Tuesday, October 25, 2005
Grand Canyon Walkway
Coming to a Grand Canyon near you - January 2006. Yes it's true.
Grand Canyon Skywalk(via Snopes)
Scheduled to open January 1, 2006
Hualapai Indian Reservation
- Juts out about 70 feet into the canyon, 4000 ft above the Colorado River
- Built with more than a million pounds of steel beams and includes dampeners that minimize the structure's vibration
- Designed to hold 72 million pounds, withstand an 8.0 magnitude earthquake 50 miles away, and withstand winds in excess of 100 mph
- Has a glass bottom and sides...four inches thick
- Will accommodate 120 people comfortably (How comfortable would YOU be?)
Update: Here is another image of the Grand Canyon walkway, apparently from M.R.J Architics.
posted by Jeff Milner at 10/25/2005 07:54:00 PM
Comments: 3(Permalink)
Comments:
You say it's designed to hold 72 million pounds. I don't think so. I also will have to see the thing to believe that's it's for real.If anything ever looked like a hoax, this does.
Comment posted by Bob Milner at 10/26/2005 10:05 AM (Permalink)
I think the Brooklin bridge will only hold 35 million pounds.
Comment posted by Bob Milner at 10/26/2005 9:11 PM (Permalink)
From USA Today:
Glass-bottomed walkway planned at Grand Canyon's South Rim
PHOENIX (AP) — Beginning in January, tourists should be able to glimpse the Grand Canyon's floor through a glass-bottomed walkway jutting 70 feet from the South Rim.
The horseshoe-shaped skywalk is part of the Hualapai Tribe's $40 million efforts to turn 1,000 acres of reservation land into tourist operations that someday could include a high-end resort, golf course and campgrounds.
The destination, known as Grand Canyon West, also will feature an Indian village and Western-themed town, which are scheduled to open Sept. 1.
Visitors to the skywalk will pay $25 for a bird's-eye view of the canyon.
The skywalk could help double the number of visitors to Grand Canyon West to 500,000 a year, said Sheri Yellowhawk, chief executive officer of the Grand Canyon Resort Corp., a tribal-owned company that oversees the project.
"You're basically looking 4,000 feet down. It's a whole new way to experience the Grand Canyon," Yellowhawk said. "We think that that's what's really going to make the destination bloom."
Yellowhawk said the skywalk will accommodate 120 people comfortably although it is designed to hold 72 million pounds.
The walkway has a glass bottom and sides and is supported by steel beams.
Las Vegas-based architect David Jin came up with the idea for the skywalk in 1996 during a trip to the Canyon.
He teamed up with Lochsa Engineering, also from Las Vegas, whose portfolio includes Mandalay Bay Hotel and Hard Rock Hotel.
Jin calls the skywalk "very safe" but said an insurance company has yet to sign on.
The Indian village will feature a self-guided tour through dwellings and tepees.
The Hualapai Tribe is also positioning itself to be able to handle more visitors by improving its airport.
It will use a $2 million grant from the federal government to build a solar energy project to reduce costs at the airport, which now runs on diesel generators.
But to make Grand Canyon West a major tourism site, Yellowhawk said the tribe will need to improve the roads and water and electricity infrastructure.
Glass-bottomed walkway planned at Grand Canyon's South Rim
PHOENIX (AP) — Beginning in January, tourists should be able to glimpse the Grand Canyon's floor through a glass-bottomed walkway jutting 70 feet from the South Rim.
The horseshoe-shaped skywalk is part of the Hualapai Tribe's $40 million efforts to turn 1,000 acres of reservation land into tourist operations that someday could include a high-end resort, golf course and campgrounds.
The destination, known as Grand Canyon West, also will feature an Indian village and Western-themed town, which are scheduled to open Sept. 1.
Visitors to the skywalk will pay $25 for a bird's-eye view of the canyon.
The skywalk could help double the number of visitors to Grand Canyon West to 500,000 a year, said Sheri Yellowhawk, chief executive officer of the Grand Canyon Resort Corp., a tribal-owned company that oversees the project.
"You're basically looking 4,000 feet down. It's a whole new way to experience the Grand Canyon," Yellowhawk said. "We think that that's what's really going to make the destination bloom."
Yellowhawk said the skywalk will accommodate 120 people comfortably although it is designed to hold 72 million pounds.
The walkway has a glass bottom and sides and is supported by steel beams.
Las Vegas-based architect David Jin came up with the idea for the skywalk in 1996 during a trip to the Canyon.
He teamed up with Lochsa Engineering, also from Las Vegas, whose portfolio includes Mandalay Bay Hotel and Hard Rock Hotel.
Jin calls the skywalk "very safe" but said an insurance company has yet to sign on.
The Indian village will feature a self-guided tour through dwellings and tepees.
The Hualapai Tribe is also positioning itself to be able to handle more visitors by improving its airport.
It will use a $2 million grant from the federal government to build a solar energy project to reduce costs at the airport, which now runs on diesel generators.
But to make Grand Canyon West a major tourism site, Yellowhawk said the tribe will need to improve the roads and water and electricity infrastructure.
Comment posted by Jeff Milner at 10/28/2005 6:34 PM (Permalink)
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