Back on the lake

I just came back from another trip to Lake Powell. It was another week of boating, fishing, camping, drinking, eating and sleeping - fun for all.

The biggest change in Lake Powell is its level. Before we shoved off we were told that the lake was rising 5 inches a day. Given the size of the lake this is a massive increase.
The photos above show one of our favorite campsites near Oak Canyon. The photo on the left was taken in June, 2007 and the one on the right this past trip in June, 2009. You can see how much the water has risen in the past two years. If you click on the images to see them in full size you'll see the house boats and get a better sense of scale of the rock formations in the canyon.

We had 18 people spread over 2 house boats. On the left is Skye, our youngest crew member, demonstrating the rough life of 5:00 AM fishing duty.

The fishing parties were quite successful almost every day which helped create a bit of variety in the prepared dinner menus.

At the end of the day, though, it was necessary to marshal the appropriate resources and prepare for the evening's festivities. Feeding 18 people does require a bit of work but the group was up for it with everyone taking turns with the various tasks. As you can see, it was just a week full of difficult toil and drudgery as we slogged through the chores of the day.

We all had our own roles to play and it went off almost without a hitch. There was a bit of excitement as I landed the boat one evening in 40 mph winds to be followed the next morning with water as smooth as glass.

It was a great trip, it helped everyone unwind and we enjoyed, once again, one of the most beautiful places on the planet.

Newest Family Member

This is Buddy, the newest member of our family. Buddy is a rescued foundling.

Wendy's brother, Jim, owns a tree farm near the Louisiana-Mississippi border which he visits every week or so. On one visit back in December he heard barking as he got out of his truck.

When he investigated he found this dog, about 1/2 its current size, living under the house in a hole he dug and had filled with leaves. He also found a deer carcass that had been dragged from the woods which was serving as this miscreant's food source.

In January, on a visit to Louisiana, Wendy and I met this dog and felt that we could give it a new home. He has traveled quite extensively with Wendy and me across country and back and forth from California to Arizona to Louisiana.

Contrary to the photo shown here he is actually quite well behaved. We ignored the advice of family and friends to name him "Lucky Bastard" and went with the run-of-the-mill, Buddy.