The Sandcastle

04 August 08 - 12:42

One Dam Day

Fort Peck Dam, that is.  The original Fort Peck, Montana, is under the water of this reservoir but we spent most of a day exploring the dam and it's surrounding area.

[If the more button doesn't get you the rest of this entry, click on the more button of the previous entry, increase the number in the header there by one, and press enter.  That should get you back to this entry with the whole thing visible.]

Here's the sign that gives you the basics of the dam.


And here's the dam itself.  I know it just looks like a grassy hill--that's basically what it is. 


Here's another view of the dam.  In this picture the powerhouse is in the center right and the interpretive center is in the center left.


To help you understand how big that hill is, here's a closeup of the interpretive center that was so tiny in the previous picture.


Here's the back side of the dam.


The dam has four tunnels designed to control the water level.


If the water level gets high enough it flows over the spillway which can be seen in the distance from an observation area not far from the control towers.


Here's some closeups of the spillway area.


These tracks run along the back side of the spillway.  My guess is a crane stored in the shed at the end of the tracks comes out to open and close the gates of the spillway.


The spillway has only overflowed three times since it was built.  Judging by these pictures, it's not like to do so any time soon.

One of the advantages of living in a self-contained RV is that you can camp anywhere--like right at the top of a bluff overlooking Lake Peck. 


This is primarily a fishing access but there are three picnic tables with fire rings and the camping is free.  We were directed here by the guy working the gate at a campground offering hookups; it was full since we were here on a Saturday night.  He gave us a Fort Peck Dam map showing the boondocking campsites and this is one of them.  Nice place, huh?

TTYL,
Linda

one comment

btw, simply clicking the comments button gets you into the full post. at the bottom, but in! easier than your desc, imo.
curiousalexa - 07 08 08

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