Hoover Dam

Arizona - Nevada Border

January 1 , 2004


   

lake mead

back of the dam

This is Lake Mead and Hoover Dam.  I was amazed by the low level of the water.  Usually the water is about 5 feet down from the high water line.  High water was set in 1941 when they first filled the dam all the way up, to test the spillways.  The only other time was in 1983 when the western US had El Nino and record rainfall.  Now the water seems to me to be down about 80-90 feet.  When I was researching this page I did find that the lake has been lower than thin in the mid 50's and mid 60's when it was about 175 feet down.  The lake is usualy about 400 feet deep at the dam. 


back of dam

This shot is from the NV side looking toward the AZ mountains. 



AZ spill way

This is the AZ spill way.  I have never seen these rocks before.  I had always wondered what was down here and how deep it is.  In between the concrete towers there are a steel walls that float up to controll the level of the lake.  The steel walls are laying down flat behind the concrete dam.


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