Posted on 08/26/2005 1:33:08 PM PDT by AntiGuv
PHOENIX - Great views and plenty of goosebumps for those afraid of heights.
An American Indian tribe with land along the Grand Canyon is planning to build a glass-bottomed walkway that will jut out 70 feet from the canyon's edge.
The horseshoe-shaped skywalk, expected to open in January, is part of the Hualapai Tribe's $40 million effort to turn 1,000 acres of reservation land into a tourist destination that will also feature an Indian village and Western-themed town.
The tribe's reservation is some 200 miles by road to the west of the section of the Grand Canyon National Park that most tourists visit.
The walkway, with a glass bottom and sides, will be supported by steel beams and will accommodate 120 people, though it is designed to hold 72 million pounds, said Sheri Yellowhawk, chief executive officer of the Grand Canyon Resort Corp., the tribal-owned company that is overseeing the project.
"You're basically looking 4,000 feet down. It's a whole new way to experience the Grand Canyon," Yellowhawk said.
Admission will be $25.
The project is still seeking an insurer, said architect David Jin, who said he came up with the skywalk idea while visiting the canyon in 1996.
How long ago did you go to Royal Gorge? I was there almost thirty years ago, and thought it was very cool. Fortunately, I don't have a terrible fear of heights. The best thing was the sign about halfway across that said "No Fishing Off Bridge" (1500 feet down to river, IIRC).
Lol! I just ordered the movie from Amazon. Can't wait!
Saw the lesser Gorge in NM last year. Did okay on that one. Maybe the age thing had something to do with it. Ever notice how your elementary school shrinks every time you go back to visit?
"I'm just glad that Max Baer Jr. ("Jethro Bodine") was never able to scare up a backer for his Beverly Hillbillies-themed hotel and casino."
Acutally, he has. Max Baer Jr. just got his gaming license yesterday.
I'd probably freeze halfway out and have to have someone pick me up and carry me back.
I'm with you. When I visited the St. Louis Arch I wouldn't even lean over to look out its windows.
It looks like a giant wall-mounted ironing board.
See that skinny little line under the main roadway, it's the catwalk and it's made of those metal grids so you see through them. I think this bridge is double the height of the Golden Gate bridge. I hated getting stuck carying the beer down to the pier. This was also the bridge in the movie XXX where the Vette took a flying leap.
I haven't been there in years so I don't know if you still can get access to the catwalk. It was always protected with barbed wire fencing but someone always cut it down. It was always easier to get on it on the Auburn side.
What would be the legal weight limit for that walkway?
How many overweight people are allowed to stand on the edge at a time?
Looks more like a diving board to me.
Wouldn't someone carrying a small pipe bomb be able to blow a hole in the glass bottom causing those standing on it to plummet to their deaths?
What's the earthquake ratio around that area?
People in glass houses and et al.
http://yumasun.com/artman/publish/articles/story_11682.shtml
Are these people also the Havasupai? My hubby and I went on a hike down into the Havasupai reservation in the early 80s. It was totally undeveloped... amazing trip. We went down Moony falls on ancient chains left there by early prospectors and covered with spray from the falls. It was terrifying. But the bottom of the canyon was incredible.
Hah! Same experience here. I remember getting wobbly about halfway across it.
You reckon the gitmo boys would talk if we tossed em out on the end of that ?
BASE-JUMPER ALERT!
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