Tiff Mapel
Escalante-Class Member
Hi Wordlings,
So, with no official volunteer program this year, my team and I went rogue. Again. This is our 4th time to do this. I fear for the Trash Tracker program of going away, because of all the disruption to its schedule.... But, I digress....
We stayed in the slip at Wahweap, and took my Boston Whaler out each day. We just cleaned Wahweap Bay, and of course there was no shortage of trash. You literally could not go 10 feet on any beach without picking up aluminum cans, plastic bottles, plastic bags, hats, flip flops, or any other manner of trash. It's everywhere. You just don't see it from your boats when you're on the water, but get out and hike around on shore--yikes!!!!
We found a lower unit and a wrecked fiberglass boat. Broken chairs encrusted in mussels, and a rusted out propane tank. Various fishing poles, and lures, all manner of clothing, kiddie toys and floaties, and the weirdest thing I think I've ever found: six 50-pound bags of SAND. Just left there. In a pile. Who brings bags of sand to Powell?!?!?! Why?!?! Surely not as an anchor. Why not get a real anchor??? I emptied all the sand, and took the bags. Weird.
Each day we took a full boat load of trash to the docks at Stateline. The porters graciously schlepped the trash and large heavy items up to the dumpsters way up in the parking lot. Kudos to them!!
Each day it was hot--105 degrees. But we got wet all day long and stayed cool. No rain, but had perfect evenings for sleeping on top of the houseboat. Ahhh....
On Sunday, we made a run uplake for Warm Creek. For as beat up as we got in Maytag, Warm Creek was blissfully calm. So nice to have smooth, flat water. We did a lot of floating around enjoying the water, and a bit of hiking up to one of our old favorite mooring spots. It was about 80 feet out of the water. Then back to Antelope Point for ice cream. Overall, a great trip.
Oh yeah, launching and retrieving at the Stateline Aux. ramp was no problem at all. We followed everyone's advice and stayed to the north edge of the ramp. Easy peasy. We did notice that one day there was a line waiting to launch that stretched all the way up to the upper parking lot. I think that's the day that there was maintenance happening on the ramp--right at peak time for crowds. It was a mess for a couple hours, but then it calmed down.
I can't imagine Lake Powell without Trash Trackers. The program absolutely needs to continue. In case NPS and Aramark are listening, PLEASE BRING BACK THE TRASH TRACKER!!!
Tiff
So, with no official volunteer program this year, my team and I went rogue. Again. This is our 4th time to do this. I fear for the Trash Tracker program of going away, because of all the disruption to its schedule.... But, I digress....
We stayed in the slip at Wahweap, and took my Boston Whaler out each day. We just cleaned Wahweap Bay, and of course there was no shortage of trash. You literally could not go 10 feet on any beach without picking up aluminum cans, plastic bottles, plastic bags, hats, flip flops, or any other manner of trash. It's everywhere. You just don't see it from your boats when you're on the water, but get out and hike around on shore--yikes!!!!
We found a lower unit and a wrecked fiberglass boat. Broken chairs encrusted in mussels, and a rusted out propane tank. Various fishing poles, and lures, all manner of clothing, kiddie toys and floaties, and the weirdest thing I think I've ever found: six 50-pound bags of SAND. Just left there. In a pile. Who brings bags of sand to Powell?!?!?! Why?!?! Surely not as an anchor. Why not get a real anchor??? I emptied all the sand, and took the bags. Weird.
Each day we took a full boat load of trash to the docks at Stateline. The porters graciously schlepped the trash and large heavy items up to the dumpsters way up in the parking lot. Kudos to them!!
Each day it was hot--105 degrees. But we got wet all day long and stayed cool. No rain, but had perfect evenings for sleeping on top of the houseboat. Ahhh....
On Sunday, we made a run uplake for Warm Creek. For as beat up as we got in Maytag, Warm Creek was blissfully calm. So nice to have smooth, flat water. We did a lot of floating around enjoying the water, and a bit of hiking up to one of our old favorite mooring spots. It was about 80 feet out of the water. Then back to Antelope Point for ice cream. Overall, a great trip.
Oh yeah, launching and retrieving at the Stateline Aux. ramp was no problem at all. We followed everyone's advice and stayed to the north edge of the ramp. Easy peasy. We did notice that one day there was a line waiting to launch that stretched all the way up to the upper parking lot. I think that's the day that there was maintenance happening on the ramp--right at peak time for crowds. It was a mess for a couple hours, but then it calmed down.
I can't imagine Lake Powell without Trash Trackers. The program absolutely needs to continue. In case NPS and Aramark are listening, PLEASE BRING BACK THE TRASH TRACKER!!!
Tiff
