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| - When they show one of those collages of the United States with all its key landmarks, such as the Statue of Liberty, the Sears Building, Mount Rushmore, the Space Needle, and the Golden Gate Bridge, Hoover Dam, barely outside Las Vegas, Nevada, is often included. If you haven't seen it here, you may have seen in it films, television shows, or travel guides. Nevertheless, by the time one reaches driving or voting age, most Americans will have seen imagery of Hoover Dam.
Hoover Dam dams up the Colorado River as it flows southward toward the California desert. In so doing, it forms massive Lake Mead behind it. Hoover Dam is also a major hydroelectric source for the power grid and is very much a workhorse in this regard.
Once you're there, what will strike you the most about Hoover Dam is its mammoth size. In the 20th century (only 17 years ago), cars would just drive over the top of it to get from Nevada to Arizona. Increasing population and tourism in the area, in addition to the world becoming more complicated, saw to it that one couldn't willy nilly cross the road atop the dam and, ultimately, a significant bypass bridge for US 93 was built within sight of Hoover Dam.
Driving over Hoover Dam is a neat but brief experience. The roadway is subtly curved, as is the dam. One can also see the towers, chutes, and spillways from the Lake Mead side from the car, to some extent. To better appreciate the grandeur, it is better to park over on the Arizona side, get out of one's car, and walk along the sides and top of Hoover Dam. That is enough for most people. Looking over the mid rise wall of Hoover Dam next to the sidewalk along the roadway is what really packs a punch. The height into the canyon below is dizzying, the curve of the dam's face continues downward, and there are other structures at the base of it with have to do with its power generating operations. If you want to get closer to that action and be inside the bowels of the dam, a tour is offered and, while not a fortune, it isn't reasonably priced, either.
Hoover Dam was built in the early 30s during Franklin Delano Roosevelt's administration because, along with other key projects, it was needed and because it would put many folks to work, partly in the hopes of helping the country come back from the Great Depression. While I don't remember through which particular program it was sponsored, I do remember that it is in the art deco style. Quickly glancing at it, the towers in Lake Mead and things like elevator doors readily tell someone that.
Overall, this is the type of excursion around Las Vegas that interests me far more than gambling ever could. And, I've seen it each and every time I've gone to Las Vegas. And, I've never taken the tour down into the dam. However, it's all about the grandeur and scale of this place. Many people come back again and again. That means they don't get tired of seeing it, either. So, between repeat visits and because it's remarkably unique, Hoover Dam is a 5 star experience all the way.
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