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John
Wesley Powell was the first person to fully
explore and write about the canyons of the Colorado
River. On the first of two trips down the Colorado,
Powell and his men saw and named many features,
including Glen Canyon. Though several people,
both before and after Powell, lived, worked,
and travelled in Glen Canyon, it remained a
place largely unknown to most of the United
States. It was still terra incognita in the
early 1950's when the Bureau of Reclamation
proposed building a dam, one of many proposed
for the Colorado River, at Glen Canyon's southern
end.
The
nation's environmental movement, though still
in its infancy at this time, had just waged
a successful campaign (led by the Sierra Club)
to prevent the construction of a dam at Echo
Park in Dinosaur National Monument. The wonders
of Glen Canyon, however, were still undiscovered
by those who might have preserved it.
Construction
of the dam began in 1956. It was completed in
1962, but the lake did not completely fill until
1980. Lake Powell, which covered most of Glen
Canyon, was named, ironically, after the man
who had first written of the canyon's many charms.
Today,
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (NRA) and
Lake Powell serve the needs of a diverse population.
The lake provides opportunities for a variety
of water-based recreational pursuits. The dam
provides water storage for irrigation and produces
electricity for millions. Most of the backcountry
(the lake comprises only 13% of the total recreation
area) is still as vast and remote as it was
before the dam. In addition to their recreational
and practical uses, the dam and the lake sparked
a controversy which contributed to the birth
to the modern-day environmental movement and
began a debate which continues today. To what
extent can humans alter their landscape before
they lose their connection to the land? What
is the price of progress and is it ever too
high? What is the legacy we will leave to our
children?
It's
easy to relax and have fun at Glen Canyon. But
it's also important to appreciate the remaining
wonders of geology here, marvel at the stories
of the different people who lived and travelled
here, and be in awe of the enormous silence
and solitude in the backcountry. And to remember
a remarkable place that existed just a few years
ago -- a place that no one knew.
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