Hoover Dam

Departing both Death Valley, and California, we headed for our final destination - a return to Las Vegas. Before we handed back our rental car, after nearly 3000 miles, we had one last stop for a tour of Hoover Dam.

Due to traffic, we headed down the Lake Mead road instead of the freeway and were treated to wonderful views over this NPS-managed, man-made lake that was a result of the construction of the Hoover Dam.

The Dam itself, whilst appearing miniscule from the air, is of huge proportions, over 700ft tall and needing more than 3 million tonnes of concrete to create. We toured some of the pipes which carry up to 96,000 gallons of water per second, and the turbines. Outside, walking over the Dam, the intense heat meant touching railings or even stone walls was a game of chicken!Read more