I have missed out on the Hendo Lake Powell trip for 3 years in a row. This year, with my work situation much different, I got to go! Since it was put on the family calendar months ago, I have been waiting for this week to come.
We left Wednesday after Zach could get off work and made the drive down to Page. It was the fastest drive to Powell I can ever remember. We only stopped twice. The second stop was in Kanab so Zach could get a giant snow cone.
After stopping at Walmart for some food and supplies we didn’t make it to Antelope Point Marina until around midnight. This year the Hendersons decided to sleep on the houseboats in the marina that night and leave early the next morning to our campsite. Since we have such a large crew, we rented two houseboats. Bright and early the next morning we filled up and pushed off to meet Zach’s parents at our home for the next five days.
We started our day off right with some paddle boarding. It was my first time, but became a daily activity for Zach and I.
The kids were so thrilled with the thought of swimming all day that they didn’t even notice when some of the adults ventured off to do some surfing and wakeboarding. Even though Zach was a little hesitant, he let me surf first and then wakeboard.
It was a different sensation trying to get up with a pillow under my swimsuit, but the captain was patient with me and I was really safe [no wake jumping allowed this trip].
Zach also tried his hand at surfing. It’s his favorite and he makes it look really easy…
We spent the rest of the night eating dinner, lounging on the houseboat, and playing games.
Day two we took the two boats to a drive down a canyon cove. It ended up being a little longer excursion than we planned and we got home just before dinner time. Right at Zach’s favorite time of day. He calls it the “Golden Hour” – when the sun goes down behind the red rocks and you can’t get sunburned, but it is still light enough to be out on the water. We did another paddle boarding session along with a little canoe ride while enjoying the sunset.
Zach spent the rest of the evening doing his version of “sun bathing”.
The next day we took everyone over to a nearby cliff for some cliff jumping. The kids would have stayed for hours, but we had to make a run to the marina for some supplies.
Mark and the boys also rigged a zip-line from one of the houseboats to the rocks. It wasn’t super professional, but it worked. It provided hours of entertainment for everyone, including Zach.
The evening was really relaxing. Papa got a full-body massage and Zach and Georgia had a dance-off.
Our last full day was Sunday. With the last full day usually comes lots of sunburn and tired kidlets. There were measures that had to be taken with certain pale-skinned nieces – layers upon layers, with an added stylistic choice of goggles.
Early Monday morning we made our way back to the marina with the houseboats and all our gear. We made the drive home from Page [along with four stow-aways]. Overall it was a successful trip – no injuries and no serious damage to any boats, jet skis, or other equipment. The only casualties were a few head colds and some sunburned cheeks. We can’t wait for next year already! Thank you Mark and Jeanene for a fantastic weekend in my favorite place on the planet!
This week also marked the end of my 22nd week. That 6 month mark is approaching!
