Hoover Dam

While in Las Vegas the last week of September, Donna and I decided to drive out to the Hoover Dam and Lake Mead. This is a busy place, and we didn't see as much as we would have liked.

The drive from Vegas is rather nondescript until you approach Boulder City. We were impressed with this small community. It is a tidy, attractive desert town which obviously does a healthy tourist trade.

As we left Boulder City, we caught our first glimpse of Lake Mead.

Lake Mead as we leave Boulder City

The highway from Kingman, Arizona, to Las Vegas once took all traffic across the Hoover Dam. However, there is a new highway and a new bridge -- the Mike O-Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge -- which crosses the Colorado River below the Hoover Dam. We exited onto the old road, though, and, after much searching and a great deal of patience, we were able to find a parking place in the area for the pedestrian bridge which crosses the river.

Hoover Dam taken from the pedestrian bridge

 From the parking area of the pedestrian bridge, which is on the Nevada side of the river, you climb a series of steps (handicap access is available) to reach a pedestrian walkway alongside the new bridge. This pedestrian bridge is not for the feint of heart, though; I was able to get out on the bridge to snap some pictures, but then I froze. After much crying and other hysterics, 2 little old ladies helped me back to the Nevada side. The dam, by the way, can not be seen from the new highway.

Donna at a scenic overlook of Lake Mead