| Lake Mead National Recreation Area | |
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IUCN Category V (Protected Landscape/Seascape)
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| Location | Mohave County, Arizona & Clark County, Nevada, USA |
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| Nearest city | Las Vegas, Nevada |
| Coordinates | 36°00′35″N 114°47′48″W / 36.00972°N 114.79667°WCoordinates: 36°00′35″N 114°47′48″W / 36.00972°N 114.79667°W |
| Area | 1,495,665.69 acres (6 053 km²) |
| Established | October 13, 1936 |
| Visitors | 7,819,984 (in 2004) |
| Governing body | National Park Service, Bureau of Reclamation |
Lake Mead National Recreation Area is located in southern Nevada and northwestern Arizona. The centerpieces of the National Recreation Area are its two large reservoirs: Lake Mead and Lake Mohave. These lakes cater to boaters, swimmers, sunbathers, and fishermen while the surrounding desert rewards hikers, wildlife photographers, and roadside sightseers. Three of America's four desert ecosystems — the Mojave desert, the Great Basin desert, and the Sonoran Desert — meet in Lake Mead NRA. As a result, this seemingly barren area contains a surprising variety of plants and animals, some of which may be found nowhere else in the world.
Originally called Boulder Dam Recreation Area, it was managed under a cooperative agreement between the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management dating from October 13, 1936. The name was changed to Lake Mead National Recreation Area on August 11, 1947. On October 8, 1964, Congress passed enabling legislation (Public Law 88-639) officially creating Lake Mead National Recreation Area as a park in the national park system. The law directs the Secretary of the Interior to administer the area "...for general purposes of public recreation, benefit, and use, and in a manner that will preserve, develop, and enhance, so far as practicable, the recreation potential, and in a manner that will preserve the scenic, historic, scientific, and other important features of the area..."
About 20,000 acres (81 km²) of the recreation area are managed separately under theGrand Canyon-Parashant National Monument, proclaimed in 2000. Water covers about 186,000 acres (756 km²) of the recreation area.
The Hoover Dam, which was completed in 1935 creating Lake Mead, is located within Lake Mead NRA. Tours of the dam and the Hoover Dam Visitor Center are managed by the United States Bureau of Reclamation.
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Lake Mead National Recreation Area [1] is a United States National Recreation Area the is located in southern Nevada and along the northern border of Arizona.
Lake Mead NRA contains two large lakes, Lakes Mead and Lake Mohave, which are reservoirs created by the Hoover and Davis Dams. About 96 percent of the water in Lake Mead is from melted snow that fell in Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming. Lake Mead extends for 110 miles behind the Hoover Dam (completed in 1936), while Lake Mohave extends for 67 miles behind the Davis Dam (completed in 1951).
One of the many aspects of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area that continually draws visitors is its good weather. Many people come just to relax in the land of the sun. Refugees from states hit hard by winter's icy clutch often flee to this area to spend a mild winter. Sunbathers and water skiers spend summers here to toast in the 110 °F plus temperatures. The area generally has less than five inches of annual rainfall. Water temperatures may range from 45 °F to 85 °F at different times of the year.
Lake Mead NRA is approximately 25 miles from McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas. Other communities bordering and near Lake Mead NRA have smaller airports.
There are nine paved accesses into Lake Mead NRA.
There is no public transportation serving the park, although tour buses operate from many Las Vegas resorts and attractions.
Fees for individuals entering the park are $3, good for five days. Fees for vehicles (including all passengers) are $5, also good for five days. An annual pass is available for $20 that allows free entrance for one calander year, and the National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass is available for $80, allowing free entry to all National Park, Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Bureau of Reclamation areas for one year from the month purchased.
Paved roads lead to all major sites. There are many approved backcountry roads.
Kayak the Colorado River from Willow Beach. Nice hiking, hot springs, and camping. The river is closed to motorized boats on Sundays and Mondays, but expect to find a few motorboats ignoring this rule.
Camping is the best thing you can do.
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Category: Outline articles
   | National Park Service: Lake Mead National Recreation Area - Lake Mead National Recreation Area (U.S. National Park Service) |
| | Bureau of Reclamation: Hoover Dam - Bureau of Reclamation: Lower Colorado Region - Hoover Dam |
| | Lake Mead National Recreation Area Pictures - Lake Mead National Recreation Area - National Parks Gallery |
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