A drop-by-drop look at Lake Mead vs. Lake Las Vegas
After having spent last summer cooped up indoors, many of you no doubt are itching to feel the sun on your skin. But, since this is Nevada and most of the “outdoors” is a scorched-earth nightmare every summer, being in or near a lake is probably your best bet. We’re not exactly Minnesota here, so this is a look at how Lake Mead, one of the largest manmade lakes in the world, and Lake Las Vegas, one of the largest manmade lakes in Southern Nevada, compare.
Purpose
Lake Mead: Water and electricity for about 25 million people
Lake Las Vegas: Tourism and development
Size
Lake Mead: 158,500 acres
Lake Las Vegas: 320 acres
Shoreline
Lake Mead: 550 miles
Lake Las Vegas: 10 miles
Dam
Lake Mead: Hoover Dam is 726 feet tall, 1,244 feet across at the top
Lake Las Vegas: Lake Las Vegas Dam is 192 feet tall, 4,200 feet long
Cruises
Lake Mead: Desert Princess, paddle wheeler for sightseeing, dinners or Champagne brunches; private charters for up to 200 guests
Lake Las Vegas: La Contessa, the 84-foot luxury yacht available for private charters for up to 130 guests
Water activities
Lake Mead: Boating, water skiing, kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding, wakeboarding, tubing, HydroBike tours
Lake Las Vegas: Kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding, electric boats, Flyboard Water Jetpack, Aqua Park floating obstacle course
Celebrities
Lake Mead: Sultan, a bighorn sheep who roamed an island for nearly a year before he was shot and killed in 1936
Lake Las Vegas: Longtime resident Celine Dion
Pop culture
Lake Mead: Surviving damage to Hoover Dam in movies including “Superman,” “Transformers,” “San Andreas,” “Vegas Vacation”
Lake Las Vegas: Surviving a turbulent press junket as the main setting for “America’s Sweethearts,” the rom-com starring Julia Roberts, Billy Crystal and Catherine Zeta-Jones; surviving the latest season of “Jersey Shore Family Vacation”