Lying beyond the eastern end of the Grand Canyon is another marvel, albeit man-made the immense Lake Powell stretches across the Arizona-Utah border for 186 miles. This view shows only a small section of the lake, set off by a contrasting background of barren buttes, mesas and the mountains of the Kaiparowits Plateau. The lake was formed in 60s by construction of a 710 foot high Glen Canyon Dam. After completion, the lake formed a shoreline longer than America's west coast. Named for Grand Canyon explorer John Wesley Powell, the lake is one of the largest man-made reservoirs in United States. The Glen Canyon National Recreation Area surrounds Lake Powell, offering over a million acres for boating, fishing, water skiing, camping and hiking.
   The Glen Canyon Dam, dedicated by Ladybird Johnson in 1966, has the capacity to generate 1.3 million kilowatts of power as 15 million gallons of water pass through its penstocks every minute. This marvelous engineering accomplishment began with construction of the Glen Canyon Dam Bridge, allowing construction workers easy access to both sides of the Colorado, saving a 200 mile drive. The dam, near Page, Arizona, is not without controversy as it releases ice-cold water back into the river (having a negative impact on native fish) and limits springtime floodwaters that had once cleansed the Colorado River sand deposits and pollutants. And currently, after a 16 year drought, there is not enough water from the Colorado River to fill both Lake Mead and Lake Powell. Murmurs continue to have the Glen Canyon Dam removed and see the Colorado River flow return to the canyon.

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