Dateline Dayton –After having breakfast on Monday morning at our hotel in Las Vegas, my sister, brother-in-law, Pauline and I were on our way to the Western rim of the Grand Canyon.

This one-third of the Canyon is owned by the Hualapai Tribe, and it is home to the famous Skywalk. They also have Eagle Point, Guano Point and Hualapai Ranch, and sgreat views of the Western rim of the Grand Canyon.

What really surprised me about the Canyon was the fact that you could walk right up to the edge. If you wanted to do something crazy, you could.

You might consider this area a tourist trap since it cost us over $160, with our Senior discount, to get into the site, have a meal and enjoy the privilege of walking the Skywalk.

My sister and her husband, who didn’t do the Skywalk, paid over $100, again with the Senior discount, to view the Western edge of the Canyon, a meal and a view of the Skywalk.

If you wanted a picture, while on the Skywalk that was another $30. Although we had a couple pictures taken, we didn’t purchase them. The photographer only took two of us although he took many of some of the others. No cameras or purses are allowed onto the Skywalk.

Was it worth it?

Absolutely. Would I spend the money to do it again? No. It’s just unbelievable walking on the glass, looking 4,000 feet down into the Grand Canyon. Pauline commented that it wasn’t scary, although when you watched people taking their first step on the Skywalk, they were doing it gingerly. They were moving slowly because you were already looking down at the beautiful view of the Canyon, with your first steps onto the glass.

Getting to the Skywalk is a real trip. You travel on an unpaved road for almost twenty miles. If you take it slowly, it’s not a problem. Not everyone approves of that pace. So they pass you, and now you are in a cloud of dust. Same road down.

This excursion took most of the day. When we finally were back on a paved highway, we were looking for three things – restrooms, soda and a place to stay for the evening. Our first stop was a convenient store, where we were able to take care of two of the three needs as well as gassing up the van.

We spent Monday night in Kingman, AZ, on our way to Williams, the gateway to the Grand Canyon where we would catch the train for our trip to the Canyon.

(To be continued)

Mr. Hennessey may be contacted at pmhenn@sbcglobal.net