W.A.C. Bennett Dam Visitor Centre
Visitor Information
The Visitors Centre, overlooking Williston Lake Reservoir, offers a wide range of exhibits and an audio-visual theatre.
A 25-seat deli-style cafe on the ground floor is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Hours of Operation
May 19, 2007 to September 3, 2007
7 Days a week
10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Underground tours, 150 metres (500 feet) below ground, available*
Reservations for large groups are welcomed and appreciated
School and tour groups welcome
Visitor Centre and gift shop
*fee applies for underground bus tours
September 4, 2007 to May 18, 2008
Tours are available for school groups only. School tours for kindergarten to grade 12 are by appointment only and require two weeks advance notice. Please call, toll-free, 1 888 333-6667 for information and bookings.
Access
Peace River Generation Facilities are located near the town of Hudson's Hope in northeast British Columbia. Take Highway 29 to Hudson's Hope, approximately 65 km north of Chetwynd and 80 km west of Fort St. John. In Hudson's Hope, at the junction of Highway 29 and Canyon Drive, follow the signs 21 km west along Canyon Drive to the Visitor Centre. The road is well marked.
History and Hydroelectric Operation
The Peace Canyon project is the second hydroelectric development to harness the turbulent water of the Peace River, which plunges from the Rocky Mountain Trench to the Mackenzie River system, and the Arctic Ocean.
The W.A.C. Bennett Dam at the head of the Peace River Canyon, is key to the multiple uses of Peace River water for power generation. Completed in 1967, it is one of the world's largest earthfill structures, stretching 2 km (1.25 miles) across the head of the canyon and measuring 183 m (600 feet) in height. Behind the dam is British Columbia's largest reservoir, Williston Lake, which covers an area of 166,000 h (410,000 acres).
Gordon M. Shrum Generating Station at Bennett Dam has the capacity to generate over 13 billion kWh annually. The powerhouse, carved deep in bedrock under the east shoulder of Bennett Dam, was the largest underground powerhouse in the world when it began generating electricity in 1968.
The Peace Canyon Dam, situated at the outlet of the Peace River Canyon 23 km (14 miles) downstream from W.A.C. Bennett Dam, reuses water which has already generated electricity at the Gordon M. Shrum power station. The two Peace River power developments have an ultimate rated capacity of 3,425,000 kW.
