Unscripted- Spring Break Lake Powell -2018- Page
After 2018, Lake Powell began to drop again dramatically. By 2021, water levels would hit historic lows. Launch ramps closed. The houseboat rental industry choked. The hidden beach we camped on? It is now a dusty hill 100 feet above the water line.
The "2018" crew was a mix of Arizona State students, Utah snowboarders, and a few brave souls from the East Coast who had never seen a slot canyon. We were the last generation to cross the spring break threshold without TikToks dictating our locations. We had a GoPro Hero 5 and terrible cell service. It was perfect. One of the defining features of Unscripted- Spring Break Lake Powell -2018- was the water level. Because the reservoir was high, we were able to squeeze Houseboat #3 (the decrepit one we called "The Rust Bucket") all the way into West Canyon . Unscripted- Spring Break Lake Powell -2018-
We had high pressure. That means glass water in the mornings and consistent 78-degree afternoons with zero humidity. After 2018, Lake Powell began to drop again dramatically
If you dig through old forums, Reddit threads, or dusty GoPro uploads from late March 2018, you will find fragments of this trip. You'll see shaky footage of a guy backflipping off a 40-foot rock. You'll see a time-lapse of the sun setting over Tower Butte. You'll see a lot of cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon floating in a net tied to the swim deck. The houseboat rental industry choked
I remember waking up at 6:00 AM on Wednesday. The water looked like black oil. The reflection of the canyon walls was so perfect that when a fish jumped, it looked like the rock face was coming apart. A few of us took a paddleboard out before the wind came up. We drifted silently into a narrow slot canyon. The walls rose 300 feet on either side. The sound of the paddle dipping into the water echoed for four seconds.
was a moment in time. A perfect alignment of water, weather, and youth. If you were there, you are nodding right now. If you weren't... well, the lake is still there. Go make your own unscripted story. Just remember to bring more sunscreen than Chad. Have a memory from Lake Powell Spring Break 2018? Share the chaos in the comments below. (And yes, we eventually found the paddleboard.)