New Wakeless Zones in 3 Lake Powell Side Canyons

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Another law with no way to enforce it. There are already laws in existence that cover this. They dont enforce those either. What a bunch of nonsense.
It is a shame that a few bad apples have to spoil a wonderful area.
 
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When you decide to enforce waveless in a long canyon you essentially put it off limits to house boating as well. Trying to find a suitable place to park a houseboat while scouting canyons at wakeless speed is not possible. You are still going to have the jerks that ignore courtesy and common sense rules and all the regulations in the world will not change that.
 
The last time I was in Lost Eden (last August), some moron came full gas through the canyon towing a tube (with riders)--was one of the dumbest things I've ever seen and it was all we could do (in my wake boat, traveling wakeless like should always be done in that canyon) to keep from taking on water--had to get the boat up to speed just to keep from being swamped.

Yes, I have a wake boat and regularly run the thing with over 3500 pounds of ballast, but only when there aren't others around to suffer the consequences. Why people can't use LP (or any other lake for that matter) without annoying everyone else around them is hard for me to understand. Do we need a separate set of regs for Lost Eden and other canyons? Probably not, but some common sense + enforcement of existing restrictions either don't exist or aren't enough. I'd love it if the idiots that can't get along with others would stop giving us wake boat owners a bad name! Until then, I'll keep doing my part, even if it means sitting idle in the main channel for a few minutes so a houseboat can pass by :)
 
I'm really glad that we have people in the country with a passion for environmentalism. Because they are there, I don't have to be one. I can't deal with the male hairstyles that are so important to the uniform. I just don't look good in a man-bun.

Potter, The man-bun is really just a "millennial mullet". :)

GregC
 
How about just stopping skiing and wakeboarding in these side canyons and enforce the 150 foot rule? And, yes wakes are a pain when you are camped in these side canyons, if people would just use common sense we would not have this issue in the first place.

That said -- what happened to having a public comment period? I see pretty much everything to do with Glen Canyon or Lake Powell and I never saw anything about a comment period regarding this new regulation.
 
150 ft rule does not work when there are 8 kayaks spread out all over. I was recently crusing up Antelope in my jet boat. Was going about 20 or so and came across two separate groups that were all over the place. Didn't leave any room for anyone to get thru. When it's busy I would not get on plane thru Antelope but when it's not sometimes it's nice to cruise up.

I have not done much kayaking in Lake Powell so maybe I would have a different view of this but I don't like adding more regulations and rules. Especially when it seems like not many even know the current rules.

Mike
 
Instead of a law, they could have just have easily put up the bouys/signs at the mouth of the canyon reminding boaters of the 150 foot wakeless rule.
I wonder what % of the boaters even know about this regulation?
 
The 150 foot rule works quite well. If there are 8 kayaks spread out, we pass them at a wakeless speed. If there is one swimmer, boat, or kayak in a canyon that is less than 150 feet wide, we drop to a wakeless speed to pass them. Whether we are driving a tour boat, a fishing boat, or a fully-loaded wakeboard boat, we drop to wakeless speed anytime we are closer than 150 feet to another boat or someone swimming. That is true if the other boat is floating in the water or anchored on shore. If everyone would follow this simple rule, we wouldn't have three new wakeless canyons and the threat of even more heavy-handed government intervention.

If slowing down 150 feet from another boat, idling 300 feet, then returning to planing speed 150 feet past the boat seems like a pain, we only need to remind ourselves of the alternative -- fully wakeless canyons.

I am reminded of a Virginia Woolf quote: "To enjoy freedom we have to control ourselves."
 
Endurance,

Fair enough, you are right its better to be safe and slow down. I need to learn more patience, LOL. I just love the feeling of cruising thru a canyon and I get caught up in the moment and do not want some kayak to ruin my fun. Besides how are they going to learn how to kayak well if there are no wakes? haha JK.

Mike
 
I have no problem with the narrow side canyons being wakeless, as that is how we always enjoyed them. Almost got swamped once in a runabout as a big cruiser came around a curve at WOT! Non-motorized? NOT!!
 
Someone suggested they triple the law enforcement, and triple the fees!!!!?????? Bwahahahahaha! That's a good one. How about they just double law enforcement, and stop our fees we already pay from going straight to Washington into the GENERAL FUND, then are dispersed very meagerly back to OUR LAKE! I get fired up at the hint of raising fees!
As far as these new rules.......they won't work. They don't enforce ANY other rules. Actually encountering law enforcement is a rare thing anymore....
 
Someone suggested they triple the law enforcement, and triple the fees!!!!?????? Bwahahahahaha! That's a good one. How about they just double law enforcement, and stop our fees we already pay from going straight to Washington into the GENERAL FUND, then are dispersed very meagerly back to OUR LAKE! I get fired up at the hint of raising fees!
As far as these new rules.......they won't work. They don't enforce ANY other rules. Actually encountering law enforcement is a rare thing anymore....
The way that I read the comment was that tripling fees is what it would take to get that type of enforcement. I don't think (hope) that is what was suggested.

And as far as fees, there would have to be enforcement of that too. A buddy of mine goes to the lake at least once per year with us. And often with another family. Last year he asked me about the parks pass on my boat. The person manning the entrance booth had always just sold him a vehicle pass - never a boat pass. Despite the fact that overtime he bought the vehicle pass, he was towing his boat.

In all my years at the lake, I have never been checked for a pass. And I can only think of one time when a ranger stopped me on the water (due to a new boat without registration numbers). Although I do see NPS stalking the slips to make sure no one is swimming......
 
The last time I was in Lost Eden (last August), some moron came full gas through the canyon towing a tube (with riders)--was one of the dumbest things I've ever seen and it was all we could do (in my wake boat, traveling wakeless like should always be done in that canyon) to keep from taking on water--had to get the boat up to speed just to keep from being swamped.

Yes, I have a wake boat and regularly run the thing with over 3500 pounds of ballast, but only when there aren't others around to suffer the consequences. Why people can't use LP (or any other lake for that matter) without annoying everyone else around them is hard for me to understand. Do we need a separate set of regs for Lost Eden and other canyons? Probably not, but some common sense + enforcement of existing restrictions either don't exist or aren't enough. I'd love it if the idiots that can't get along with others would stop giving us wake boat owners a bad name! Until then, I'll keep doing my part, even if it means sitting idle in the main channel for a few minutes so a houseboat can pass by :)

Thanks Jake for your common sense ideas. There is room for all of us on Lake Powell if we just care for others and use consideration while boating.
 
NPS cant enforce wakeless in their own backyard, how are they going to do this, I was passed by two rental runabouts out of wahweep in the cut as I was wakeless going through there and they sped by just yesterday. Toothless proposition until someone is hurt, then we all will pay for others not using common sense and courtesy.
 
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