Mike O’Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge

Follow the Nevada-side signs for Bridge Walkway from Hoover Dam Access Road. The pedestrian approach leaves from its own plaza, where visitors report parking and public restrooms. You’ll pass the Hoover Dam security checkpoint on the way in, then climb to the span by stairs or an uphill ramp. Allow about half an hour for the approach, a look around, and photos. This is a short walk, but not a level one.

The walkway gives you an elevated view of Hoover Dam set into the canyon, with the Colorado River and Black Canyon below. The closest viewpoint is out on the span, not in the parking area. For a photo that shows why this stop is different, include the dam, a slice of canyon, and some of the bridge railing to give the height a sense of scale.

The roadway sits about 890 feet above the river. The span is exposed to sun and wind, and traffic passes nearby; some visitors find the height, gusts, or perceived bridge movement unsettling. You don’t have to cross the whole bridge: walk out as far as feels comfortable, take in the view, and turn back.

The bridge opened to traffic in 2010 as the central part of the Hoover Dam Bypass, moving through traffic across the river instead of over the dam crest. It stretches nearly 1,900 feet across the Colorado River, about a quarter-mile downstream from Hoover Dam. Its concrete arch was the longest in North America when it was built, a fittingly ambitious neighbor for the dam.

Mike O’Callaghan was a Nevada governor; Pat Tillman was an Arizona Cardinals player who left professional football to enlist in the U.S. Army and was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan in 2004. Their names are on a memorial plaque near the Nevada-side walkway. Look down along the path for the Arizona–Nevada marker set into the pavement: this is a bridge visit where you can walk between states without leaving the span.