Lake Mead National Recreation Area

I finally convinced my husband to go to Las Vegas last month, and while we were there, we drove 45 minutes to the Hoover Dam.  Located on Lake Mead, the Hoover Dam is within the boundaries of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.  We love to try new hiking spots when we're on vacation, so I was excited to do some research and find that the Historic Railroad Trail was really close to the Hoover Dam - so close, in fact, that the trail can be reached by walking out the back of the Hoover Dam parking garage!


For more information about the Historic Railroad Trail, visit the National Park Service here.

Approximately 3.5 miles long, the Trail historically featured a railroad track passing through 5 large tunnels.  The tracks are no longer there, but the trail still exists, with awesome views of Lake Mead.

After exiting the Hoover Dam parking garage, we walked over a mile before we got a glimpse of Lake Mead - I think Tom was getting a little nervous that we would never actually see it!

Tunnel 5, the first tunnel we encountered

Exiting Tunnel 5, with a view towards Tunnel 4

But, after we exited Tunnel 5, to our right we finally got our first view of Lake Mead, and it was spectacular.

The trail itself is a fairly easy walk, with nothing much in the way of hills.  Even on a Monday morning, we encountered lots of other people.

This hike was a great way to see a bit more of the sights after taking our tour of the Hoover Dam!