Grand Coulee Dam

[Mike]

Grand Coulee Songfacts

Grand Coulee Dam is one of the largest concrete structures in the world.

It contains nearly 12 million cubic yards of concrete. How much concrete is that you ask? You could build a standard sized four foot wide four inch thick side walk around the world two and a half times. Or you could build a standard sized two lane highway from Seattle, Washington to Miami, Florida.

The dam is 60 feet short of a mile in length; it is 200 ft shorter than Hoover dam, but four times as long, nearly four times the power generating capacity and four times the concrete.

Here is a fantastic link to construction images…

http://users.owt.com/chubbard/gcdam/html/photos/construction.html

I first visited the dam when I was a child. I most recently visited it in 2005. Before 9/11/01 one could drive out over the dam, get out and look out over and down the spillway, an incredible view. As of 9/11 you can no longer even walk out on the dam. We watched the laser light show back in 1997 or 1998; I can’t remember exactly, they project it onto the spillway while just misting the water down, it looks fabulous.

I wrote a report in school on the Grand Coulee Dam exactly 30 years ago. I got B- on it... I think.

[Viaene]

Dams are superimpressive!

I visit a few myself, the view is incredible if you stand on it