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Lake Mead National Recreation Area►
The Hoover Dam, along with the Davis Dam formed Lakes Mead and Mojave in 1936. Lake Mead National Recreation Area includes both of these reservoirs on the Colorado River. The US Bureau of Reclamation operates the Hoover Dam tours while the National Park Service manages the recreation area.
We stopped at the Dam overlook while on a bus tour to the West Rim of the Grand Canyon. We’d already toured the Glen Canyon Dam a few years earlier, so it was enough for us to snap a few photos, stretch our legs and move on the next stop.
For years, Highway 93 crossed the Black Canyon on top of the Hoover Dam. Authorities deemed this unsafe after 9-11. The Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge over the Black Canyon opened in 2010.
Lake Mead water levels are low from years of drought. The water used to be just under the walkways that lead to the towers. At the time of this writing, experts predict the lake will fall below 1075 feet in June 2021. This is the negotiated trigger to declare water storages in the seven states that depend on the reservoir.
Location: 1305 Arizona St, Boulder City, NV
Designation: National Recreation Area
Date designated/established: October 13, 1936
Date of my visit: April 8, 2017
We were lucky enough to visit and tour the dam in the late 1990s. An impressive structure for the time. Hope this drought cycle eases soon. Thanks for sharing. Allan
Me too! We toured the Glen Canyon Dam further up the Colorado. Impressive indeed.
It’s scary to see the results of the drought… and we witness again the consequences of man-made climate change. Thank you for the interesting post.
It sure is scary! Thanks for reading and commenting!
The Hoover Dam is one of the world’s engineering marvels and it is well worth seeing and touring.
Yes! Thanks for reading and commenting, Don!
I have some old b/w photos of the dam when the water was high. Might never see that view again! There are some nice hot springs in the canyon below the new bridge.
Sad, but true. Thanks for reading and commenting!
We just heard on the news that one of Colorado’s reservoirs is being drained to refill parts of Lake Mead and Lake Powell. The West’s water woes are profound.
That’s so sad…wish we could send some of our rain your way. I haven’t had to water all summer
How nice it would be if water (and other necessities) were distributed evenly globally.
It’s simply horrible what the water level there looks like now.
It is very sad.