So, last weekend, we went over to Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam. Fun times!
Lake Mead is beautiful. The pictures haven't been doctored any - the water's really that color! It was so clear, too - we could see fish swimming underneath us from the top of the Hoover Dam, even as high as it was! Zach wondered what type of fish they were, and was very disappointed in my answer of "Koi" ;)
The white ring (called the "Bathtub Ring" for obvious reasons!) is so stunning with the dark red rocks and the deep blue-green water. I love this first picture below here - so pretty! The coloring was caused during the high water in 1983. In the second picture below, you can see how high the high water line really was (people for scale!). Anyway, the water is so hard, such a high mineral content, that it left a deposit on the rocks. For you cavers out there - it's calcium carbonate! Yay calcite!
The dam itself it pretty much the way it was when it was completed in 1935. They did a good job - everything's still looking good! The time frame is the reason for all the art deco accents - several relief sculptures on walls and things, and a pair of crazy winged statues on a memorial on the NV side of the dam. The memorial itself is honoring all those who died during the completion of the dam. The terrace where the statues sit is interesting - inlaid with the sky (star positions) from the day the dam was completed. Neat idea! The statues themselves are rather eerie, I think, but I've never been fond of art deco people, as much as I love other design elements from that style. Still, they do make for interesting pictures!
We took the tour down into the insides of the dam, too. Got to see inside the generator room (well, at least the one on the NV side). The generator rooms are for peak-use. That means the electricity generated by water pushed through the dam is used only as it's needed. In this picture, you can see all the lights on the generators are on, which means all these generators are in use. As our tour guide said, "It must be a hot day in Southern CA - everyone's got their AC on!" (FYI, it was over 100 where we were in NV!)
These pictures were taken simply because they amused me. :) The dam sits right on the time zone line (i.e. the Colorado River), so halfway across the dam, you cross the state line and the time zone line. Each of the intake towers has a big clock on it's face, showing NV time and AZ time. There's a plaque in the middle at the dividing line. I liked it, since I've never been able to stand on a time zone line before. It's the little things, right? :)
We've already decided that during a weekend in Vegas we'll go back and do some more hiking around Lake Mead We didn't get much done on the trail this weekend, but there's a trail that connects the Lake Mead Visitor Center and the Hoover Dam Visitor Center, only a couple miles away. The trail runs along the old railroad line, and goes through several tunnels before it arrives at the dam. (The pictures below are me playing with the lighting in the tunnel). So yes, gonna go back and do the whole trail! Maybe when the weather's a little cooler though...
Lake Mead is beautiful. The pictures haven't been doctored any - the water's really that color! It was so clear, too - we could see fish swimming underneath us from the top of the Hoover Dam, even as high as it was! Zach wondered what type of fish they were, and was very disappointed in my answer of "Koi" ;)
The white ring (called the "Bathtub Ring" for obvious reasons!) is so stunning with the dark red rocks and the deep blue-green water. I love this first picture below here - so pretty! The coloring was caused during the high water in 1983. In the second picture below, you can see how high the high water line really was (people for scale!). Anyway, the water is so hard, such a high mineral content, that it left a deposit on the rocks. For you cavers out there - it's calcium carbonate! Yay calcite!
The dam itself it pretty much the way it was when it was completed in 1935. They did a good job - everything's still looking good! The time frame is the reason for all the art deco accents - several relief sculptures on walls and things, and a pair of crazy winged statues on a memorial on the NV side of the dam. The memorial itself is honoring all those who died during the completion of the dam. The terrace where the statues sit is interesting - inlaid with the sky (star positions) from the day the dam was completed. Neat idea! The statues themselves are rather eerie, I think, but I've never been fond of art deco people, as much as I love other design elements from that style. Still, they do make for interesting pictures!
We took the tour down into the insides of the dam, too. Got to see inside the generator room (well, at least the one on the NV side). The generator rooms are for peak-use. That means the electricity generated by water pushed through the dam is used only as it's needed. In this picture, you can see all the lights on the generators are on, which means all these generators are in use. As our tour guide said, "It must be a hot day in Southern CA - everyone's got their AC on!" (FYI, it was over 100 where we were in NV!)
These pictures were taken simply because they amused me. :) The dam sits right on the time zone line (i.e. the Colorado River), so halfway across the dam, you cross the state line and the time zone line. Each of the intake towers has a big clock on it's face, showing NV time and AZ time. There's a plaque in the middle at the dividing line. I liked it, since I've never been able to stand on a time zone line before. It's the little things, right? :)
We've already decided that during a weekend in Vegas we'll go back and do some more hiking around Lake Mead We didn't get much done on the trail this weekend, but there's a trail that connects the Lake Mead Visitor Center and the Hoover Dam Visitor Center, only a couple miles away. The trail runs along the old railroad line, and goes through several tunnels before it arrives at the dam. (The pictures below are me playing with the lighting in the tunnel). So yes, gonna go back and do the whole trail! Maybe when the weather's a little cooler though...
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