Road Trip: Hoover Dam via Las Vegas

I have friends who religiously make annual pilgrimages to Vegas. Out of their own volition! I’ve been there maybe seven or eight times in my whole life and that’s about five or six times too many. I don’t drink (much), gamble (at all), or enjoy buffets (unless there’s such a thing as a crab-only buffet?!?), so that leaves me with the fabulous shopping that Vegas has to offer.

And even then, I’m not a fan of walking through the casinos to get to the stores… unless it’s the Bellagio whose constantly changing decor is a sight to behold.

So now when visitors drag, beg, blackmail, bribe, trick me into going to Las Vegas, that’s pretty much what it takes to get me to make that drive.

In their defense, my Belgian visitors’ primary request was to see Hoover Dam. I’m down with that; I mean who doesn’t want to see a massive concrete arch-gravity dam?

The dam was built to use the force of gravity and the arch action to defend the thrust of water. That’s a simple description for a structure of 221m in height and 379m in length, with a volume of 2,480,000 m3.

Hoover Dam impounds Lake Mead, the largest reservoir by volume in the US. It sits on the border between Nevada and Arizona, so yes, you do cross two time zones within seconds of each other!

There are many tour buses that vie for the road to Hoover Dam. The best bet is to leave early so that you can actually get some clear shots of the dam in peace. I know it’s tough to make that 7am departure after a night of over-eating in Vegas, but the early birds always get the shots. Your camera will thank you.

If you ever find yourself in Vegas, make time to visit Hoover Dam. It’s an engineering marvel. Everything that we take for granted, like water and power, comes from the backbreaking work of someone before us.

May 20, 2015