Glen Canyon National "Recreation" Area

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I can't help but wonder if Park Service and/or the state of Utah are wanting to see unmetered "wild" launch and retrieve sights closed over the
"Muscles Containment" program? Just a thought
 
tt600 said:
The kind of boats that transport mussels don’t launch at Blue notch.
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I suppose but no one launches there anymore unless they break the law. I've never been there so are you saying only John boats could launch there? On the South end our unimproved launch opportunities are scarce but I've launched a large ski boat off of Lone Rock Beach before. Is it the beach or getting in there at Blue notch?
 
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Marina Bum said:
I suppose but no one launches there anymore unless they break the law. I've never been there so are you saying only John boats could launch there? On the South end our unimproved launch opportunities are scarce but I've launched a large ski boat off of Lone Rock Beach before. Is it the beach or getting in there at Blue notch?
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The road is Spectacular, and somewhat terrifying. It’s Narrow, with sharp turns, big dropoffs and passes through several washes. That in itself would limit boats size. But you also need to negotiate the shoreline and hope for a spot with the the right gradient, lack of obstacles, and most importantly: no mud!

It is a drive worth doing!
 
I agree with Dorado and upthecreek; the road is an adventure. I travelled as far as I could a year ago in June. I tried going farther, but the "loose cobblestone hills" stopped my quest (I felt that I could slide and possibly roll over). In my photos you can see where I ended up. The road to the loose cobblestone hill is to the left, just out of the picture. To the right I saw only gullies and ditches; no way my 4wd Silverado could fly over them. Another thing that stopped my was the fact that I was alone, way out on a remote road, with no backup if anything went wrong. I was disappointed. I want to do it again!

Blue Notch 1.jpg

Blue Notch 2.jpg
 
Jan Hertzen said:
I agree with Dorado and upthecreek; the road is an adventure. I travelled as far as I could a year ago in June. I tried going farther, but the "loose cobblestone hills" stopped my quest (I felt that I could slide and possibly roll over). In my photos you can see where I ended up. The road to the loose cobblestone hill is to the left, just out of the picture. To the right I saw only gullies and ditches; no way my 4wd Silverado could fly over them. Another thing that stopped my was the fact that I was alone, way out on a remote road, with no backup if anything went wrong. I was disappointed. I want to do it again!

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We used to camp right here back in the days when there was water. There was always a spot to drop the boat off. Getting it back out sometimes was a chore, but well worth it.
 
JFRCalifornia said:
I'm no expert on park management, so am not sure I can give a useful opinion regarding your question. And I'm not very familiar with how things are run at either Glacier or Yellowstone. But I do know Yosemite well, since it's only a 4-hour drive from my house and I go there a lot. Here's my impression of how things are managed there. Nearly every aspect of that park is now managed by private concessions, and just like at GCNRA, it's Aramark doing the work. It feels like Aramark is much more invested in what goes on at Yosemite than at GCNRA, for better or worse. Not that they necessarily are doing things great, but it feels more organized. Lodging is privatized and therefore expensive, since profit is the key motive, not public service. As any private company does, they sometimes outsmart themselves in the name of "marketing." They made the bonehead move a few years ago renaming all their historic lodges, but later realized that was stupid, people went crazy, and so eventually went back to calling the Ahwahnee Hotel the Ahwahnee Hotel... so they are at least responsive to things like that.

On the downside, Yosemite feels a lot more like Disneyland than GCNRA does--overmanaged and sometimes a little too much like an "attraction" rather than a "national park." But it generally runs well, and they do a good job managing the huge crowds, which are way more concentrated than the ones at GCNRA. Overall, while I can nit-pick, it does feel like they pay attention at Yosemite. You can disagree with some of the things they do, but you can understand why they do them.

At GCNRA, it feels more haphazard, more inconsistently managed. Hard to say why, since both parks are run by Aramark. But I do think that NPS pays more attention to and probably coordinates better with Aramark at Yosemite. Is that because Yosemite is much older, much better known as a National Park, and so they know that the public is paying attention? Or is it because of the schizophrenic nature of GCNRA's mission--recreation AND resource protection? Or is it that Aramark makes a lot more money at Yosemite through its concessions and lodging, which are more compact and centralized than at GCNRA? Hard to say.

That's my two cents...
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I grew up going to Yosemite in the 70’s and 80’s only two hours from the park. I recently went back with my youngest (24 years old) daughter and my wife to show them why it is my second favorite park (1st being Lake Powell). I was quite disappointed in the commercialism that has taken place since the 80’s. All parks, in general, have transformed into a recreation zone where visitors demand all the amenities they would have at home. Long gone are the days where going to a park meant that you escaped from the hustle and bustle of city life. For us, we spend very little time at the marina and go up lake to enjoy the incredible lake scenery. Our family loves to soak up the warm water, fish, hike, boat, wake board & water ski, etc. There’s no better place to do that and not interact with modern day amenities (except the houseboat, of course) than Lake Powell.

As you put it, Yosemite has become like a Disneyland because access to the vast number of points of interest are so easy to get to. What I think is different about Powell is that so much of the Lake isn’t accessible to everyone because you need a boat to get around.

I am optimistic for the future of Powell, albeit cautiously, but unless we get involved in trying to influence change, we will never know.
 
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Stuart Hepworth said:
Why can't they? Nobody is stopping them from going in there, camping, fishing, hunting...you can still do that. Is it more difficult to launch your boat? Yes. But, that doesn't mean you can't launch somewhere else. That doesn't mean that future generations can't enjoy that area. That's simply not true at all. I would argue that the closures have possibly made that area even more enjoyable.
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One huge advantage to access Blue Notch by shore on the EXISTING road. In the ability to access the lake, launch a small boat away from the high traffic areas around the marinas. You don’t need an expensive large boat ( that some don’t have or can’t afford) to haul all the gear and to do it safely from the main launch ramps. I took my little tin boat in there in 1980 and it allowed me a safe place to camp and fish without traveling from Hite or Bullfrog. Which my little boat was not a safe option to travel that far from the marinas. It a great spot for canoes and kayaks . I think that access, which has historically been used for decades should be open. I don’t think there has been significant damage from that access point and many have had great recreational opportunities for 50 plus years. Access like that is hard to duplicate on the lake with so few access points. It adds another way to recreate in the recreation area. With little downside IMHO.
 
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