# A must-see on your next trip to Las Vegas



## Karen G (Nov 2, 2010)

We went out to the new bridge at the Hoover Dam and walked across. The views are spectacular. There's a nice new parking lot and easy access up to the bridge by stairs or a nice ramp--wheelchair/stroller friendly.






 Parking lot and ramp/stairs up to bridge.






You cannot see over the side of the bridge to see the dam when you are driving across the bridge, but when you walk across you can see everything.


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## ahmo (Nov 2, 2010)

Wow, those are great photos!  

Is there a fee for the parking lot?


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## Karen G (Nov 2, 2010)

ahmo said:


> Wow, those are great photos!
> 
> Is there a fee for the parking lot?


 No, there is no charge. It was crowded today and we had to wait for someone to pull out of a space so that we could pull in, but it was worth the wait.  There are informative signs and benches to rest on. It is quite nicely done.


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## funtime (Nov 2, 2010)

I feel privileged to have visited before 9/11 - at that time they were giving tours of the dam and you got to go down to the base of the dam.  It is my understanding that they do not do that anymore.  Funtime


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## Karen G (Nov 2, 2010)

funtime said:


> I feel privileged to have visited before 9/11 - at that time they were giving tours of the dam and you got to go down to the base of the dam.  It is my understanding that they do not do that anymore.  Funtime


Here's info about the tours they give. I'm not sure if this is the same one you went on before.


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## zinger1457 (Nov 4, 2010)

Drove by the Hoover Dam on Sunday on our way to Vegas but didn't stop since we've taking the tour previously.  The only way to see anything is to stop, they have concrete barriers on both sides of the bridge that blocks your view.  The traffic was bad coming from the Vegas side, it was backed up for 1-2 miles just before the bridge.


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## pkyorkbeach (Nov 4, 2010)

beautiful
Thank you for sharing
I have never been there


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## K&PFitz (Nov 4, 2010)

Great photos.  I'm a little afraid of heights, so I think I'd rather look at your photo than actually walk out on the bridge.


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## Karen G (Nov 4, 2010)

zinger1457 said:


> The only way to see anything is to stop, they have concrete barriers on both sides of the bridge that blocks your view.


They have flashing signs on the roadway saying that no stopping is allowed when driving on the bridge. People may have been stopping when they first opened it up to traffic.  You definitely can't see the dam when you're driving.

When the bridge was being constructed, I thought it would be too scary to drive across it. But with the high sides and not seeing the dam below, it just seems like any other road.  There also isn't any shaking or movement from traffic when you are walking across the bridge.


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## LynnW (Nov 4, 2010)

So it is finally open. I know looking at it I also thought it would be scary driving over it. Are you saying that it hasn't helped with the traffic getting over the dam? We will be going that way next week and I was hoping it would improve things.

Lynn


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## Karen G (Nov 4, 2010)

LynnW said:


> Are you saying that it hasn't helped with the traffic getting over the dam? We will be going that way next week and I was hoping it would improve things.
> 
> Lynn


 Oh, no. I think it has immensely helped with the traffic going from Nevada to Arizona.  I think maybe it was just the newness of the bridge and maybe people were stopping on the bridge when they weren't supposed to on the first few days.  We didn't experience any slowdowns just going across it and back again.  Traffic was moving along swiftly when we were walking across, also.


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## zinger1457 (Nov 4, 2010)

When I said you would have to stop to see anything I didn't mean you should stop on the bridge, obviously you would stop in the visitors parking lot and walk to the bridge or the viewing site.  Although the bridge is done they are still doing work on the roads leading to the bridge and sections are down to one lane.  When we drove through on Sunday we didn't see any traffic stopped on the bridge, the backup was before the bridge on the Nevada side, traffic coming from Vegas.


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## LynnW (Nov 5, 2010)

That's great news Karen! We want to be in Mesa by 5:00pm so it shouldn't be a problem.

Lynn


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## Karen G (Nov 5, 2010)

LynnW said:


> That's great news Karen! We want to be in Mesa by 5:00pm so it shouldn't be a problem.
> 
> Lynn


Lynn, go to mapquest and do directions for Boulder City, NV, to Mesa, AZ.  Zoom in and choose satellite view looking right over the dam. The satellite picture was taken before the bridge was complete so it shows the route you used to have to take over the dam.  You can see the partially completed bridge and roadway on each side of the water. You'll see vividly how much shorter the route is now that the bridge is complete.

By the way it shows the time of that trip to be 4 hrs. & 36 minutes going the old route over the dam. It will be interesting to see how much time the bridge saves.


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## Fern Modena (Nov 5, 2010)

Lynne,
You have to add an hour to the time Karen is giving you because there is a time change at the dam.  Arizona is one hour later than Nevada, except during daylight saving time (Arizona doesn't use DST, so during those months Arizona and Nevada are on the same time).

Fern



Karen G said:


> By the way it shows the time of that trip to be 4 hrs. & 36 minutes going the old route over the dam. It will be interesting to see how much time the bridge saves.


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## Karen G (Nov 5, 2010)

Fern Modena said:


> Lynne,
> You have to add an hour to the time Karen is giving you because there is a time change at the dam.


 I don't think the actual time of day is affected because it's travel time, not time on the clock. You don't have to list a time you are leaving like you would on an airline schedule--I think it is just the actual time it takes to drive from point A to point B regardless of what time zone you're in.


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## riverdees05 (Nov 5, 2010)

Thanks for sharing the pictures, will have to go there on our next LV trip.


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## Lee55 (Nov 5, 2010)

Great Photo's


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## Fern Modena (Nov 5, 2010)

Travel time isn't the same as clock time.  Lynne was saying that she needed to be somewhere before 5PM, so she needed to know how the travel time corresponded to the clock time to know that she'd get there in time.  

We were travelling from California to Galveston one year, and we stopped in Goodyear, AZ at the CrackerBarrel for dinner.  We thought it was awfully busy for 5:30 PM.  Wasn't till after we left the restaurant and were on our way that we realized we'd forgotten to change our watches.

Ferm



Karen G said:


> I don't think the actual time of day is affected because it's travel time, not time on the clock. You don't have to list a time you are leaving like you would on an airline schedule--I think it is just the actual time it takes to drive from point A to point B regardless of what time zone you're in.


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## LynnW (Nov 5, 2010)

Fern I actually thought about that this morning when I was in the car and the radio reminded me that this was the weekend to set our clocks back so now we are on the same time as Arizona but will have to change when we get to Las Vegas and then an hour ahead again. Will talk to you on Sunday when we arrive. 

Lynn


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## Myrtle (Nov 5, 2010)

*A must see in Vegas*

thanks for the pictures and information, we're headed to Grand Desert on Sunday so this will be a  nice trip.


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## IngridN (Nov 8, 2010)

Thanks for posting Karen...it was timely as we decided to skip it as we never had time on the days after Valley of Fire and Red Rock. Saw your post on our last day in Vegas on Friday and your photos convinced us it was a must see.

It was awesome walking across the bridge and seeing the dam from that perspective. The parking lot is tiny as is the overflow lot. I wonder how they will handle that in the summer (assuming lots more tourists at that time)?

Ingrid


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## Karen G (Nov 8, 2010)

IngridN said:
			
		

> Saw your post on our last day in Vegas on Friday and your photos convinced us it was a must see.


Very cool!  Glad you got to walk across the bridge. It is an amazing sight.


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## Mimi39 (Nov 9, 2010)

Thanks for posting.  Two weeks ago we took a bus tour to Grand Canyon and rode over the new bridge.  I think it had only been open for a few days at that time.


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## Karen G (Nov 9, 2010)

Mimi39 said:


> Thanks for posting.  Two weeks ago we took a bus tour to Grand Canyon and rode over the new bridge.  I think it had only been open for a few days at that time.


Could you see the dam from the bus--I was wondering if being higher up would allow views over the sides of the bridge.


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