Navajo Dam Road Closure Begins Today

Above, driving on the road on the backside of the Navajo Dam. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

One of the nicest places for boating and camping is at Navajo Dam near Farmington, New Mexico. 

I went there two years ago and had a great time. A highlight was driving on a road on the backside of the dam.

That road is to be closed for a few months for exploratory drilling starting today. One of the things to be checked will be seepage from the dam.

The Durango Herald reported:

New Mexico Highway 539 over Navajo Dam, located about 45 miles east of Farmington, will be closed to traffic from Wednesday, Feb. 28, to May 15.

Traffic detours will re-route traffic traveling between Navajo Dam and Navajo City that runs from north/south on New Mexico Highway 511 and runs east/west on US Highway 64 and detours may cause travel delays.

Maintenance crews will be completing exploratory drilling to gather geotechnical data on Navajo Dam as part of Reclamation’s Safety of Dams Program during this period. 

To read more, go here. 

The Dam Drive

Above, the drive on the backside on the Navajo Dam. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

To get to the Navajo Lake marina, one has to drive on the backside of the Navajo Lake Dam. 

For those "thrillseekers", one can also drive on the top of the dam. I wondered how many cars have fallen into the lake while doing so. It is around 400 feet deep at the dam. We did it when we first arrived in the park.

While driving on the backside of the dam, a great view of the valley below with the San Juan River will "wow" visitors.

 

Above, a dam view of the San Juan River. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Navajo Lake State Park is quite an interesting place to visit.