Lake Powell

(Glen Canyon National Recreation Area):
On the 15th. of October 1956 President Dwight D. Eisenhower pressed a button at his desk in the White House and initiated the blast that began the construction of the Glen Canyon Dam just eight miles south of the Utah border in Arizona. When completed this dam backed up the flows of the Colorado and San Juan rivers 186 miles and 72 miles respectively, thus creating 1,960 miles of shoreline and one of the largest man-made lakes in the United States.

Work crews founded the town of Page, Arizona, which soon became a city serving the needs of travelers. Today, the hydroelectric dam sends its power throughout the West. Rainbow Bridge, a rock arching span of 278 feet is located in a side canyon on the East side of the lake and is the largest natural rock bridge in the world.

 

For additional information about Lake Powell click here.