The overwhelming allure of the Las Vegas Strip, and its 4.2-mile-long stretch of seemingly endless things to do, tends to bring people to Las Vegas Boulevard and keep them there through the duration of their trip.
Like a traveler with blinders on, I have been guilty of doing this many times. On my most recent visit, however, my sister, who recently moved to Las Vegas, took me on an adventure I wouldn’t have considered before: boating Lake Mead.
Less than an hour away from the Strip in Boulder City, the Las Vegas Boat Harbor acts as an entry point to Lake Mead National Recreation Area, a 1.5-million acre playground of mountains and canyon spanning the states of Nevada and Arizona. Boating on Lake Mead’s 290 square miles of waterways is one of the most popular activities to do there.
As someone who is from Hawaii and has been around beaches all her life, I wasn’t sure what to expect from a lake. I’ve taken boats off the coasts of Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Lanai and the Big Island to see whales, lava, waterfalls and their varied scenic coastlines, but a visit to a lake, frankly, just sounded flat and boring. Needless to say, I was wrong.
Renting a pontoon patio boat for the entire day, we packed up coolers with food and drinks enough for six people and two dogs and set out. We all fit comfortably with more than enough room to spare, and our self-proclaimed captain directed our boat out of the harbor. It’s important to note that home-state boating laws must be followed in order to operate a boat. If you’re a resident of Hawaii that means a Boater Education Card, which can be obtained online through boatus.org, boaterexam.com or via a home-study course through the state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation.
The day was sunny and the water was smooth, as we passed little islands and took our time to look at the rock formations in the surrounding landscape. The lake was much bigger than I had expected it to be, and there was plenty of room for boats to maneuver alongside Jet Skiers and wakeboarders, all looking like they were having a great time.
Boaters are welcome to explore the open water, some of the islands and any of the coves, as long as it’s safe to do so. It felt like we were discovering new territory, not quite sure where to go first or what to expect, but that was part of the fun. We decided on a cove with a small pebble beach, and a few other boaters nearby. We hopped out of the boat, walked around, then took a dip in the cool, shallow blue waters. With the speaker blasting island music off of Spotify, it felt just like a typical beach day in Hawaii, except we were in the desert area of Nevada. We stayed there for a couple hours before exploring other inlets of the lake.
The Colorado River, controlled by the Hoover Dam, contributes the majority of Lake Mead’s reservoir, which serves the states of Arizona, California and Nevada. Due to drought and increased water demand, Lake Mead is only at 40% capacity and that’s evident by the “bathtub ring” seen around the shoreline.
After spending a couple more hours at another cove, working on our tans and chatting with our boat neighbors, we piled back onto the pontoon. What we didn’t realize when we started was how long it would take to go from one place to another, so we packed up early because we want to see one of the most impressive features of boating around Lake Mead before this day is done.
Our captain directed the boat around a corner through a small inlet, and cliffs stood tall on either side of us. Then, the 726-foot-high Hoover Dam came into view straight ahead. It’s a remarkable sight to see from the water, a different perspective than most visitors see. We stopped the boat for a few moments to take it all in before heading back to the harbor.
Though we barely scratched the surface of what there is to see on a boating trip to Lake Mead, this little detour outside of Las Vegas has me already wanting to return.
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IF YOU GO: LAKE MEAD
>> Las Vegas Boat Harbor Marina, 702-293-1191
>> A 22- to 25-foot pontoon boat that seats four to 12 people starts at $50 per hour, with a two-hour minimum, or $300 per day. A Hawaii Boater Education Card can be obtained through boaterexam.com, boatus.org or by visiting dlnr.hawaii.gov/dobor/.
>> Valid driver’s license required.
>> For more info, go to nps.gov/lake.
Christine Hitt is a freelance journalist from Hawaii who currently lives in Southern California.
