The Hoover Dam is one of the most popular day-trip destinations in America. Up to 3000 people visit the manmade wonder each day. Located only 30 miles southeast of Las Vegas, numerous tours and bus-lines transport visitors to the dam at affordable prices. Renting a car for the day is not a bad way to see the dam either, as the scenic drive allows stop-offs at other attractions like Red Rock Canyon, the Ethel M Chocolate Factory, and Ron Lee's World of Clowns.
Construction on the dam started in 1931, when it was determined that the Colorado River needed to be tamed. An army of 5,200 workers were assembled, and, after working 24 hours a day for five years, the project was completed (two years ahead of schedule). The result is a concrete wall that holds back the nearly 50 trillion pounds of water in Lake Mead, the largest artificial reservoir in the country.
Hoover Dam is 660 feet thick at the base, 1,244 feet across, 726 feet high, and wide enough for a two-lane highway at the crest. It was built from steel, rock and more than seven million tons of concrete - enough to pave a two-lane road from New York to San Francisco. However, all these staggering statistics won't mean a thing until you see the dam for yourself. The sheer immensity of it evokes not only an appreciation for the labor that went into the dams construction, but for the genius of humankind as well.
Tours of the Dam are conducted daily at the Visitors Center. The regular 30-minute tour consists of a trip down through the dam to the Colorado River overlook, which is at the bottom of the dam, and then back to the top. Along the way, you'll walk the tunnels inside the dam, see the largest water pipes ever made, and observe the 17 turbines that provide electricity for the southwest United States.
Before the half-hour tour, you can see a video presentation given inside a converted turbine. The presentation is broken up into three segments and after each portion is completed, the whole room rotates to face the screen of the next portion.