Monday, March 12, 2007

This picture was taken from http://archshrk.com/2006/12/grand-canyon-skywalk-to-open-march-28-2007/
This picture was taken from http://www.smh.com.au/news/travel/walk-over-grand-canyon/2007/02/22/1171733914773.html




These two picturres were taken from http://gosw.about.com/od/arizonatravelguide/a/aldrinskywalk.htm





This picture was taken from http://www.nbc5.com/news/11195358/detail.html


These are all pictures of The Skywalk, situated in the Grand Canyon, and is an open-air walkway that will extend nearly 25 meters from the canyon rim and will elevate more than 4000 feet above the Colorado River.

The facility will be open from dawn to dusk and will cost 25 dollars per person in addition to the cost of a Grand Canyon West entrance package. Only 120 people will be allowed to walk on the bridge at a time, and people will be issued slippers to prevent scratching of the glass.
The project will be completed later this year in June, where Buzz Aldrin, the Apollo 11 astronaut who walked on the moon in 1969, will be the first individual to walk on the man-made infrastructure.
The project has cost an estimated 30 million dollars and is owned by the Hualapai Tribe of Arizona. They created the project in order to attract many of the millions of tourists who visit the canyon each year, to come and spend time and money in their remote villages, which offer food and lodging.
The deck is supported by steel beams that are anchored 46 feet into the rock on the lip of the canyon. It's designed to withstand canyon winds of 100 mph and should be able to hold a few hundred people without bending.
Architects also installed shock absorbers in the glass floor to keep the deck from swaying back and forth.
I have mixed feelings about this project for many reasons. I like the project because I feel it is a better alternative to building casinos, and offers individuals the ability to marvel at how miraculous nature can be.
I dislike the project because I feel that it distorts nature, and is actually an eyesore to look at when viewed from an outside perspective. Also, I am not sure if I would even pay 25 dollars to walk across it, considering that it has not support base and looks incredibly unsafe.