Constructed between 1956 and 1966, the Glen Canyon Dam was erected amid great controversy and compromise over the fate of America's western water resources and vast wilderness tracts. Water began to back up behind the dam in 1963, reaching its "full pool" in 1980. Much of Glen Canyon disappeared from view and Lake Powell was created.
Concrete for the arch-dam and power plant was poured around the clock for more than three years. The dam's crest is 1,560 feet long. It lies 710 feet above bedrock and 583 feet above the original river channel. At its full-pool elevation of 3,700 feet, Lake Powell measures 560 feet deep at the dam. |
| Hours: |
Open daily all year except Thanksgiving, December 25, and January 1; from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with longer hours in the summer. |
| Visitor Center: |
The Carl Hayden Visitor Center has a large-scale relief map of the Colorado Plateau region and audiovisual exhibits on the construction of Glen Canyon Dam. |
| Facilities: |
Drinking water and restrooms. |
| Directions: |
At the point where Highway 89 crosses the Colorado River, approximately one mile west of Page, Arizona. Get directions from MapQuest. |
| Coordinates: |
Map Coordinates (NAD83): 36 56.232N; 111 29.039W. |
| Weather: |
- The area averages seven inches of precipitation per year, with low humidity.
- Summer temperatures averages range from the low 60s to the 90s, although the thermometer can sometimes exceed 100 degrees F.
- Water in the summer averages 75 degrees.
- Sunrise/Sunset
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| Precautions: |
Due to heightened security, visitors may not bring packs or large purses into the Visitor Center. |
