How Do You Get To The Grand Canyon Skywalk?
Nov.28, 2009 in
General
We are going to the Grand Canyon next week. How do I get to the Skywalk? I need directions from Las Vegas. Thanks!
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We are going to the Grand Canyon next week. How do I get to the Skywalk? I need directions from Las Vegas. Thanks!
Powered by Yahoo! Answers
November 28th, 2009 at 2:41 pm
I assume that you will be driving ,If so then you will have both a problem and a great adventure.
The problem;
Contrary to all the advertising and news copy that you are reading The Skywalk [ If you walk on it will that make you a Skywalker ? ] is not located in what most knowledgeable people including me , consider to be Grand Canyon. The term West Rim of The Grand Canyon is in fact a marketing name intended to get people visiting Las Vegas to do exactly what you are about to do. On a map no such place .
exists.
To give you an idea of how far it is from Grand Canyon Village which is where I will sending you, you need to know that the length of the Colorado River through the Canyon is 277 river miles,
Mile 0 is at a place called Lee’s Ferry which is located a several miles south of Glen Canyon Dam
Mile 277 is located at a place called Grand Wash cliffs which is where the River empties into what is now Lake Mead but the Grand Wash Cliffs themselves also represent the limit of the huge Colorado Plateau.
Between those two points lies the Grand Canyon.
Grand Canyon Village is in Grand Canyon National Park and it is where the hotels restaurants ,and visitor center are.
From a river mile perspective, the Village is about mile 94.
The Skywalk is about river mile 265-270 ?
and most of the classic and awesome Grand Canyon geology is not present on that part of the river.
When GCNP was created one of the reasons that the National Park Service and later the Santa Fe RR located the Park and the village where they are because it’s the most scenic part of the Canyon.
I know that if you go to Skywalk and you look at a map , the map will tell you that GCNP is just across the river . Technically that’s true ,but historically it’s not. During the Clinton administration the Park boundary’s were expanded to protect more of the area adjacent to the Canyon.
So much for the history lesson let’s get you there
Las Vegas to Grand Canyon National Park is going to take you a realistic 5 hours. Leave early
US 93 over Hoover Dam to Kingman AZ
90 miles.
If you left early you will also beat the traffic on the dam which will save you time.
There is a full stop security check point before you reach the dam in both directions. If you have the remnants of a long night in Vegas in your car , you may want to remove them before starting on your journey.
Get gas in Kingman
I-40 E to SR 64 at Williams AZ
120 miles and less than 2 hours
North on 64 and into the Park-60 miles
Personally my favorite view is from Lipan Point on East Rim Drive because all the geology is present and you can see the river for miles .
If you go out to Lipan exit the Park at Desert View and then do that spectacular downhill run w/ the literally 100 mile views into Cameron AZ
When you reach the “T” make a right on US 89 south follow it into Flagstaff
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To Be continued
November 28th, 2009 at 2:56 pm
I would guess that there will be plenty of busses that will take you there. Ask your concierge when you get to your hotel , or you could call the hotel now and get the info. I’m sure they’d be happy to help you! Have a nice vacation! Good Luck!
November 28th, 2009 at 3:03 pm
You had me worried there for a minute. . . . on our news down here in Oz tonight, they said it will not be opening until next week. . . I would think you could even get a map online. . I would type in search. . . grand canyon tourist attractions. . . and see if there is directions there. . . . . . . . . . happy holidays. . . . . . . . . .
November 28th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
The final test was conducted and the stucture passed engineering requirements by 400 percent, enabling it to withstand the weight of 71 fully loaded Boeing 747 airplanes (more than 71 million pounds). The bridge will be able to sustain winds in excess of 100 miles per hour from 8 different directions, as well as an 8. 0 magnitude earthquake within 50 miles.