Visitors ignore closure of road to Lake Mohave

The road leading down to Lake Mohave through Eldorado Canyon has been closed since Aug. 4, but the National Park Service is struggling to keep visitors off the flood-damaged route south of Boulder City.

In recent days, rangers at Lake Mead National Recreation Area have issued citations to a number of people who ignored the signs and barriers and used the washed-out road anyway. Someone went so far as to cut the chains and locks and move the heavy concrete barriers put up to block the road.

On Aug. 11, a woman had to be rescued after deciding to walk around the barriers and down to the water — also in violation of the closure order — only to suffer heat-related distress about 3 miles into her 4½ mile hike to the lake.

“The main reason the road is closed is safety,” said Christie Vanover, spokeswoman for the Park Service at Lake Mead. “What we’ve actually done is add even more barriers.”

The road leads to Nelson’s Landing and Placer Cove, two popular recreation spots, especially for young people and families looking to celebrate the beginning and the end of summer break, Vanover said.

Flash flooding early this month washed out one whole side of the paved road, which leads to Lake Mohave from U.S. Highway 95, about 30 miles southeast of Las Vegas. Vanover said it could take until October for the road to be rebuilt and reopened.

For now, the only open route to Nelson’s Landing and Placer Cover is Aztec Wash Road, an unpaved, back-country road for which a high-clearance, 4-wheel-drive vehicle is recommended.

Contact Henry Brean at hbrean@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0350. Follow @RefriedBrean on Twitter.