And why is it that I love Lake Powell so much?

**A warning to all...this is a long post!** A weekend I thought would be so fun and relaxing turned out to be quite the experience! We had left in time on Saturday to ensure that we could make it to our camp before dark. We dropped the boat into the lake around 7:30 p.m. on Saturday and set off to find our friends and their houseboat.

About 10 minutes into our ride, Billy realized something was wrong. Then the alarm sounded that indicated that the boat was overheating, so we found the nearest piece of sand and beached the boat. Billy opened the engine compartment and it was steaming and smoking like you wouldn't believe! After a hike to the highest hill to get phone service, Billy examined the engine to see what the damage was. Turns out we had melted out two important pieces and now rather than having the water go through the hoses and cool the engine and back out of the boat, the hoses were just filling the boat with water! We decided that it would be best to get the boat back to the dock and out of the water instead of trying to make it to camp (which was still 45 minutes away) So, by this time it was dark and all we had a was a crappy spotlight to send us back. We went in short bursts until the engine was to hot then we would turn it off and wait. We were going fine until the bilge pump went out on us...I mean seriously, we couldn't catch a break! (For those that don't know what the bilge pump is...its the pump that pumps the water out of the engine compartment so your boat doesn't sink) So for the last bit we had to stand in the back and point the hoses out of the boat so the water wouldn't go into the compartment...any ways, it took us nearly 5 hours to get back to the dock and by that time we were all soaking wet and freezing. We got to the hotel in Ticaboo around 2:00 a.m. and ended up staying at the hotel the first night.

The next day Billy stayed with the boat at Offshore Marina and waited for the rest of his family to arrive with the tools to fix it, and me, Sam, Hannah and her friend Sunny, caught a ride with the people we were staying with on the houseboat. After tanning for awhile the sun went behind the mountain and it got too cold so we all went in the house boat and sat until about 7:30 when Larry took us out to the channel so we could get service to see if the rest of our fam was going to make it. Sure enough they showed up about and hour later. So our trip really began on Sunday night!

I have never been to Lake Powell when it has been cold...so this was a new experience for me. We had to wear our hoodies and blankets while we were traveling on the boat! It was ridiculous! And as soon as the sun went down behind the mountain (which was about 4:30) you had to put on your hoodies if you wanted to stay outside! But after the first two days it did get a little warmer, but never warm enough that I would get in the water! I did manage to get somewhat of a tan! Larry and Mary (the people who own the houseboat) were so accommodating and made the best meals! We had enchiladas, Lasagna and Ham! That's not camping food! So all and all, after the annoyance on Saturday, we had a really good, but cold trip! I was able to finish my book and enjoy some sun!

Pics to follow in another post!