Grand Canyon Hiker Blog

The Grand Canyon Skywalk opens in one month. Are you ready for the Skywalk? Is the Grand Canyon ready for the Skywalk. An article in today’s LA Times surveys a variety of opinions about the Skywalk’s impact on the Grand Canyon experience. (Find more Grand Canyon Skywalk news here.)What do you think about the Grand Canyon skywalk? Share your thoughts in the comments.

The canyon is a tough subject to photograph. The vast expanse simply doesn’t translate well to two-dimensional representations. None the less, that inspires many of us to capture the essence of the canyon anyone. Improve your odds of keeper canyon photos by checking out my How to Photograph the Grand Canyon, if you haven’t done so already. While I advocate seeking the unique vantage point. I strongly discourage mimicking what this guy did. The risks are just unacceptable.

Enjoy Mark Boyer’s trip report of his rim-to-rim hike and additional explorations of the Horseshoe Mesa area. The report is in PDF format.

New fees start May 1:

The entrance fees for Grand Canyon National Park will increase beginning May 1, 2006. The increase is the first in almost ten years and will continue to help the park with repair and maintenance projects. The entrance fee increase applies to the per-person and single, private vehicle entrance permits, as well as the Grand Canyon annual park pass. Commercial tour fees remain the same as last year. The fees to be changed are: Current Fee New Fee Private vehicle – entrance pass is good for 7 days $20 $25 for North and South Rims Per person – entrance pass is good for 7 days $10 $12 for North and South Rims Annual Grand Canyon Pass $40 $50

Greetings! We’d love to hear from you. Leave a question, query, or tip as a comment to this post.

The glass bridge over the Grand Canyon (no, this is not an urban myth!) is nearing completion. Summer 2006 is the anticipated completion date:

By the end of this year, the answer will be the Grand Canyon Skywalk — a glass bridge that is being built on the edge of the canyon on the western rim.

Part of Grand Canyon West, a destination owned and operated by the Hualapai Tribe, the Skywalk was originally set to open in January but is now scheduled for completion by midsummer and will be open to the public by the end of the year.

Part of Grand Canyon West, a destination owned and operated by the Hualapai Tribe, the Skywalk was originally set to open in January but is now scheduled for completion by midsummer and will be open to the public by the end of the year.

“Tourism is our only means of self-sufficiency, of our people coming out of poverty and social problems,” said Sheri Yellowhawk, chief executive officer of Grand Canyon West.

Last year, about a quarter million people visited the area located on the west rim of the Grand Canyon. The Hualapai tribe owns 1 million acres of land with 108 miles of that along the rim of the canyon. Yellowhawk said although the land-use plan designates 9,000 acres for development, only 11 percent of the land within that 9,000 acres will actually be developed.

She said once Grand Canyon West is at total build-out — in approximately 10 to 15 years — the area will draw between 3 million and 5 million visitors a year like the south rim of the Grand Canyon.

It will be interesting to see how this evolves relative to those plans.

There’s  a fantastic deal on National Geographic Interactive Topographical maps of the Grand Canyon available at Sierra Trading Post.  I have this software and have found it invaluable when planning GC hikes.  Sierra Trading Post is a very reputable a company from whom I’ve bought lots of stuff over the years. STP is a great source for discounted hiking and backpacking gear. Check them out.

Robert wrote to ask: “Is it possible to get to the North Rim in March or is it always closed until May?”

Yes, it is possible to get to the North Rim in March. One could Ski or Snow machine down from Jackob Lake. Or, one could hike over from the South Rim. The access road is not plowed and no services are available in March. Only the winter caretaker would be in residence.

Welcome to the Grand Canyon Hiker Blog. The purpose of this blog is to provide a platform addressing questions and building community among Grand Canyon hiking enthusiasts.

Your hosts are Ken McNamara and Rob Kleine. We support GrandCanyonHiker.com, a website that offers tips, tools, and resources for Grand Canyon hikers. We are also co-authors of the best-selling video Hiking the Grand Canyon: The Corridor Trails.

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