Grand Canyon Skywalk: Marvel or Eyesore

I recall that we've blogged a few times before about the Grand Canyon Skywalk, a cantilevered, see-through deck that will jut out 70 feet beyond the canyon's edge on the Hualapai Indian Reservation just west of Grand Canyon Village. Part of me thinks this could be a pretty amazing attraction and a cool experience for visitors...how cool to gaze a thousand feet down into the maw of the canyon! Another part of me thinks this will be an awful, cartoonish eyesore that will wreck the magnificent natural beauty of one of the greatest places on earth.

It seems I am not the only one who feels this way.

The Los Angeles Times has got a piece on how controversial the new attraction is, with supporters and detractors going at it like, well, cowboys and Indians...albeit with a rather odd twist. You see, the project is the brainchild of the Hualapai Indian Tribe...and aren't the Native American groups the ones who usually try and stop projects like this? Well, OK, there is the casino issue. Good point.

Of course, part of the problem is that the Skywalk is only a small part of what tribal officials say will be a massive development that includes hotels, restaurants and a golf course. And just like with casinos, they say the development will be a fine way to address the economic and social problems on the reservation, where the 2,000 residents struggle with a 50% unemployment rate and widespread alcoholism and poverty.

The cantilevered structure opens to the public next month. It is buttressed by 1 million pounds of steel and supports 90 tons of tempered glass. It will cost visitors some $25 to walk over it, and those who spill coffee or drop gum on the floor will be severely beaten. OK, or at least ticketed. OK, I don't even know if that's true, but it seems to me like these things could be a problem.

Filed under: Activism, Hiking, Business, Festivals and Events, North America, United States