By Dave Webb, Feb., 2022
Also see our Lake Powell fishing articles.
Lake Powell is an amazing destination for kayaking. The lake is huge. It offers beautiful scenery, with sparkling blue water set against sheer red cliffs, and plenty of opportunity to get away form it all.
Many people bring their own kayaks. Others choose to rent. Kayaks are available for rent in Page and at all three Lake Powell marinas. You can also rent power boats and houseboats, if you want a boat-supported kayak trip.
To plan a trip on Lake Powell, first get this map, which shows the various canyons and how many miles they are above the dam: https://www.amazon.com/Powell-Canyons-Boating-Exploring-Laminated/dp/B00GEHYLC6
Be aware, there is no cell phone coverage over most of the lake. Phones will work near the marinas, but coverage fades quickly as you get out onto the lake. It would be good to carry a marine radio or satellite communicator, if you plan to paddle far.
Approaches to kayaking Powell
1. Stay in a lodge or camp near a marina and do day trips in the kayaks, returning every evening.
2. Use a boat shuttle to carry you, your kayaks and gear, up or down the lake to an area you want to explore. You can do this as a day trip, or set up a camp on a remote beach. The boat could stay with you for support, or leave you on your own and return to shuttle you back at a set time.
3. Go it alone and carry food and camping gear on your your kayaks.
Away from the marinas, you can camp pretty much anywhere on the lake’s shorelines. But some campsites are better than others. With patience and a little luck you can find a sandy beach offering privacy. It is very nice if it is off the main channel, so you don’t get waves from boat traffic.
You are required to have and use a portable toilet when camping on the lake’s shorelines. You can’t just dig a cat hole.
Where to launch
You can only drive to the water in a few spots on Lake Powell, and so that limits launching options. At this lake level, there are only two viable options
1. Page AZ/Wahweap area, at the bottom of the lake. This is the closest marina if you are coming from St. George/Zion, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Grand Canyon, and points south and west.
2. Bullfrog UT area, on the upper lake. This is the closest marina if coming from Salt Lake City, Grand Junction CO, and points north and east.
Both areas offer a nice lodge and developed campgrounds. Page is a small city and offers all expected services. Bullfrog has a restaurant, fuel and basic supplies.
What to see
The area you want to see may influence your choice for launching. There are scenic narrow canyons all around the lake but some people seek out very narrow “slots,” which are fun to explore by kayak. The most popular slots are on the lower lake, best accessed from Wahweap. Keep in mind that boat traffic will be heavy in the main channel and in some slots. Sometimes people on jet skies rip up and down the narrow slots and pose a danger to kayakers. You will want to stick close to shorelines.
As you plan your trip, a key question is how far can you reasonably paddle in a day? There will be wind. Mornings are often calm and beautiful but afternoons can be quite windy. An experienced kayaker in good physical shape may be able to do 12-20 miles a day. But that is a workout. How many days in a row do you want to work that hard? Use the map mentioned above to plan a route that you are confident you can accomplish in your allotted time.
Rainbow Bridge is a popular destination on the lake and many people want to kayak there. Antelope Point Marina (Wahweap area) is the closest launch point, but the bridge is still 45 miles up lake.
Forbidding Canyon, where Rainbow Bridge is located, is scenic and kayak friendly. Nearby, Cathedral Canyon is also great. One option would be to make a base camp somewhere up that way and do kayak day trips. If it was me, I'd use a boat shuttle to carry kayaks and gear and establish a base camp in that area, then kayak to see nearby sites.
If you don't want to do the boat shuttle, on the lower lake, Antelope and Navajo canyons are scenic and can be reached by kayak. Antelope Point Marina is between those canyons and would be a good starting point. Launching there has been closed because of low water but I expect the lake will rise enough to make it operational this spring.
The simplest option would be to launch at Wahweap or the Lone Rock Beach area and just kayak around Wahweap Bay and perhaps up to Antelope Canyon. (Lone Rock itself has been high and dry but I do expect the lake to come up to where launching along the sandy beach there will be a good option, at least during early summer.)
If you go out of Bullfrog, you can drive to the beach, primitive camp and launch in the Stanton Creek area. Nearby, Moki Canyon is very beautiful and kayak friendly. Down lake a bit, Lost Eden is also beautiful and would be very fun with Kayaks.
Seasons
People kayak the lake year-round but summer is the most popular time. The weather starts to warm in March, but the water stays cold until late May or early June. Spring can be good time to kayak if you are prepared for cold water. Fall can be very nice. October may be the best month of the year because the air and water are warm but not hot and boat traffic is down. During winter, daytime air temperatures can be pleasant but the water is cold and nights can be very cold.
This old article describes some of the narrow canyons that are popular places to kayak: https://redrockadventure.com/other-adventures/834-kayaking-lake-powell-s-slot-canyons
