Dangling Rope ...
Dangling Rope is Lake Powell's "26 person floating marina", a sight for the sore eyes of the lost, hungry or out of gas boat traveler! It is one of the most remote locations here on the lake, but is also one of the most beautiful. Lake Powell has roughly 2,000 miles of shoreline at full pool. Dangling Rope Marina is located approximately at mid-lake, half way between Wahweap and Bullfrog marinas. There are no roads in/out of Dangling Rope. We are only accessible by water via boat. Dangling Rope is often referred to as either “DR” or “The Rope” by the many local/returning boaters.
We are an intermission break for visitors providing thousands of guests with services from our Marina store, Snack bar, Boat repair shop and Fuel dock. We need outgoing and friendly employees to welcome the travelers to our busy marina.
Our simple resources, water based status, and remote location mean only one thing: our employees are here to truly experience the people and places of this canyon land country without the comforts of home.
We are located in the middle of The Grand Circle, so there are many great places to explore, places such as the Grand Canyon, Bryce or Zion National Parks. But… don’t forget your own back yard – Rainbow Bridge is only about ½ hr (by boat) from our wake water, and there are many spectacular canyons to explore close by.
On the hill, we have a rec. hall with work out equipment on one side and a game room on the other side. The employee association is very active with several cookouts during the season as well as special events each month. (Luau Night, Christmas in July, Photo Contest). The fee for all associates is $10 per paycheck.
The housing is some of the best on the lake. We are the only marina to offer FREE RENT! We do not even charge extra for the AWE-inspiring view!
The adventures and relationships you create here is the reason our employees keep coming back year after year.
Basics
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Dangling Rope Marina on Lake Powell (located at Mile 40) is one of the most remote marinas in the US, and therefore requires special needs in order to operate at full capacity.
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The Dangling Rope Marina is home to one of the largest photovoltiac solar test sites in the U.S.
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Dangling Rope is accessible only by water (via Lake Powell) or by emergency helicopter.
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Boat or barge brings all grocery, fuel, ice and supplies to DR.
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Though located in Utah, Dangling Rope operates on Arizona time.
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If you are headed out on Lake Powell in the off season, be sure to call ahead for seasonal hours of operations, as Dangling Rope will be closing for a short time over the winter.
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The NPS prohibits over night stays and fishing on the dock.
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Visitors are not allowed behind the marina store or in the housing areas.
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Public Restrooms, fresh water and self serve-pump out facilities are available.
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The National Park Service is responsible for all repairs & maintenance on the docks at DR.
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Many of the long time boaters refer to Dangling Rope as simply ’DR" or ’The Rope’.
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There is a National Park Service contact station located at DR.
The Dock
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The fuel dock is located at the end of the dock. The DR staff assists guests in the pumping of fuel, merchandise sales and general info.
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The fuel dock also offers camping gear, oil and other retail items.
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There are 3 fuel barges that supply DR from Wahweap. They are the ’Fuel Ferry’, the ’Frank B’ and the ’Push Toy’. Each barge is triple-hulled and has 3 fuel cells. They carry 21,000 gallons when full.
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All 3 barges are inspected the by USCG annually.
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Fuel Sales at DR range between 600,000 to 1.5 million gallons annually, depending on water levels of Lake Powell.
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The Boat Shop-provides needed boat parts, camping supplies, water toys, toilet chemicals, PFDs, as well as mechanical repairs for private & rental customers. The shop is also responsible for towing and repairs for customers broken down on the lake. The area of coverage for DR is from mile marker 29 to mile marker 65 (including the arm of the San Juan).
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The Boat Shop does not sell or dispense propane, but bottles there are generally tanks to trade out for rental guests.
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The Boat Shop area maintains a recycling area for all used oil, batteries and fuel filter remains.
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The Marina Store/Snack Bar is located near the NPS contact station & picnic float.
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The Rope boasts an extremely popular convenience store & concession stand.
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The visitor will find that the Marina Store is stocked with ice, milk, eggs, chips, canned goods, medicines, and a great selection of souvenirs and clothing from the Marina Store.
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Dangling Rope also has two ice barges and two grocery vans, each serving their respective purposes. When you see the barge pushing supplies up/down to/from DR, the Ice Barge is the one with the red light on top; the grocery barge does not.
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The Snack Bar has soft serve ice cream, hot dogs, and pretzels & other snacks. Both are popular due to the remoteness of the marina—it is like a desert oasis.
History
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The river runners in the mid-20th Century originally named the Dangling Rope Canyon "Hanging Rope" canyon. They had discovered a rope hanging over a 40-foot slope. At the same location, there were 19 or 20 picked steps, possibly of prehistoric origin. The National Park Service changed the name to "Dangling Rope" at a later date due to implied negative connotations to a hangman’s noose.
It is surmised that later, the steps, and rope were used by a prospecting party during the uranium boom after World War II (hence the rope’s survival). –Adapted from "Ghosts of Glen Canyon" by Gregory Cramption, 1986. -
The Dangling Rope Marina was originally the Rainbow Bridge Marina that was located in Forbidding Canyon. The need for supplies and fuel was becoming so large that the boats often-blocked passage to the Rainbow Bridge. In 1993 the Rainbow Bridge Marina was moved to Dangling Rope Canyon where it has grown in size.
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Employees used to live on Houseboats for a short time, in 1984 the 1st employee housing was built on top of the hill behind Dangling Rope.
Staff
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NPS-Dangling Rope is staffed by 3 National Park Service Law Enforcement personnel, 2 NPS interpreters, and 5 NPS maintenance workers. NPS is responsible for all marina maintenance, docks, utilities & pump outs stations, as part of the current concession contract.
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ARAMARK-During high season, ARAMARK employs up to 29 seasonal employees to run the Fuel Dock, Boat Repair & Retail Shop, Marina Store & Snack Bar. Rent is free for the ARAMARK staff.
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All Staff- are provided with housing high on a cliff above the marina.
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Staff travels by boat, on days-off to Page, AZ to do any personal shopping or socializing outside of "the Rope".
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There is also a Rec.-Hall equipped with a pool table, foos ball, Ping-Pong and various workout equipment for all to use.
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There is also an active Employee’s association that organizes trips and monthly events.
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The TV at DR is a Satellite system. There are over 100 channels for the employees to choose from.
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Many employees take advantage of being on the lake and do lots of hiking, fishing, exploring and boating during days off.
Solar Power
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Prior to the solar conversion, electricity was supplied by two 310-kilawat-diesel fuel –fired generators. They ran 24 hours a day and consumed nearly 65,000 gallons of diesel fuel per year.
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Diesel deliveries from Wahweap were taking place about every 10 days.
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The main reasons for going solar were: to reduce the over all cost of utilities, reduce fuel fossil and noise emissions, and to reduce the chances of diesel spills.
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The marina is fully self-sufficient, and all aspects of the marina operate on solar power.
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With the assistance of the EPA, construction on the solar array was started on April 23, 1996. It was completed & put into operation on August 30th, 1996. It was built in part due to the assistance, grants and private funding from: EPA, The Utah Office of Energy and Resource Planning (OERP), U.S Department of Energy, The National Park Service, FEMP, Pacific Corp./Utah Power, State of Utah, Sandia Laboratories, Allied Power Corporation, & Aramark-Lake Powell.
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In March of 1999 the Dangling Rope Photovoltaic project earned the partners that put the project together, the Conservation Service Award for the Department of Interior.
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The project cost $1.52 million dollars and is estimated to save NPS $2.3 million over the 20-year life of the project.
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There is a propane generator that is used as a back up and to assist with charging the battery cells.
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The system is located above the Dangling Rope employees’ housing area.
Trash & Recycling
All trash and recyclable materials such as aluminum, cardboard and paper are collected and taken down lake by the Aramark Barge system. The NPS personnel empty the trash container & the Aramark staff takes care of the recyclable items. It is a 2-day turnaround for trash and recycling down lake.
