Sight · Lake Mead National Recreation Area
Boat rentals open a day on the lake beneath red-rock cliffs.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Lake Mead Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Lake Mead National Recreation Area. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Lake Mead audio tourRecorded for this place
Callville Bay: Boats and a Submerged Landing“You're approaching Callville Bay, a boating base with day rentals and houseboats on Lake Mead. Come to get out on the water; swimming isn't allowed inside the marina harbor.”
Plays as you drive up to Callville Bay Marina in the Parkwolf Lake Mead Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Callville Bay Marina is a large inland harbor in Lake Mead's Boulder Basin, reached from Northshore Road. It's a base for getting out on the lake, with boat slips, rentals and houseboats. I'd plan a visit around boating; if you're after a quick viewpoint or a swim, this isn't that kind of stop. Swimming and fishing aren't allowed inside the marina harbor.
The operator rents pontoon boats, ski boats and Mako fish skiffs for the day, plus houseboats for longer stays. The nearby Callville Bay Launch Ramp serves boaters bringing their own vessels, but it's a separate facility. Lake levels shift the shoreline and can change ramp access, so check current launch conditions before towing in and allow time for launching and recovery. For rentals, build in time for check-in and moving gear to the docks; carts or shuttle service aren't guaranteed.
The bay takes its name from a 19th-century Mormon settlement established by Bishop Anson Call on the Colorado River. Callville became a steamboat landing during the Civil War, then was abandoned when the river proved difficult for steamboats farther upstream. Hoover Dam's reservoir later submerged the settlement; it now lies under about 400 feet of water and nearly 80 feet of river sediment.
Wildlife
525 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
116 sightingsBurroMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
18 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 4 PMSighting map
99 sightingsWhite PelicanMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
145 sightingsGreat Blue HeronMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
106 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around noonSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Lake Mead. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateCallville Ridge Trail4.7 mi · 4 hr · 3.9 mi awayA pathless ridge to three summits and 1950s jet wreckage.
ModerateAnniversary Narrows Trail5.8 mi · 3.5 hr · 4.3 mi awayA twisting, colorful slot canyon on a sun-baked 5.8-mile loop.
ChallengingAnniversary Peak Trail9.9 mi · 7 hr · 4.3 mi awaySculpted narrows give way to a long, exposed summit ridge
ModerateBlack Mesa Trail3.9 mi · 3.5 hr · 4.5 mi awayA cross-country climb to Black Mesa's broad summit above Lake Mead.
Picnic area · 1 mi awayCallville Bay Picnic AreaEight shaded tables, grills and drinking water make lunch easy.
Campground · 1 mi awayCallville Bay RV ParkFive full-hookup spaces in a marina's tiny RV village.
Campground · 1.1 mi awayCallville Bay CampgroundA quiet desert camp base with a marina and food nearby.Parkwolf’s Lake Mead ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
