(This is long, but should be worth the read. At the end, I'll even reward you with pictures I pirated from Alan & Heather's blog.)
On Friday night, we headed down to St. George to spend the night at Chad & Tiffanys (my brother-in-law and next older sister). Saturday morning, we woke up early and headed off to Page, AZ, where we met up with Alan & Heather (my next younger brother & his wife). By noon, we had eaten lunch at the floating restaurant and were on the waters of Lake Powell. We had so much fun. All of the kids did great & our girls loved it.
First, we swam. Sydney enjoyed floating around in a water chair & her life jacket. Alan swam (w/ a life jacket) all the way from the boat to a cliff wall & back for a hefty monetary prize from Tiff. Jenna couldn't get enough of the water. She would kick her legs in the water while sitting on the swimming platform & then jump in, whether we were ready or not. Jenna then fell asleep and we let her nap in the restroom/playhouse of the boat.
After swimming, we knee-boarded. I had my first experience of doing it. It took me several attempts (and one long episode of being dragged through the water while unsuccessfully trying) before I was able to get up. It was fun, but I felt like the pull of the boat was going to rip my arms out of the sockets! I need to build some muscule up, I suppose. Tiff, Alan & Randy were all doing 360's...something I was way to chicken to even try. Chad & Randy then wakeboarded. Randy did really well. He had never been able to get up on a wakeboard before. During this time, Sydney fell asleep and Jenna woke up, so Sydney was placed in the restroom.
While they were wakeboarding, dark clouds were building up. Tiffany had requested that we head back, but the guys were having too much fun...and we were in sunshine at the time. In the meantime, another boat drove slowly by us and were closely watching us. We thought it was strange & continued on. A few minutes later, they returned & indicated they wanted to talk to us. The first thing they asked was if we spoke French. (We needed you, Cedric!!) Of course, none of us do, but we asked if they needed help. They indicated they were lost & were trying to get back to the marina. We decided to show them the way back, but first let Randy get in one more run of wakeboarding. We were about 4-5 miles from the marina. After a few minutes of heading back, it started to rain in torrents. We put Devin & Bri in the restroom with Sydney, who was still sleeping. Jenna freaked out being with the kids, so Randy & I held her. The rest of us took the best cover we could under towels. I soaked through 2 towels trying to protect myself and Jenna.
The progress was slow going. The rain & choppy water was slowing us down, as well as making sure the French family was keeping up. At one point, it seemed like their boat stopped, and they were quite a way behind us. We decided to turn back to make sure they were okay. When we turned around, it began hailing. The hail hurt...and I'm telling you, this was one crazy storm complete with lightening & everything! When we saw the French family, their boat didn't look right. The front of it was tipped way up in the air. Tiffany and Chad went to the back of the boat to help them. The family's boat had drifted a little ahead of ours, so Randy tapped the accelerator. As he did so, Chad and Tiffany were both pitched off the back of the boat into the water and our boat bumped the side of theirs. We circled around and picked up Chad, who didn't have a life jacket on. Tiffany swam to the French boat. When she got on, she turned on the bilge pump to let out the water they had taken on. She also fixed their rotor(?) because it wasn't down in the water like it should be. Tiffany then took over driving their boat. We all continued on our way back to the marina.
While on their boat, Tiffany learned that it was a family here in the US on vacation. It was their first--and last!--time on a boat. They had a 4-year old who was scared and crying, a 10-year old who was really afraid & two teenagers. They didn't even know if lightening was dangerous. Only the mom spoke limited English.
When we approached the marina, Chad tried calling the valet service to meet us at the dock. There was no answer, only voicemail. We stalled in the water while Tiffany went ahead with the family. After quite a bit of time waiting, we finally went to the marina to meet up with Tiff and see why the valet service wasn't answering. Chad was not very happy. While tying up the boat and disembarking, Chad's phone beeped with a voicemail. It was a State Fish & Game worker who said that Tiffany was up at the public marina parking area...a bit away from us. Chad commented that the state worker was "really weird". We went and checked with the store/floating restaurant workers to see if they could help us contact the valet service. Apparently the power was out and there was no way for us to contact them with our cell phone. The workers used their radio to contact the valet service, and we soon were headed out of the water.
After getting out of the water, we immediately went to the public parking area to find Tiffany. She wasn't there. We went over to the valet parking area and she was standing by our car. As soon as we pulled up, she started sobbing.
Apparently, the French family was supposed to go to the Wahweep Marina, and not Antelope Point Marina, where we were. When she realized this, they had already passed the valet area of the marina, so she had them drop her off at the public area. Without shoes, she walked up to the parking area to find someone who had a cell phone she could use. She passed up several men & saw the state Fish & Game worker. She figured since he worked for the state, he should be safe. As she started making the call, he asked if she would sit in his truck so she wouldn't get the phone wet. She complied, but felt very uneasy about it, all the while thinking she shouldn't be doing that. The phone didn't get reception where they were at, so the guy hopped in the truck and started driving. The guy at this point got really weird, saying things like, "I shouldn't be doing this." and "Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you." Tiffany literally had her hand on the door, ready to jump. When the phone finally got reception, he grabbed the phone from her & let the message for Chad himself. When Chad called back is when we finally made contact. By this point, Tiffany had headed over to others in the parking lot, hoping to find help and safety. She found a group from Utah. They were a little bit helpful, but seemed very inconvenienced by her & weren't particularly friendly. She was able to get a ride from them over to the road that leads to the valet parking area. From there, she walked barefoot to our car to wait. While she was waiting, she saw the Game & Fish worker's truck driving around & crouched down so he wouldn't see her. Needless to say, she was extremely scared & relieved when we showed up. It was very traumatic for her.
We ended the day by parting ways with Alan & Heather, then heading back into Page to eat dinner. We drove back to St. George where we showered, relaxed & went to bed. Randy & my first day boating at Lake Powell is definitely one that won't soon be forgotten!!
On Friday night, we headed down to St. George to spend the night at Chad & Tiffanys (my brother-in-law and next older sister). Saturday morning, we woke up early and headed off to Page, AZ, where we met up with Alan & Heather (my next younger brother & his wife). By noon, we had eaten lunch at the floating restaurant and were on the waters of Lake Powell. We had so much fun. All of the kids did great & our girls loved it.
First, we swam. Sydney enjoyed floating around in a water chair & her life jacket. Alan swam (w/ a life jacket) all the way from the boat to a cliff wall & back for a hefty monetary prize from Tiff. Jenna couldn't get enough of the water. She would kick her legs in the water while sitting on the swimming platform & then jump in, whether we were ready or not. Jenna then fell asleep and we let her nap in the restroom/playhouse of the boat.
After swimming, we knee-boarded. I had my first experience of doing it. It took me several attempts (and one long episode of being dragged through the water while unsuccessfully trying) before I was able to get up. It was fun, but I felt like the pull of the boat was going to rip my arms out of the sockets! I need to build some muscule up, I suppose. Tiff, Alan & Randy were all doing 360's...something I was way to chicken to even try. Chad & Randy then wakeboarded. Randy did really well. He had never been able to get up on a wakeboard before. During this time, Sydney fell asleep and Jenna woke up, so Sydney was placed in the restroom.
While they were wakeboarding, dark clouds were building up. Tiffany had requested that we head back, but the guys were having too much fun...and we were in sunshine at the time. In the meantime, another boat drove slowly by us and were closely watching us. We thought it was strange & continued on. A few minutes later, they returned & indicated they wanted to talk to us. The first thing they asked was if we spoke French. (We needed you, Cedric!!) Of course, none of us do, but we asked if they needed help. They indicated they were lost & were trying to get back to the marina. We decided to show them the way back, but first let Randy get in one more run of wakeboarding. We were about 4-5 miles from the marina. After a few minutes of heading back, it started to rain in torrents. We put Devin & Bri in the restroom with Sydney, who was still sleeping. Jenna freaked out being with the kids, so Randy & I held her. The rest of us took the best cover we could under towels. I soaked through 2 towels trying to protect myself and Jenna.
The progress was slow going. The rain & choppy water was slowing us down, as well as making sure the French family was keeping up. At one point, it seemed like their boat stopped, and they were quite a way behind us. We decided to turn back to make sure they were okay. When we turned around, it began hailing. The hail hurt...and I'm telling you, this was one crazy storm complete with lightening & everything! When we saw the French family, their boat didn't look right. The front of it was tipped way up in the air. Tiffany and Chad went to the back of the boat to help them. The family's boat had drifted a little ahead of ours, so Randy tapped the accelerator. As he did so, Chad and Tiffany were both pitched off the back of the boat into the water and our boat bumped the side of theirs. We circled around and picked up Chad, who didn't have a life jacket on. Tiffany swam to the French boat. When she got on, she turned on the bilge pump to let out the water they had taken on. She also fixed their rotor(?) because it wasn't down in the water like it should be. Tiffany then took over driving their boat. We all continued on our way back to the marina.
While on their boat, Tiffany learned that it was a family here in the US on vacation. It was their first--and last!--time on a boat. They had a 4-year old who was scared and crying, a 10-year old who was really afraid & two teenagers. They didn't even know if lightening was dangerous. Only the mom spoke limited English.
When we approached the marina, Chad tried calling the valet service to meet us at the dock. There was no answer, only voicemail. We stalled in the water while Tiffany went ahead with the family. After quite a bit of time waiting, we finally went to the marina to meet up with Tiff and see why the valet service wasn't answering. Chad was not very happy. While tying up the boat and disembarking, Chad's phone beeped with a voicemail. It was a State Fish & Game worker who said that Tiffany was up at the public marina parking area...a bit away from us. Chad commented that the state worker was "really weird". We went and checked with the store/floating restaurant workers to see if they could help us contact the valet service. Apparently the power was out and there was no way for us to contact them with our cell phone. The workers used their radio to contact the valet service, and we soon were headed out of the water.
After getting out of the water, we immediately went to the public parking area to find Tiffany. She wasn't there. We went over to the valet parking area and she was standing by our car. As soon as we pulled up, she started sobbing.
Apparently, the French family was supposed to go to the Wahweep Marina, and not Antelope Point Marina, where we were. When she realized this, they had already passed the valet area of the marina, so she had them drop her off at the public area. Without shoes, she walked up to the parking area to find someone who had a cell phone she could use. She passed up several men & saw the state Fish & Game worker. She figured since he worked for the state, he should be safe. As she started making the call, he asked if she would sit in his truck so she wouldn't get the phone wet. She complied, but felt very uneasy about it, all the while thinking she shouldn't be doing that. The phone didn't get reception where they were at, so the guy hopped in the truck and started driving. The guy at this point got really weird, saying things like, "I shouldn't be doing this." and "Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you." Tiffany literally had her hand on the door, ready to jump. When the phone finally got reception, he grabbed the phone from her & let the message for Chad himself. When Chad called back is when we finally made contact. By this point, Tiffany had headed over to others in the parking lot, hoping to find help and safety. She found a group from Utah. They were a little bit helpful, but seemed very inconvenienced by her & weren't particularly friendly. She was able to get a ride from them over to the road that leads to the valet parking area. From there, she walked barefoot to our car to wait. While she was waiting, she saw the Game & Fish worker's truck driving around & crouched down so he wouldn't see her. Needless to say, she was extremely scared & relieved when we showed up. It was very traumatic for her.
We ended the day by parting ways with Alan & Heather, then heading back into Page to eat dinner. We drove back to St. George where we showered, relaxed & went to bed. Randy & my first day boating at Lake Powell is definitely one that won't soon be forgotten!!
Randy & Jenna
Jenna, Tiffany & Keri
Alan & Heather (baby squid in her belly, not pictured)
Chad & Jenna, speeding along & loving it
Alan, Sydney & Devin...no pictures of Brianna, Heather?
8 comments:
I'm glad Tiffany was safe, how scary for her. I hope you guys reported him...what a jerk!
It sounds like you had fun on the boat before all the "excitement" started. I haven't been to lake powell in a long time.
That's nuts! I've been to Lake Powell many times (including this year) and I've never heard of that kind of stuff happening. That's frightening. Your poor sister was probably freaked out.
Sorry no pictures of Bri!! I realized that as I was putting them on the computer this afternoon...
I read Tiff's blog first. Then I couldn't stop laughing. If anything crazy is going to happen like that, it always happens to Tiff!
Glad you had fun at Lake Powell!
Wow! What a day to remember. Alan and Heather told us only part of the day and I didn't realize all the drama had happened!
Sounds like fun (except the scary man with Tiff part)!
Yeah I'd say that's a trip you won't soon forget.
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