The Damn Dam Tour

Yes my friends, I took the damn dam tour.  At the Hoover Dam there are several tour options.  I opted for the most expensive and extensive tour.  We got a tour of the penstocks that carry water from the lake through deep underground tunnels to the powerhouses, the Nevada powerhouse, the upper inspection galleries, and the stairway to heaven.  Words cannot describe how impressive and awe-inspiring this dam truly is.  Photos can’t do it justice either.  One must go and experience it in person.

IMG_8393

The transmission towers actually lean over the canyon walls so the cables can run unobstructed down to the powerhouse.

IMG_8394

Transmission lines run everywhere!  Back before the grid was setup, each line ran to a different community or power district that was promised a cut of Hoover Dam’s power.  Not as efficient as today’s system!

IMG_8395

Yes, that is a LOT of power lines.

IMG_1193

We got some sweet kids hardhats to wear on the tour so we’d be easily identifiable in case we wandered off.

IMG_8396

In one of the access tunnels from the elevator shaft.  It’s blasted through solid bedrock.

IMG_8400

Inside one of the penstock galleries.

IMG_8402

The throbbing, pulsating pipe that carries some of the water to the turbines.

IMG_8405

Inside the Nevada powerhouse.  That’s a whole boatload of turbines!

The tour guide told us a little bit about how the turbines are serviced.

IMG_8408

Art deco touches abound inside the dam.  This is the original entryway into the dam for tours.  Now only the most expensive tour option gets to walk down this hall.

IMG_8409

Inside one of the inspection galleries.

IMG_8410

This photo is shot looking straight down.  100 feet below is another inspection gallery.

IMG_8411

A window to the world.  This is the upper Arizona inspection hatch.  It was also a source of air when the dam was more actively curing and cooling.  Big fans were fitted further back in this passageway to move air through the structure.

IMG_8412

Looking out the access hatch downstream to the new bridge, power houses, and overflow discharge.

IMG_8413

IMG_8414

Looking straight up the dam face.  It actually curves inward as it goes up because the dam gets thinner.

IMG_8415

A photo of myself from the outside looking in.

IMG_8416

IMG_8417

IMG_8420

I wonder how many people drop cameras over the edge.

IMG_8421

I was a happy engineer!

IMG_8422

IMG_8424

Looking back down the tunnel.

IMG_8425

Another corridor leading to the staircase to heaven.

IMG_8427

I was excited to be on the damn dam tour.

IMG_8429

Super excited!

IMG_8430

An inspection point between two concrete pour blocks.  This is the worst place in the whole dam.  The blocks settled a couple inches out of alignment.  Every other block is nearly perfect.  Not too bad considering it was built in the early 30s!

IMG_8431

They monitor for earthquakes and seismic shifts.

IMG_8432

Looking down the staircase to heaven.  Down goes to Arizona.  That must make Arizona hell…

IMG_8433

Up the staircase to Nevada.

IMG_8436

The inspection points.

IMG_8437

Exiting through the elevator that comes up the middle of the dam.

IMG_8438

The copper-clad doors of the elevator.

IMG_8439

Out on the sidewalk in the middle of the dam.

IMG_8440

The big, heavy brass doors outside the antichamber of the elevator.

IMG_8441

The building in the middle is the new visitor center and elevator complex.

IMG_8442

It’s a looooong way down!

IMG_8443

IMG_8446

IMG_8448

IMG_8449

I love these leaning transmission towers!

IMG_8450

The close powerhouse is the one we went into.

IMG_8451

IMG_8452

A new bridge was built when the parking garage and museum took out the old original road.

IMG_8455

The Winged Figures of the Republic on the dedication monument to the dam.

IMG_8456

IMG_8461

Nevada time on the clock.

IMG_8462

IMG_8468

The grand entryway to the old elevator.

IMG_8469

Arizona time.

IMG_8470

The water level was pretty low.

IMG_8471

Looking back into Nevada.

IMG_8472

IMG_8474

IMG_8475

IMG_8476

Nevada on the left, Arizona on the right.

On the Way to Hoover Dam

The road from Vegas to Hoover Dam goes through some great country. There are also a few odd sights along the way. Aside from the dam itself, the new bridge being built to span the canyon is the most impressive man-made object out in the desert. If we include naturally occurring things, the desert is by far the most impressive sight to behold.

0904090820

Little poofy storm clouds on the horizon.

IMG_8378

We took a shortcut through the Nellis Air Force Base where the current-as-of-writing-this largest solar array in the world is constructed.  It is a massive complex to be sure!

IMG_8382

The Lake Las Vegas resort.  All of the rich and famous people who want to escape Vegas come to live here.

IMG_8383

The new approach to the new Highway 93 bridge across Black Canyon.

IMG_8384

Looking down into Black Canyon.

IMG_8385

Approaching the dam.  The whole place is crisscrossed with power lines.

IMG_8387

The big rope crane servicing the bridge construction.

IMG_8388

IMG_8389

The arch spanning the canyon was completed a month or so before my arrival.  Next step is to build the roadbed.

IMG_8391

The piers supporting the Nevada bridge approach.

IMG_8392

It will support four lanes of traffic plus extra lanes for broken down vehicles and pedestrians.