Glen Canyon - Statistics

Statistics about Glen Canyon Dam

Height of the dam above bedrock:  710 feet (216 m)

(Glen Canyon Dam is the second highest dam in the United States (after Hoover Dam which is 16 feet taller)

Thickness of lowest point of foundation:        300 feet (91 m)

Thickness at crest:               25 feet (7.4 m)

Crest length:         1,560 feet (475 m)

Volume of concrete in dam:              4,901,000 cubic yards (3,750,00 cubic meters)

Cost of dam:         $187,000,000

Total cost of dam, powerplant, town of Page, and other infrastructure: $314,000,000

Construction authorized:   April 11, 1956

Construction begins (diversion of Colorado River):      February 11, 1959

First bucket of concrete     June 17, 1960

Last bucket of concrete     September 13, 1963

First power generation       September 4, 1964

                 Statistics about Glen Canyon Bridge             

Second highest steel bridge in the United States         

Length (span):      1,028 feet (313.3 m)

Height above Colorado River:           700 feet (213 meters)

Construction begins:           February 1957

Construction ends:              January 1959

                 Statistics about Lake Powell           

Start of storage:   March 13, 1963

Completion of initial filling:               June 22, 1980

Elevation of lake level at full capacity:            3,700 feet (1,128 m)

Capacity when full:              26,215,000 acre feet (32,336 million cubic meters)

Surface area when full:      266 square miles (68,900 hectares)

Length when full: 186 miles (299 km)

Miles of shoreline:              1,960 miles (3,150 km)

Depth of water at dam when full:    560 feet (171 m)