Wind question

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Basshound91

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Not new to powell but first time taking my own boat out. 19 ft nitro bass. Launching from wahweap. Furthest I'd go is last chance. What wind conditions do and speed does it start to get too bad in the main bay for waves. I've dealt with waves at lake plez in AZ but know there nothing compared to powell. Trip is may 18th through 22nd thanks
 
Heavy winds suck! It sucks to boat in and really sucks to try to fish in. If winds are bad I usually just stay off the lake. If not too bad I will troll rather than try to pound the shore for bass.
 
People handle wind differently and different parts of the lake handle wind differently, canyons vs bays etc.. These are my personal preferences but anything below 20 is game on for fishing, traveling etc, to me a steady 20 means bust out the cranks. Anything over 20 gets my attention and makes me question fishing, changing plans, hunkering down etc..

The elements at Powell make it as unique as anything, at times Powell can seem like the most peaceful place ever, at other times it’s downright scary.
 
White caps will start to form when the sustained wind speed is 15mph in the open areas like Padre Bay. I'm a local, have a 19' Nitro bass boat, and go to Last Chance frequently. My Nitro bass boat does just fine in sustained 15mph winds on Powell. If sustained winds are more than 15mph, expect a very bumpy ride and having to go slow to plow through the waves. If sustained winds are 20mph or more, I would question going to Last chance and be looking for an alternative plan.
 
If it helps even more we moved our trip because of the wind this weekend. I think we could’ve managed just fine but it would’ve been uncomfortable and annoying.
 
Fursniper said:
White caps will start to form when the sustained wind speed is 15mph in the open areas like Padre Bay. I'm a local, have a 19' Nitro bass boat, and go to Last Chance frequently. My Nitro bass boat does just fine in sustained 15mph winds on Powell. If sustained winds are more than 15mph, expect a very bumpy ride and having to go slow to plow through the waves. If sustained winds are 20mph or more, I would question going to Last chance and be looking for an alternative plan.
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I concur with Fursniper. Winds up to 15 mph is doable but above that it is just not fun to be out there. Stay home if possible. If coming back in 20 mph winds go slow and ride carefully over each wave at a 45 degree angle.
 
It gets worse than you would think. I was there last week with the idea that a lake with so many curves would be ok in almost any wind; I was wrong......I live in Wyoming, so I have a bit of experience with wind..... We got caught in 25+mph with 50 mph gusts and it was bad.....one of the worst I have been in...5 footers plus for sure. Speared two waves on the way back. Dicey trip from Ice burg to Bullfrog but we made it ok (Ranger FS620)...lesson learned for me, I will watch for those NOAA weather advisories, not the hourly app on my phone which was wildly inaccurate.
 
I agree with Lake Bum. We spent 12 hours holed up during a tourney. I have started keeping fire-starters, a single burner propane stove and a few Mountain House freeze dried dinners on the boat just for peace of mind.
 
In the GHB area I thought I would have been able to get a weather update on my handheld marine radio. I wasn’t able to do so. Is there a method to get weather in that area?
 
BPappas said:
In the GHB area I thought I would have been able to get a weather update on my handheld marine radio. I wasn’t able to do so. Is there a method to get weather in that area?
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I use an in-reach by garmin and have my wife text me the weather for the next day each day I'm out. More often if the weather is dicey. Works well and it also has SOS if things hit the fan. Also has a tracking function for those that want to keep an eye on where you are. Bought it for back country elk hunting but works great at powell. It does have signal issues in the very backs of some canyons.
 
TundraMan said:
I use an in-reach by garmin and have my wife text me the weather for the next day each day I'm out. More often if the weather is dicey. Works well and it also has SOS if things hit the fan. Also has a tracking function for those that want to keep an eye on where you are. Bought it for back country elk hunting but works great at powell. It does have signal issues in the very backs of some canyons.
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Thanks. I’ll look into those Garmins.
 
Last June, we had already delayed our trip by one day because of winds, and decided to make a run for it on the following day. It wasn't bad in Wahweap Bay at all. Our destination was Escalante for 5 days. As soon as I popped out of the channel into Padre Bay, my decision was made for me.......big rollers. I've spent my whole life on Powell, and my boat would most definitely take them, but the risk is absolutely NOT worth it. If you lose power for any reason, you're done.
We ducked into a nice protected cove up against the back of Gunsite Butte, and had a wonderful day swimming, fishing, hiking, then cooking fresh fish for dinner. I pulled anchors just before light the next morning, and headed uplake. My family awoke in the cuddy just as I was coming off plane, pulling into Dangling Rope marina to topoff fuel. We then head uplake to Escalante, and ended up lucking out with timing, and scored one of the BEST campsites on the entire lake in a big cave.
FB_IMG_1525008831664.jpg My moral of the story is, don't be upset if your plans get altered by the weather, it just may end up being one of the best trips afterall....
 
For some reason Powell gets less wind than most other Arizona lakes. The problem is when you do get a big wind on Powell you've got a big problem. My advice is to pay attention to the forecasts. If the wind is predicted to be above 10 mph, don't venture out too far. If the wind is expected to come up to between 10 and 15 mph, stay in a bit closer. I agree that once the wind is over 15 it's pretty miserable out there.

I'm 65 years old and have been fishing for 61 one those years. I've had a lot of great experiences fishing in a lot of great places. At this point in my life I see no need to get out there when conditions are bad. I can always stay an extra day or two as I'm retired. There is simply no need for me to get out there and get beat to death. Now things might be different if you're younger and have limited time to fish. You can't always wait for the better conditions. Sometimes you just have to go. I've been there and done that. I don't have to do it now! :)

Ed Gerdemann
 
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