To the outside observer, dam workers excavating the riverbed may have looked like they were searching for a buried treasure. Little did they know that they would find it!

During the initial surveys of the area, engineers and scientists tried to gauge the depth of the silt deposits and took core samples from the canyon walls. While attempting a core sample, a diamond tipped drill bit was lost in the river and could not be recovered. The government gave up the search and wrote the bit off as a loss. Several years later, while excavating the riverbed, workers were astonished to discover the drill bit. The government was even more pleased to have the expensive bit back in their possession.

Later, the dam workers made a much more sobering find. During another survey mission in the 1920s an engineer wearing hip waders weighted down with various tools was on a raft in the river. When he fell and drowned, his coworkers unfortunately were unable to find him in the murky water since he sank straight to the bottom due to the added weight of his tools. Even after dredging the river, they could not locate his body and gave up the search. Years later, dam excavation crews came across his remains buried in the deep silt of the river, and he was identified by his clothing.