Wahweap Overlook in 2016 – this image and the two below were taken from the Wahweap Overlook just outside of Page, Ariz. The images were all taken from the same overlook but not necessarily the exact same angle, etc. The water level is dramatically different in each image. The 2016 image shows the water far from full level as the drought had already taken a toll on the lake level but it was still at a decent level. The 2022 image reflects the lake near its lowest level and the sight is dreadful. The 2023 image taken this week shows a giant step forward as Lake Powell begins to recover. The marina seen in each image is the Wahweap Marina. One visible difference in each is the little island just to the right of the marina. In 2016 it was small, in 2022 it was no longer an island as it was dry enough to create a peninsula and the 2023 image shows an island again but still larger than the 2016 image. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Wahweap Overlook in 2022. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Wahweap Overlook in 2023. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
By GARY WARREN
Photographer
Formerly of Los Alamos
Water is a precious commodity in the western United States. Several states depend on the annual snow melt from the Rocky Mountains to fill lakes and reservoirs for their water supply.
This Post From the Road is a little different than most in that we will compare similar photos of Lake Powell from the same overlook from three different years; 2016, 2022, and 2023.
Lake Powell is a manmade lake located on the border of Arizona and Utah. Page, Ariz. is the nearest community to the Glen Canyon Dam at Lake Powell. The lake is enormous at 186 miles long. The lake is fed by several rivers, Colorado River, San Juan River, Escalante River, and the Green River, which is a tributary to the Colorado River.
The continuing drought in the west along with growing a population in much of the territory has created a water shortage that has lasted several years. The photos of Lake Powell will reflect the changes that have transpired between 2016 and 2023.
When we traveled the area in 2022, we were distraught over the lack of water in Lake Powell as it was critical and needed replenishment. We even began calling it River Powell because there wasn’t much lake to be seen.
We were traveling west again this week and purposely drove a route that would take us to Lake Powell again. We anxiously anticipated the condition of the lake following an above average snowfall last winter followed by an unusual amount of rain throughout the southwest. For a while Lake Powell was rising a foot or more per day this spring and early summer.
We were not disappointed as Lake Powell has risen dramatically since last year. The level was not back to the 2016 level but it was encouraging. On top of that a very unusual tropical hurricane is predicted to create record rainfall this week and should benefit Lake Powell (and Lake Mead) the two largest water supply lakes in the region.
The lake is measured by elevation (in feet) above sea level at the water surface. Lake Powell is considered full at 3,700 feet above sea level. Construction was completed in 1963 and the lake began to fill. The first date that it was full at 3,700 feet was in 1983.
The level in 2016 fluctuated around 3,600 feet. The level in 2022 was 3,533 when the photos shown were made but the lake level was still falling. The level rose to 3,584 feet above sea level in July 2023 but has since dropped to 3,576. Between the low point on April 13, 2023, at 3,519 feet to a high level of 3,584 feet on July 8, 2023, the lake saw a significant rise of 65 feet.
Our hope is that the hurricane or tropical storm this week will add significant water to the lake. Another above average snowfall in the Rockies this winter would help add to the recovery of Lake Powell.
Lake Powell and the surrounding landscape is some of the most beautiful southwestern landscape that can be found. The nearby slot canyons offer scenes that are unbelievable. If given the opportunity to travel this area of Arizona and Utah, I don’t think anyone would come away disappointed. I believe this is some of the most beautiful landscape in the country.
Editor’s note: Longtime Los Alamos photographer Gary Warren and his wife Marilyn are traveling around the country, and he shares his photographs, which appear in the “Posts from the Road” series published in the Sunday edition of the Los Alamos Daily Post.
Wahweap Overlook 2023 Wide View: This view of Lake Powell from the Wahweap Overlook shows a wide view of the entire area around Wahweap Marina. This overlook is only about two or three miles from the Glen Canyon Dam, which is not shown. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Glen Canyon Dam Bridge: The Glen Canyon Dam Bridge leads travelers on Highway 89 north of Page, Ariz. north into Utah. The state line is just a few miles north of the dam. This view of the bridge was made from the Carl Hayden Visitor Center located at the Glen Canyon Dam. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Lake Powell and Glen Canyon Dam: A view of the water of Lake Powell and a portion of the Glen Canyon Dam as seen from the Carl Hayden Visitor Center. The Glen Canyon Dam is 710 feet tall. Almost five million cubic yards of concrete was used to construct the dam. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com