Grand Canyon West - Skywalk

Map Showing Hualapai Reservation and Skywalk Location

In late October I visited Grand Canyon West and the Skywalk with my friend Jim Herring. Though this was my first time to this location, it was my fourth trip to the Grand Canyon and I must say each location is very unique in its own way. Due to highway construction on the Arizona side of the Hoover Dam, the normal 4-1/2 hour drive down and back took us 8 hours. That coupled with the high price of addmission and stormy weather that hampered our picture taking, it put kind of a damper on the whole day.

The Skywalk at Grand Canyon West is a unique glass-bottomed cantilever observation deck that spans 70 feet over the canyon's rim and 4,000 feet above the canyon floor. The bridge deck is made of diamant low-iron glass and structural interlayer glass consisting of (6) layers. The bridge glass railings are made with the same glass as the deck but fewer layers (3) bent to follow the walkway’s curvature. The glass railings are 5 feet 2 inches tall and have been designed for high wind pressures. The bridge, including its counterweights, weighs around 1.6 million pounds. Even though the bridge was designed to carry (822) people that weigh 200 pounds each without overstress, maximum occupancy is limited to 120 people.

SIZE COMPARISONS:
Grand Canyon Skywalk - 4,000 Ft
CN Tower - 1,815 Ft
Taipei 101 - 1,671 Ft
Petronas Twoers - 1,483 Ft
Sears Tower - 1,450 Ft
Empire State Building - 1,250 Ft
Stratosphere Tower - 1,149 Ft
Gateway Arch - 630 Ft
Petronas Twoers - 1,483 Ft
Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank - 587 Ft

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