I spent some time recently in Las Vegas NV.  As anyone who knows me knows I love to talk to dive shop owners/operators.  So, I took some time from my busy vacation (busy, right!!) and stopped in to talk to Jerry at the American Cactus Divers on East Lake Mead.

If you are familiar with NV or take a look at a map you'll see that there is a large lake - Lake Mead - created when the Bolder Dam was constructed.  This is the only nearby water to dive and it has been receding at a great rate from all the growth in the Colorado river basin.  The lake water level has dropped 140 feet!  So now there are some dive sites that are completely out of the water! (you can walk to a wreck!) and some that were below 200 feet are now accessible to the average sport diver.

Evidently along with those changes, as Jerry mentions the dive park is now high and dry and a good distance form the, now shallow water.  As yet the local dive industry has been unable to get the Parks Department to cooperate and allow a new dive park to be built at the water.  So, by and large the only way to dive in Lake Mead is to access it by boat.  No, there are no working dive charter operations as of this interview so it'll have to be your own boat.

However, once on the lake there are several interesting dives sites depending on your experience levels and I'm told the visibility is in the 30 to 40 foot range with several thermoclines.  There is the wreck of a WW II bomber at about 120' and some other small planes and boats as well as some heavy equipment from the construction of the dam.

The sport diving industry in Las Vegas is an interesting study in dive shop survival.  Due to the depressed economy, dropping water levels, and the difficulties with the Parks Department keeping a dive shop going has proven very difficult and some have dropped out - four in the last year. Although they are only 4 or 5 hours from diving off California and flying to Florida few are traveling to dive sites from Vegas. 

Interestingly though there is a group of about 200 commercial divers in Vegas.  Professional divers who make their living diving.  No, not at the dam.
For the gaming industry.  Really, diving for the shows and keeping things all clean and working properly. (Actually did yo know that you can book a dive at the Mandalay Bay Resort reef tank to dive with the sharks. Really! 
Three hours to get ready, suited up in your chain male suite, and then dive with the sharks for around $275. They provide the chain male suite, Dive Master and the sharks.)

I never would have guessed.

Any way check out Jerry's video on youtube at http://i2.ytimg.com/vi/Urc8aHB3vNI/default.jpg 

More on the Vegas diving industry to come.
Spread the word and join the group on DiveJunkee.com.

SCOTT.