BOULDER CITY, Nev.—At the lone remaining boat launch ramp here on Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the Western U.S., officials recently put up a new sign: “Estimated Wait Time 4 Hours.”
Amid a drought that scientists say is now the worst in the region in more than 1,000 years, Lake Mead is 28% full. The lake has lost 169 feet from its surface elevation of 1,214 in 2000. For every foot it goes down, about 20 feet of shoreline are exposed, according to officials with the National Park Service.
