Each year, I take a trip west to Arizona to visit my daughter
Lori and her family. This has been an annual activity for over
20 years but each year is a little different.
We often travel to Las Vegas while in Arizona, and the past
several years have made the trip by car. Shortly after 9-11,
highway U.S. 93, the route we took, was restricted at the Hoover
Dam. Both sides of the dam, in Arizona and Nevada, had check
points to monitor close control of traffic over the dam. The
check points were manned 24/7 by Bureau of Reclamation police
officers and contracted security personnel.
Each
year since construction began in 2005, as we passed over
the top of the dam, we observed the progress of the
Hoover
Dam Bridge. Its span was to be 2,000 feet with a 1,060
foot twin rib concrete arch. It is the first concrete-steel
composite
arch bridge built in the U.S. and has the longest concrete
arch in the Western Hemisphere. As we watched the construction
progress, it was easy to see how difficult the project
was and how extensive the engineering had been to accomplish
it. Officially named Mike O’Callaghan — Pat
Tillman Memorial Bridge, the bridge opened Oct. 19, 2010.
Completion
of the bridge allows U.S. 93 through traffic to pass over
the canyon without crossing the dam.
Those wishing to visit the dam must exit on the Nevada side
onto State Route 172 and pass through the sole inspection checkpoint.
You can drive across the dam to the Arizona side or park in
a structure on the Nevada side. There are numerous opportunities
to look down either side of the dam or observe the new bridge,
Lake Mead and the Colorado River in the Black Canyon.
As
we read the pamphlets and handouts, we learned construction
of the dam began in 1931 and the last concrete was
poured in 1935. In spite of the remote location and dangerous,
harsh working conditions, the dam was completed two
years
ahead
of
schedule and well under budget. Hoover Dam’s reservoir
is America’s largest man-made one. It can store
28.5 million acre-feet of water which equals 9.2 trillion
gallons.
An acre-foot of water would cover a football field
to a depth of one foot.
The dam not only controls the water flow of the Colorado but
meets the water needs of over 20 million people in Las Vegas,
Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Tucson and other cities, towns
and Indian communities in three states.
The
dam also generates low-cost hydro electric power for use
in all of Nevada, Arizona and California,
serving more
than
1.3 million users. Irrigation of over a million
acres of some of America’s richest crop lands that grow a wide variety
of produce and fruits, plus cotton and hay, is another benefit
of the dam’s construction.Viewing the new
bridge was awe-inspiring, revealing the true engineering
feat it took
to complete. If you have never made the trip to
see
the dam, now with the beautiful new bridge as its
backdrop is the
time. As I See it, your visit will be, as it was
for me, an experience
never to be forgotten.
FOR INFORMATION:
LOWER COLORADO
DAMS OFFICE
P.O. BOX 60400, BOULDER CITY, NEVADA 89006.
Call (702) 494-2517, or visit hooverdambypass.com