The Hoover Dam is huge and the bridge is a little intimidating to drive over. The dam is 726.4 feet from the foundation rock to the roadway on the crest of the dam. It is 16 feet taller than the second tallest dam, Glen Canyon Dam which we visited a few days prior. I was surprised it’s not a part of the National Park system but is managed by the Bureau of Reclamation. Unfortunately that means you can’t use the National Parks pass for admission.
A view of the Hoover Dam Bridge we had to cross over.
We had to cross over the Hoover Dam as we traveled from Arizona to Nevada. This was unfortunate for Seth who happened to be driving that leg of the trip, and he’s not a fan of heights.
Just like Glen Canyon, the Hoover Dam is a Homeland Security guarded site so we had to stop to have the RV searched before we entered. The officer who boarded the RV said he’d never been in a camper that smelled as good as ours (thanks!). An unexpected compliment from a guy packing a gun and wearing a face covering. (If you’re that guy and you’re reading this, the lovely smell was Desert Rose body butter from Red Rock Apothecary we bought in Sedona. Highly recommend!)
I was looking forward to exploring the visitor center museum and seeing the dam up close, but we had to park more than a mile away with the RV and it was 106 degrees outside. I stepped outside onto the pavement and I swear I could feel my flip flop melting. So that 1 mile walk wasn’t happening – back into the air conditioned RV I went and we continued on our way to Vegas. We got to see the dam from the RV windows on our way out. We could also see the bright blue color of Lake Mead in the distance.
If you’re in the area I do recommend checking out the Hoover Dam. It really is quite a sight to see in person!
It was this hot outside when we were at the Hoover Dam. Pretty darn hot!
