The Canyon Skywalk

[Amelia]

The Canyon Skywalk

By Glen Meek

Contact 13

Posted: July 4, 2005

It is one of the great natural wonders of the world -- and it will soon to be joined by an engineering marvel.

A fantastic glass bridge arcing 60-feet out over the grand canyon -- giving visitors an unobstructed view 4000-feet straight down.

Sheri Yellowhawk, tribal executive says "That's gonna be a scary view. It's gonna be exciting. It's gonna be a once in a lifetime view.

It may be scarey indeed having nothing more than sheets of glass separating you from eternity.

But the bridge has been engineered to withstand 100-mile per hour winds, magnitude 8 earthquakes -- and hold the weight of 71-jumbo jetliners.

The glass bridge -- officially called the canyon skywalk -- been under construction for months here on the west rim of the grand canyon.

It's being built on Hualapai tribal lands -- and the tribe hopes it will become one of the biggest attractions in the southwest.

The project is expected to be completed by the end of this year and when it's up and running, the hualapai expect as many as 3-million people a year will come here -- and take a walk out over the edge.

The idea for the skywalk came from las vegas tour operator David Jin, and its It has taken nearly a decade to turn his dream into a reality.

But not everyone was sold on the idea at first.

There were elders -- and others -- concerned about any construction on pristine native lands.

Tribal Executive Sheri Yellowhawk says "We had the area blessed. We had the elders come out and they talked about it and they said We would like to keep our land the way it is, but we have to look at the future of our kids, to have something that's economiocally feasable for their future

The financial future of the Hualapai is tied to tourism. They are not a gaming tribe.

But they are betting that -- when it comes to the skywalk -- if they build it -- you will come

[Jeannieb43]

I'm incredulous.

This plexiglass bridge is nearly completed -- and I've never heard a word about it before...!

What are the bridge's terminus points on either end, pray tell? (Grand Canyon is HUGE.)

How can the Indians build this without any cooperation from the U.S.Gov't?

[Bravus]

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A fantastic glass bridge arcing 60-feet out over the grand canyon

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I read that as saying it doesn't go right across any part of the canyon, just takes you out over it: kind of like an incomplete bridge... Hope they have excellent engineers!

[Jeannieb43]

But doesn't a "bridge" by its very name, have to "bridge" something?

I'm puzzled.

[Amelia]

Looking glass

The Hualapai tribe plans a skywalk, to the chagrin of Grand Canyon purists.

By Daniel Kraker, Special to The Times

Tourists could soon be traipsing over the Grand Canyon on a glass sky deck built by American Indians descended from the geologic wonder's original inhabitants.

Slated for completion next spring, the 130-foot horseshoe-shaped skywalk will protrude 60 feet from the canyon's west rim. The Hualapai (WALL-ah-pie) tribe is betting that people will make the 2 1/2 -hour drive from Las Vegas for the chance to gaze 3,000 feet down to the ruddy Colorado River through the structure's clear floor.

"It's something you can't get any place else in the world," says Sheri Yellowhawk, chief executive of the Hualapai tribe's Grand Canyon Resort Corp.

The 1,500-member tribe shares a 108-mile border with the national park, but sovereignty allows it to use its 1-million-acre reservation in ways the federal government forbids elsewhere in the Grand Canyon.

In 1999, the tribe hosted daredevil Robbie Knievel's motorcycle jump across the canyon. Visitors dangle toes off ledges unimpeded by guardrails. They drive the only road snaking to the canyon bottom. They ride motorized pontoon boats up and down the river. And the tribe has exclusive rights to fly tourists below the canyon rim in helicopters. This relative carte blanche frustrates environmentalists and many park users. River guides, for instance, complain that people fly to the reservation, raft for a day and return to Las Vegas' Strip in time for a late show — avoiding waiting lists and National Park Service restrictions to protect the fragile river environment.

"This is a fascinating view of what can be done to exploit a national treasure for a short-term tourist dollar," says Tom Martin, codirector of River Runners for Wilderness. "It's a theme park, not a national park."

The sky bridge will only make matters worse, many argue. "If someone proposed such a thing on national parkland in the Grand Canyon, it would be way over the top," says Wilderness Society spokesman Jay Watson. "It's certainly inconsistent with the rest of the Grand Canyon. Maybe the tribe will think twice before they build it."

But tribal leaders say that Grand Canyon National Park's hotels, roads and 4 million annual visitors do more damage to the environment than the Hualapai tourist attractions. Tourism, says tribal Chairman Charlie Vaughn, brings the promise of prosperity. Each year, about 220,000 people visit the tribe's Grand Canyon West complex — a hotel, gift shop, airfield and picnic area serving barbecue lunch. Visits could triple, he says, once the tribe paves the last 14-mile stretch between the center and Las Vegas.

Future plans guaranteed to lure tourists and offend park purists include an electric tram running from the rim to the canyon floor.

Bold supplied by Amelia

[Jeannieb43]

Ver-ry interesting....

I think the Indians are just capitalizing on the availability of the tourist dollar. You can count me in as one of those who are offended by the idea. That place has been preserved so very carefully, all these years. I rode down to the river on a mule more than 50 years ago; then again about five years ago, staying at Phantom Ranch overnight. The Canyon hadn't changed in all those years. What a travesty this will be.