Lake Mead was formed when the Colorado River was dammed, flooding the barren desert land, making a unique mixture of water and rocky landscape. This unique area has turned into a popular recreation destination.

When the Hoover Dam was built in 1935, it created a huge reservoir that backed up 110 miles. Lake Mead, named after one of the supervisors of the dam, then became part of the Lake Mead National Recreation area, declared a National Historic Landmark in 1981. Now it's the fifth busiest national park in the US.

The lake covers over 150,000 acres, with beautiful blue water that makes for great boating, swimming and other water sports. There's also hiking, ATV riding and horseback riding on shore, besides great sightseeing.

An interesting story is the one about the B-29A, a bomber of the Army Air Force, flying low on a special mission over Lake Mead in 1948. The bomber accidentally hit the surface at almost 250 miles per hour. The pilot kept the plane airborne, but since so much damage from the hit occurred, the plane came down in the lake. All aboard escaped before the plane sank, and it still lies under the water in Lake Mead.