Hoover Dam

On our way from Grand Canyon to Las Vegas, we made a quick stop at the famous Hoover Dam. We only stayed for about 30 minutes as it was boiling hot outside, but I thought it was worth mentioning as it is rather a rather significant attraction in the area.

Hoover Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between Arizona and Nevada. It was constructed between 1931 and 1935. The dam impounds Lake Mead and its generators provide power for public and private utilities in Nevada, Arizona and California. It is also a major tourist attraction and nearly a million people tour the dam each year.

My dad had been to Hoover Dam many years ago when he was working in the US with the Norwegian military, and he had told me stories about this place. I really wanted to see it so it was perfect that it was on our way to Las Vegas. But like I said, it was so hot when we were not sitting in our car with the air conditioning, but we managed to take a small walk around the area.

I was amazed over how big it was. The dam is the highest concrete dam in the Western hemisphere, standing at more than 220 meters above the Colorado River. I think it is also worth mentioning that the dam was named after Herbert Hoover, America’s 31^st president.

I thought it was very interesting visiting the dam as I feel I learned something new next to visiting a significant landmark in the US. It is only a short drive from Las Vegas, about 40 km, and you can make a daytrip out of it. I actually wanted to drive around Lake Mead as I’ve heard that was supposed to be amazing, but we simply did not have time to do that. But I would recommend visiting Hoover Dam. You can walk there on your own or you can sign up for a guided tour of the dam. If you’re there during the summer, remember to bring lots of water and have fun.

All of the pictures are my own, and the facts about Hoover Dam are from Wikipedia and http://www.vegas.com/attractions/outside_lasvegas/hooverdam.html.