grand coulee dam

I happened to be in Grand Coulee on Martin Luther King Day, and the visitor center was closed. In short, I had to "make" my own tour. I used several pullouts both above and below the dam to take pictures. There are many captioned photos in these areas around the lake, so you can get a good feel for the dam's history without taking the tour if you're in a pinch. Due to the holiday, there was no one in any of the parking areas I used. However, when I took a picture on the Highway 155 bridge below the dam, I spotted an eagle flying above the river, apparently searching for fish as it swooped down and nearly touched the water - beautiful. I suspect the tour offered by the visitor's center is wonderful, but simply driving around to various vantage points offers spectacular views of the truly massive structure.

This is a well maintained and truly exceptional exhibit. The staff was AWESOME as well. When we came in the door, the man at the desk came out and began to tell us great and interesting facts about the dam as we walked around and enjoyed the exhibits. We had fun and learned a ton about a truly amazing wonder in America.

It had been some years since I had been to the dam and was blown away by the wonderful visitor's center. Lots of interactive displays to interest children and adults. There were tours available but my time was limited so I couldn't take advantage of them.

we met some travellers from the middle of Washington state so we decided to have a lookwell one of the nicest road trips and over every hill I was asked to stop as it was so different we spent a week and drove from seattle via the loop road and went as far as grand coulee and with a lot of side trips in between there was too much to describe but the only thing I could compare to was the nile as without this dam or Columbia river and all its dams the place would be a dry desertroads were great and if you want to get away from the big cities the drive and all the sights are great

I get sick around synthetic fragrances. When we walked into the Visitor Center a very strong artificial floral scent smacked me in the face. I thought it must be body spray on a person near us so I kept moving, trying to guess who the smelly person was and get away from them. I am in powerhouse construction so I was very eager to see the displays, and my husband loves anything to do with rivers and dams, so we really wanted to be able to stay despite my increasing symptoms. I toughed it out and tried to view everything quickly. Finally I decided to use the facilities before we got back on the highway and that's when I finally figured out where that overpowering scent was coming from! The bathrooms were inundated with chemical fumes, making them inaccessible to me, or any of the other 30% of people who need to avoid such fumes (asthmatics, migraine or allergy sufferers, those with immune or hormone problems, pregnant women, those on chemo, & likely others too). Scenting a bathroom to the degree that it smells up the entire building is not "hygiene". A fake floral smell does not improve the cleanliness of a bathroom, it just provides the illusion of cleanliness by making people unable to smell the natural bathroom stinks. A good way to ACTUALLY keep a bathroom stink free is to use a filter in the air circulation system, or just bring in more outside air. From the glimpse I got of the washroom here, it was kept very clean... I really doubt it would smell dirty even if they took out the scent. Scenting public air is useless, just a stupid fad, & it causes harm and inconvenience to a significant number of people.This was an upsetting experience because seeing this dam was expected to be one of the highlights of our road trip, and instead it just left me nauseated, headachey and "out of it", and angry that a government-run facility would care so little about disabled accessibility.

We visited this summer and it is a very nice visitors center. They have neat displays and the dam is very cool. Unfortunately for us it was during the fire season and it was very smoky and so the view was not so great! I remember being there as a kid and I was so impressed with how lush and green Washington was. They have been in a drought for about 3 years and so it was pretty brown and not as beautiful! Hence the forest fires! If I was going to do the trip over I would probably stop again because it was on the way, but I wouldn't drive out of my way to stop there if it was dry and there were fires nearby.

The Visitors Center gives a lot of information on the building and the importance of this engineering and construction marvel. Visiting the Grand Coulee Dam helps one realize the importance of the Grand Coulee Dam to the energy and economy progress of the Northwest and the nation. The irrigation of the farmland in Washington as well as surrounding states has transformed this part of the country into an important farming area. Energy production at the dam and other dams in the network helps provide electricity for the whole Northwest area. There are tours available but during the off season are very limited. Check beforehand on tour availability and their website is also a good source of information. A visit to Grand Coulee Dam is highly recommended.

Yes, the dam is impressive: it better be as it is the largest concrete structure on the planet and you could put a 4' wide sidewalk 2x around the earth with all that concrete. Ans it's an important part of our history both from its impact on the Columbia River and the jobs it provided during the Great Depression. But don't miss the very dated film in the exhibition hall 2nd floor theater about the geology of the NW and how the area from western Montana to south of Portland and lots in between was formed by the prehistoric Lake Missoula--not just another story about glaciers. Fascinating, especially for those of us who live in and travel through the NW.

The museum was the best part but be advised there is no gift shop. The dollar store next to the Safeway in town sells postcards and some other goodies. We used it as a lunch stop driving from Idaho to Seattle. Has a big parking lot but not a lot of shade. Would probably be very hot in the summer time.

Our family had a great time at the dam. We enjoyed watching the firework display on the dam. We also enjoyed the visitor center. It was a good time, I'm glad we stopped.

We saw the show and enjoyed it. It was raining and a but cold actually but we just brought blankets and umbrellas and it was still enjoyable. Would have been better if weather cooperated but it still didnt ruin the show! Very colorful and informative too! Best thing is it's free! Wonderful visitor center right above the area we parked at. Clean restrooms and a cool movie room upstairs explaining the building process of the dam! Would go again..not in the rain next time:)

It took more cement than any other structure in history (though some Chinese dams have since used more). It produces more electric power than 16 coal-fired plants or nine nuclear plants. But it's the history of its construction in the depths of the Great Depression that is most fascinating. The Grand Coolee Dam not only produced hydroelectric power, it also created tens of thousands of acres of new farmland in the high plains of eastern Washington. It's well worth a detour. And the Riverside Inn is very very clean and comfortable motel within a short walk of the dam.

The laser show was very informative. We learned some new facts about the history of the Dam and the area. It is fun to watch.

We really enjoyed the Lazer show and there are many nice views of the dam from differents areas. The Visitor Center was extremely informative and had many interactive displays.

The Coulee Damn visitor's center was very interesting and informative and the laser light show after dark was awesome!! The damn also had several fantastic views for taking pics as well as a tour across the top of the damn. Met some very nice couples from Vancouver,WA. and St Augustine, FL. at a nice local eatery (R & A cafe, good food) near the damn. Wolfe couple from Puyallup, WA.