Easter Fishing

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The chances for bad weather are probably higher in the spring, but the windy days are more predictable than summer thunderstorms. I have found that the forecasts are pretty good up to 3-4 days out, and just planning around the bad days is not that hard. Just be sure you have a spot to anchor the boat that will keep it out of the biggest waves. Last year we went out when they were predicting strong winds on day 3 of a 5 day trip. We camped in a protected bay that blocked wave action from all but a NE wind. We watched a group of 3 boats pull into a great looking spot to set up camp, but it was totally exposed to a long wave fetch, and direct westerly wind. When the wind kicked up their camp was battered, and they were continually messing with their boats to keep them safe. They looked miserable. Our camp was not nearly as nice, but we were out of the waves and wind. I have been through a bunch of sleepless nights checking on the boat too much to make that mistake again!!!

Summer T-storms are another matter, and can pop up more randomly and catch you unprepared or at a vulnerable location....
 
When looking for camp sites, is there a general rule that works best, based on knowledge of which way the winds and waves typically prevail?

E.g. is it better to pick one on a west inlet, east inlet, south, north, etc.?

I picked up on the nuances of finding spots that are protected from bow wakes, you really just have to find a spot that doesn't have a direct line of sight to the "main" travel channel of whatever area you're in.

But what I also found was if you do that, it's only half the equation.

The other half is anticipating which way the wind will blow (every afternoon it seems), and if a storm comes in, finding somewhere that provides a modicum of shelter.

From feedback here it sounds like in a storm a reasonable choice is to find a "canyon"... one that has some walls and can protect against the open sweeping winds. The problem with those if you don't have a trolling motor is staying off the rocks and walls as you drift around. But that's only if you're on the boat.

If you want to set up a camp that's going to stay a few days, is there a general set of rules or guidelines we can establish that maximize our chances of awesomeness? (less sand-blasting and boat fixing)

If you have any specific camping sites you recommend in the Gunsight, Padre, or Last Chance Bay, let me know.

Post here, or privately if you prefer not to flood the location with a bunch of people.

Thanks.
 
Generally speaking you just want the LEAST amount of open bay directly hitting your boat wherever you camp. If we can find the best spot with only that in mind it takes care of the rest, no need to worry about wind changing directions etc. you'd never find a "perfect" Powell spot taking in all those factors. So, pulling up to a spot, look behind you and see how much open water is hitting your boat from the back and sides, if its about 50 yards of less, then you'll be fine. That's how I judge.
 
This is huge generalization, but, storm fronts usually start out from the south-southwest, and as the front moves through, they transition to west, then west-northwest. The forecasts will indicate the wind direction. I go off of this, but generally try and avoid spots exposed to westerly winds, especially with a large, unbroken bay in front of it. The perfect spots are where a bay spirals into a spot where you have nearly complete protection from waves. I have found a few of these, but they are always changing, depending on the water level!
 
My ideal spot is when you can hook around anything that blocks as much area as possible. A small inlet into a beach area is the bomb and there are such places at different elevations. Rock Creek proper has a huge rock spine that you have to go around to get into the cove which would be one of the best examples. It is on the left side about 1 1/2 miles in on the left side. At the back of friendship on the left side is a sand bar that you can hook around that is fully protected but if the wind is out of the south you can get sandblasted. There are a bunch but you will recognize them instantly with their strengths and weaknesses as you spend more time on the lake. As far as prevailing winds, my opinion is that you will see a lot more "normal" winds that are around 15 mph coming out of the n.w. or w. but the two worst storms I've been in "60 mph sustained for about 8 hours" came out of the south and north respectively. I was coming out of West Canyon at night in the work boat, a 23" aluminum fully enclosed cabin with twin 150s. As soon as I started getting close to the mouth the waves that had been building from the back of Last Chance began breaking over the bow and although the boat was a self bailer, I had to make a decision, right at that moment one of the lenses from my glasses popped out. Decision made. I turned around and pulled up to a houseboat, they let me spend the night and as far as I know I still am the only mechanic that has spent the night on the lake. My point is, who really knows what will happen when you're out there? Had my glasses not broke I may have decided to try to get back and God knows what Padre looked like. I'm glad I turned back even though I got a ration of crap in the morning. Of course I contacted the dock via vhf and they got a hold of my wife so I didn't have to worry about her. Blah Blah Blah, you get the jist. I promise you don't want to be a member of the club of lost souls that are all suspended in a group at the bottom waiting for some scuba diver to scare the crap out of him. I have felt the Lady Of The Lake grab my legs one time and I never want to feel that again. Thankfully my son in law was there to pull me out. Don't push your luck on this lake.
 
I think this is a great conversation to have.

Last September my wife and I beached our boat north across from Wahweap on that white clay beach area. It was calm as calm can be. We setup a shade, some chairs, and just enjoyed the sun, quiet, and beauty while listening to an audio book for about half an hour when...

Around 1pm, a sudden gust hit us and it escalated to a full on gail-force wind within 2 minutes.

We almost lost the shade (I had it tied down with 8 anchors!) then couldn't get the boat off the beach because the wind was blowing us so hard sideways into the sticky clay/mud.

I eventually got the boat turned around by man-handling it in 4 feet of water, then talking my wife into throwing me a line so when I had it deep enough to clear the prop, she could gun it, and pull me a ways (well behind the prop holding the rope) into the bay, where I pulled myself into the boat. I had a life jacket on of course.

Lesson learned: Don't assume nice weather will hold, and don't setup camp or even anchor in an exposed area! Be prepared!

We found out later that day, a houseboat in Padre Bay was literally blown over by that same gust and a large marble-slab countertop chopped some poor elderly woman's arm off, injured the captains wife, and all his family were tossed into the water. Scary stuff.

From this experience we began doing things a bit differently:

1. Even when stopping on the beach for a chill (shade, chairs, etc.) but not camping, we always find a protected area if possible.
2. Use anchors on whatever you set up (we have anchors lines, spikes, and sand-bags you weigh things down with)
3. Tie the chairs and table(s) up too! Sitting your cooler on top of the table is a quick substitute for setting up anchor lines.
4. When anchoring the boat, if the slope of the beach allows it, back the boat to the beach, bow-out.
5. Use an Anchor buddy (bungie), which assists in pulling your boat away from shore when departing, and keeping the boat positioned off the beach/mud, etc.
6. Tie up so the bow points into waves and prevailing wind (or breeze).
7. Monitor the Weather Channel!
 
Saw an 8' x 2' long fiberglass box with a cushion on it that was used as a bench seat on the top beck of a large houseboat and doubled as a life jacket stow picked up by a micro burst at least 50' in the air and slammed down on the dock within 5' of our mechanic manager. He was clueless until it hit. You never know. This whole storm lasted less that 5 minutes. I think you're a quick study Chris.
 
It looks like our first trip of the year will be March 22-25(Spring Break). If the weather looks good the weekend before, I may slip down to "toe the water" so to speak. We'll have two campers in Farley(a 5th wheel, and a 23' Hybrid StarCraft), towed by a red 3/4 ton ford , and brown 1 ton Ford, and the wifes Navigator thrown in for good measure. We normally camp near the cottonwood trees below the bathrooms(before the road gets rough). We'll hopefully be launching in Farley(if no one is inconsiderately blocking the turnaround), so if anyone needs lessons on avoiding the rock, I'll be happy to demo(but only once). I may have my wife take a video of the whole procedure to emulate Dungee, and his great videos.
 
John P Funk said:
It looks like our first trip of the year will be March 22-25(Spring Break). If the weather looks good the weekend before, I may slip down to "toe the water" so to speak. We'll have two campers in Farley(a 5th wheel, and a 23' Hybrid StarCraft), towed by a red 3/4 ton ford , and brown 1 ton Ford, and the wifes Navigator thrown in for good measure. We normally camp near the cottonwood trees below the bathrooms(before the road gets rough). We'll hopefully be launching in Farley(if no one is inconsiderately blocking the turnaround), so if anyone needs lessons on avoiding the rock, I'll be happy to demo(but only once). I may have my wife take a video of the whole procedure to emulate Dungee, and his great videos.
Click to expand...
Never been up that way, sounds like a great adventure
 
John P Funk said:
We'll hopefully be launching in Farley(if no one is inconsiderately blocking the turnaround), so if anyone needs lessons on avoiding the rock, I'll be happy to demo(but only once). I may have my wife take a video of the whole procedure to emulate Dungee, and his great videos.
Click to expand...

That would be great! Even if you just did it on a phone or something I could give you my number or email etc.. I'm super curious about launching at that spot and although I've even measured the spot and my trailer I would love to see it demonstrated ha.
 
This is a generalization - and may only apply to the north end of the lake - but my ideal orientation for the houseboat is a SW-to-NE axis. I don't really care which end of the boat faces which way as long as I can match that general position. It's only my experience, but I've felt much more secure in that orientation than any other. Again, very generalized, your mileage may vary. :)
 
Preston,

Good to hear you may be on the lake when we are there. 23-31 Would love to have lunch with you guys and swap some fishing stories. (fish fry)
I'm really hoping to launch at Hite, so I'm taking my waders and a ten foot tongue extension. (keeps my tail pipe out of the water).
Not too worried about getting stuck, cause we'll have two trucks with boats. Just worried about getting out to the main channel with the boats loaded down with all our gear. I figure Hite will be around 3612 by the 23rd and we'll be launching over the brush. I really hate that 30 mile boat ride from bullfrog!!

Last March I looked at launching a Farley, but the road to the launch was a bit rough & rutted for a 21 ft boat and trailer. The two rocks weren't that bad, (side hill) but the turn around area is small for a crew cab and boat. And a small truck was park at the top of the turn around that day, making it even smaller. Think I'd have to unhook the boat trailer and spin it around by hand and reconnect to launch. Of course the water is 18-20 feet deeper this year.

Tongue extension
(Not my Video)

I hope the weather is good that week.........
Gregg
 
Would love to catch up if given the chance. Funny because we've thought about the extension idea as well, except in my mind I would just put the 2" square metal into the receiver, so it would be like a receiver extension more than a tongue extension. But that was our Blue Notch days ha. Hopefully there are some newer updates on launching closer to our dates. At least the ride up from Bullfrog is magnificent, it just cuts down on fishing time...
 
Hmm, his solution to reduce the pressure on the hitch, where it connects to the boat trailer only takes the weight off that connection. The tongue weight would be leveraged quite a bit, and put a lot of weight and strain on the receiver I would think!!!

I only think this would work if boat was nearly balanced on the trailer an there was almost no tongue weight......
 
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Hi,
I thought about going into the 2" receiver too. But you have to have a pivot point. The trailer end is locked up in place by the ball and the pinned bracket.
Best if used on a tandem axle trailer, with less than 200 lbs tongue weight.
My extension is 2 1/2" x 2" x 1/8" thick square, cut in two 6' pieces with a slip over 12" coupler. total of 12' long. A little heavy but strong.
I use it on rivers with unimproved launch sites. Haven't broke or bent it yet........ course I don't use it much.
Many sail boat have an internal telescoping tongue, much like this extension. Except mine breaks in half to fit in my truck.
The Bullfrog ride burns a lot of gas and time. Jet boats aren't the most fuel efficient boats when loaded down heavy. 4-5 miles per gallon @32 mph.

Blizzard weather here today and tomorrow! Where is spring??

Gregg
 
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