack more?? I thought I had heard from those boys that they did the drilling on the 2nd dredge and pulled to the bottom of the drilling on the 3rd.
I can be wrong, ive slept since 2014
 
ROSCOELAB said:
Wayne, between the 2nd and 3rd dredge did they drill and crack more?? I thought I had heard from those boys that they did the drilling on the 2nd dredge and pulled to the bottom of the drilling on the 3rd.
I can be wrong, ive slept since 2014
Click to expand...
3580 wasn't the original target depth, it was 3582. I think that is where you're getting the 2 extra feet possibly? A few of us met, and got a personal tour of the cut during the construction/destruction process from the excavation company owner. It was pretty incredible actually DRIVING a truck down into the cut. There isn't anything currently blasted deeper...….we got what we got. I bet it's mid-June before enough water floods the cut again to use it.
 
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