What was there before Lake Mead?

Before the existence of Lake Mead, Lake Mohave, and Hoover Dam, the area encompassing the one and a half million acres of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area was occupied by early desert Indian cultures, adventurous explorers, ambitious pioneers looking for cheap land and religious freedom, and prospectors seeking ...



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Simply put, commercial filming at Lake Mead is banned only if the person does not have a filming permit. If someone is filming for a YouTube video anywhere in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, or other national parks, a permit needs to be approved by NPS.

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Key Points. Lake Mead has dropped by 70% due to droughts in the West and it will take many years to refill again, naturally. The reservoir is vitally important to millions of people as a source of water, electricity, and recreation.

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When Lake Mead is at its fullest, it boasts 759 miles of shoreline, is 532 feet deep, has 247 square miles of surface and astounding 28 millions-acre feet of water.

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Mead reaches dead pool at 895 feet. If Lake Powell reaches dead pool, the US Bureau of Reclamation—which declined our interview requests—would be unable to meet its obligation to deliver water downstream to Lake Mead. In which case, 40 million people would be affected.

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There are many places to swim in the bright blue waters of Lake Mead and Lake Mohave. Be aware that there are no lifeguards in the park. Always wear a life jacket. Most fatalities at Lake Mead National Recreation Area could have been avoided if the person in the water was wearing a life jacket.

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Lake Mead also covered the sites of the Colorado River landings of Callville and Rioville, Nevada, and the river crossing of Bonelli's Ferry, between Arizona and Nevada. Six years after the dam's construction, the lake filled to an elevation of 1200 feet.

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Lake Mead is considered at full capacity when water levels reach 1,220 feet above sea level, but it's able to hold a maximum of 1,229 feet of water. The last time the lake approached this capacity was in the summer of 1983.

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The last time Lake Mead was at maximum capacity, reaching an elevation of about 1,220 feet near the dam, was in 1983 and 1999, NASA notes.

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As crazy as it sounds, engineers say the idea is technically feasible. It would involve building a system of dams and pipelines to move the water uphill across multiple states over the Continental Divide. Gravity would then work in our favor to drop the water down to the Colorado River watershed.

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Record snowfall in the West wasn't enough to alleviate drought impacting Lake Mead. The record snowfall in the West wasn't enough to permanently alter the course of the drought impacting Lake Mead. FOX Weather's Robert Ray reports on the ongoing water issues and the Colorado River.

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