Contemplate Your Place in the Landscape At The Big Map

During the construction of Glen Canyon Dam, The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation commissioned a scale model relief map of what would be Lake Powell and the surrounding area. Model map builder Robert Miller used information from topographic maps and overflights of the area to construct the model in his basement. It took over a year to complete. He cut the map into seven pieces to be transported to the opening of the Glen Canyon Visitor Center, later renamed after Arizona senator and water use proponent Carl Hayden. This terrain relief model of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and vicinity can only be described as precisely accurate. The topography shown was based on both topographic maps and aerial photographs. Everything on the map actually exists just as it appears to, considering the vertical scale of the model. When it was installed at the visitor center at Glen Canyon Dam, is was oriented to real life. You could use it for wayfinding. In 2017, during the installation of new exhibits at Carl Hayden Visitor Center, the relief map was cut into the original seven pieces and removed from the building. Two years later, park partners Glen Canyon Conservancy retrieved the pieces and reassembled the map at their Flagship office and retail store for the public to once again enjoy and plan trips. In mid-2023, renovations at the Powell Museum & Archives were complete, so the map has a forever home amongst relevant exhibits. Over 55 years after its construction, aside from a few new roads, the map still accurately depicts the landscape of and around Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.