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Tribe set to open Grand Canyon Skywalk
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HUALAPAI INDIAN RESERVATION, Ariz. -- Visitors who have marveled at the Grand Canyon's vistas will now have a dizzying new option: a glass-bottom observation deck allowing them to gaze into the chasm beneath their feet.

The Skywalk, officially being unveiled Tuesday, is being touted as an engineering marvel. The glass-and-steel horseshoe extends 70 feet beyond the canyon's edge with no visible supports above or below.

For $25 plus other fees, up to 120 people at a time will be able to look down to the canyon floor 4,000 feet below, a vantage point more than twice as high as the world's tallest buildings.

Hualapai Indians, whose reservation is about 90 miles west of Grand Canyon National Park, allowed a Las Vegas developer to build the $30 million Skywalk in hopes of creating a unique attraction on their side of the canyon.

Hualapai leaders were to be the first to set foot on the Skywalk on Tuesday, with former astronauts Buzz Aldrin and John Herrington hired to join them for a brief ceremony to christen the deck.

The Skywalk is scheduled to open to the public on March 28.

Tribal leaders are betting that people will flock here - despite a twisty drive on unpaved roads through rugged terrain - to walk its transparent surface. They hope it will become the centerpiece of a budding tourism industry that includes helicopter tours, river rafting, a cowboy town and a museum of Indian replica homes.

Architect Mark Johnson said the Skywalk could support the weight of a few hundred people and will withstand wind up to 100 mph. The observation deck has been equipped with shock absorbers to keep it from bouncing like a diving board as people walk on it.

The Skywalk has sparked debate on and off the reservation. Many Hualapai (pronounced WALL-uh-pie) worry about disturbing nearby burial sites, and environmentalists have blamed the tribe for transforming the majestic canyon into a tourist trap.

Hualapai leaders say they weighed those concerns for years before agreeing to build the Skywalk. With a third of the tribe's 2,200 members living in poverty, the tribal government decided it needs the tourism dollars.

"When we have so much poverty and so much unemployment, we have to do something," said Sheri Yellowhawk, a former tribal councilwoman overseeing the project. "It sounded like a good idea."

Las Vegas businessman David Jin fronted the money to build the Skywalk. Yellowhawk said Jin will give it to the Hualapai in exchange for a cut of the profits.

Construction crews spent two years building the Skywalk. They drilled steel anchors 46 feet into the limestone rim to hold the deck in place. Earlier this month, they welded the Skywalk to the anchors after pushing it past the edge using four tractor trailers and an elaborate system of pulleys.

On the Net

Skywalk: http://www.grandcanyonskywalk.com/


Take a look
Don Havatone stands in front of the glass-bottomed Skywalk Wednesday, March 7, 2007, that extends over the edge of the Grand Canyon West, in Ariz. Scheduled to open March 28, the Skywalk, left, will be the first-ever cantilever-shaped glass walkway to suspend more than 4,000 feet above the canyon's floor, and extend 70 feet from its rim. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Rob Schumacher)
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Reader comments on this story - 16 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

Congrats wrote on Mar 23, 2007 8:13 PM:

" to the Indians trying to lift themselves out of poverty. "

Against Indians wrote on Mar 21, 2007 2:11 PM:

" So now it's OK to be racist against Native Americans because the U of I had to get rid of their racist mascott? It's not the fault of Native Americans that you people are racist. It is still not OK to stereotype an entire race of people just because you don't agree with a policy. Just because you label another's opinion left-wing and a politically correct agenda does not make it OK to be racist against my people. It is still as closed-minded and ignorant as it has always been. "

re:dead eye dick wrote on Mar 21, 2007 11:16 AM:

" Was the Hover Dam an eye sore? What about Niagara falls? Does the Statue of Liberty make the Atlantic look ugly? Have you ever been to Yosemite national park or Black Hills? There are all types of modern integrations in these parks. You can keep the beauty of something if it is done right. You obviously just want to fight without thinking which is normal. It is just a skywalk, not Las Vegas. I like it when people post dumb comments with no substance, it makes it more fun to get back on here and see the ranting of someone who probably hasn't even been to the Canyons. "

Jt wrote on Mar 21, 2007 3:05 AM:

" Not for $25. "

Candy wrote on Mar 20, 2007 7:22 PM:

" I think this is really neat and do hope that some time I can visit and walk out on this Skywalk. "

Re: X wrote on Mar 20, 2007 6:02 PM:

" Your leftist Rant was interesting. Obviously, you don't live in the world like the rest of do. Not you, or Jane Fonda, Clarence Page, Hillary Clinton, etc. Don't make judgements about people that YOU don't know about. Try to understand this. It would be great if the "Skywalk" was a success. This is the proper way to do things in America (e.g. enterprising). When people like you tells us what to do and think, we simply would rather ignore you. The sad thing is - many people are very likely to just not go to the "Skywalk". Things like banning Chief Illiniwek or blaming us for your problems don't really help you. The point is: many mild mannered centrist Americans are not thrilled with the politcally correct manipulation that seems to be winning right now. Be careful what you wish for - you just might get it. "

hillbilly wrote on Mar 20, 2007 5:52 PM:

" This project is destined to fail! The price is ridiculous. $100 for a family of 4 plus what ever fees they want to tack on. I think we will go to Six Flags instead. "

otis wrote on Mar 20, 2007 4:24 PM:

" not$25 not unless i get a buffalo diner and a couple free plays at the crap table "

Oh No! wrote on Mar 20, 2007 4:21 PM:

" The Indians(native americans) have a cowboy town? Maybe the cowboys should complain like they did down in Champaign. I smell a disaster lurking ahead on this venture and they couldn't pay me to venture out on it! "

dead eye dick wrote on Mar 20, 2007 3:50 PM:

" "???": I suppose it does add 'more beauty': if you're into Elvis clocks, fender skirts, wolf horns, a nodding cloth dog in your rear car window and dice hanging from your rear view mirror. "

X wrote on Mar 20, 2007 3:32 PM:

" Are you Native American? Just wondering, because if not, you really need to get educated before spewing off at the mouth about corruption. You are prolly a middle aged, white collar, white (wo)man, and a republican to boot. I say this because all you ranted about was misinformation and the stereotypes that this country is built on. Your words prove part of the reason why there is so much hate and negativity in this country. "

??? wrote on Mar 20, 2007 3:26 PM:

" I can't wait to take a vacation out to the canyons again; this will just be an added bonus. I say those environmentalist can bite the bullet. This was their land in the first place in some sense (I hate arguing about who and when the first settlers arrived.lol:). Regardless, if it adds even more beauty and gives the mystique of feeling like your flying over the Grandest of canyons I’m all for it. "

a reader wrote on Mar 20, 2007 2:17 PM:

" pretty sure if I walk out on the skywalk, I had better have a change of underwear... "

I am... wrote on Mar 20, 2007 12:48 PM:

" totally offended by this... CALL THE NCAA!!!! No seriously. I think the price is a little steep, but if given the opportunity, I will be one of the first in line to take a walk and view the canyon from this vantage point. I am happy for this tribe!! They deserve a giant pat on the back for thinking out of the box and getting revenue from other areas available to them! "

.......... wrote on Mar 20, 2007 12:37 PM:

" .........lets just put stuff all over the place, and really mess things up, bad, very bad,............ "

Pleasantly Surprised wrote on Mar 20, 2007 12:16 PM:

" It is nice to see a Native American group do something positive for once. It seems to me that Native American culture has done nothing in recent years but bully Colleges and Universities regarding sports mascots. The only capitalistic ventures that have taken place in Native American economies have been the construction of gambling casinos. Incidentally, another addiction is not needed in Native American society. Hopefully, positive commerce rather that defeatism, socialism, substance abuse, and political correctness manipulation will become the face of Native America. If this project can survive the rampant corruption that is so prevalent in Native American culture, perhaps other projects will blossom. "

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