When Teddy Roosevelt declared the Grand Canyon a national monument, in 1908, he famously said: “Leave it as it is. You cannot improve on it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it.” In that sense, the Escalade is a thumb in TR’s eye. Covering hundreds of acres on Navajo Reservation land, it is arguably the most intrusive development ever proposed for the Grand Canyon – a $500 million to $1.1 billion recreation and transport facility featuring a 1.4-mile tramway equipped with eight-passenger gondolas that would carry as many as 10,000 people a day down to the river confluence, with new roads, hotels, gift shops, restaurants and other attractions. The developer – Confluence Partners LLC, a Scottsdale, Arizona-based investment group whose members’ ventures include real estate, resorts and theme parks – says construction of the Escalade could begin as early as this year.
I’ve been to the Grand Canyon. It is one of the most beautiful, awe-inspiring, unforgettable, and, well, grand pieces of nature our planet has to offer. My friends and I stood on one of the edges, at six in the morning, off-season in late October, without any other people around, and we slowly watched the sun rise over the Canyon, slowly lighting afire the reddish rocks as the shadows of night made way for the Arizona sun.
It’s not something you can describe in words or capture in a photograph. It’s something you have to experience. Something emotional, and, I’m sure, for some people, something spiritual.
This project should not continue. Ever. The Grand Canyon must not turn into the horrid Canadian side of Niagara Falls.
I’ve returned from my visit to the grand canyon yesterday. Beautiful. No… it shouldn’t be touched.
First, if I remember, you aren’t an American, so what business is it of yours. Should the USA tell your country what to do?
Second, what has this to do with Operating Systems, technology, or whatever?
Third, the Grand Canyon is big. Very big. Adding good transport to one section won’t destroy the whole thing.
Fourth, after raping the Navajo so much, if they have an opportunity to maybe get back something, who are you to deny them? Let them remain uncompensated victims, strangers on their own land – the reservation the US Government permits them? Are you so bigoted against Native Americans?
That’s… pretty much our foreign policy for the past 70ish years.
Wow, you are sadly misinformed. First the Grand Canyon, while large is a fragile ecosystem, running 10’s of thousands of people a year to the river will have a huge negative impact.
And really, trotting out a race card? That’s just nasty, and again misinformed. This is being developed by a firm out of Scottsdale, wealthy white people will benefit the most from this, the members of the tribe will get to work for minimum wage in the snack bar. Read up on for example the Peabody Coal Co, etc. This is more or less the same thing.
I live in the region and know a fair bit about how this is going down.
I can’t agree more with your post. Nobody knows better what it’s good for Grand Canyon than Navajo people.
Unluckily your post will be modded down massively just because it’s a different opinion.
Thank you for bringing this post closer to computer world – ‘signal 11’
First- USA government isn’t the first and I’m pretty sure it won’t be the last bunch to claim ownership of this patch of land so …
Second – I agree that, given current economy model, converting land to make more money out of it is right move but again – enjoy while it lasts …
Third – I can’t understand people who claim ‘most’ about canyon while they absolutely ignore stars. Cosmic space on scale of awesomeness is orders of magnitude more impressive than any ditch. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7panQntRPGI)
Hang on! Isn’t it because nobody can claim ownership, nationalize and monetize it ? I’m too old for this s*%^.
if you go upstream in utah there’s canyonlands national park that is really cool as well, and arches national monument. The Grand Canyon is deep, canyonlands is vast.
I’m honestly not sure what to think of the commecialization. Will it encroach on the view from the national park area? If not, and navajo govern the area then they are sovereign to develop it.
I don’t mind some development towards the canyon area. By and large its just flat desert. Lots and lots of it. There’s no towns near the park really, not many places to stay in the area. A lot of desolation.
Unfortunately it will be visible from the majority of both rims of the national park. Beyond that don’t underestimate the impact of 100’s of thousands of people tromping the river corridor in what was previously wilderness and visited mainly by river trippers whose numbers were very low under a strict permit system. 4.76 million visitors to Grand Canyon National Park in 2014, how many would love an easy ride to the heart of the canyon?
It will be painted as a Native sovereignty issue, but you must realize most of these reservations are like pockets of the third world embedded in the US. Their leadership is largely corrupt and like most governments does not represent its people, but instead mostly just works to perpetuate itself. This is the same old story of rich businessman exploiting a third world population in collusion with those peoples government. The regular people are mostly not supportive of the resort, they’ve seen it before and realize the businessman and tribal leaders will benefit, but their lives will not improve much if at all.
There are much worse things happening in the world, and this has nothing to do with OS’s, but thanks to Thom for shedding a little light on this.
In Australia you need permission just to visit many of our National Parks. These parks have little or no infrastructure. The idea of building housing in any of them is completely unimaginable.
http://www.australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/nation…
regarding “It’s not something you can describe in words or capture in a photograph”, well, the average kid with a camera can’t capture it, but from a real photographer i expect a *good* capture. the same with a *good* writer.
why so? because a real photographer won’t take the picture in a random day or from a random point of view or at a random time. he should be able to get the “decisive moment”.
As someone that has spent time at the Grand Canyon, I will have to disagree with you. I have seen professional photographs and I have read both fictional and nonfiction books that attempt to describe the Grand Canyon and thus far nothing comes close.
then I bet you will like *any* place you see in person better than pictures or literature. this is how our brains are wired, we are not all the same, some prefer to perceive reality trough images, other trough sounds, others trough words, others trough touching and so.
also, perception is subjective. I was in that special place and felt it. is all about your emotions. you remember better the emotions you felt there than the images you saw. objectively, there are plenty of better images to be seen.
I guess I should make a trip there soon before the Almighty Dollar destroys it.
It will probably still be there – barely changed – long after the human species is extinct.
So what is so horrid about the Canadian side of Niagara Falls?
I’m confused.
I pointed my web browser at http://www.osnews.com. I was under the impression, for some reason, that this website carried news, (right?) about OS’s (RIGHT?!?). Again, I thought by OS they meant Operating System, (right right?).
Well, today, there’s a story here about the Grand Canyon. What OS does the vast network of deep rifts and water-carved incisions in the Earth’s crust RUN ON?
The really weird thing is I went to http://www.sierraclub.org, and do you know, right there on their front page, they’ve got a story about how the WatchKit underpinning Apple’s new iWatch, due out in the coming months… compares to and can be contrasted with iOS, with which it’s designed to interoperate, along with what interoperability we can expect between the iWatch and OS X, Apple’s OS for Mac computers.
The world (wide web) no longer makes any damned sense to me. I think I need some ice cream now.
but the last thing the world needs is another disneyland style park.
It’s just geology. Nothing to get worked up or spiritual about.
I’m not from that part of the country, but I’ve been to the Grand Canyon once many years ago and wasn’t terribly impressed. Not enough to bother going back anyway.
It was already just a tourist place to me, and making it even more so certainly won’t make me want to return anytime soon.
I’m with you, Thom. Leave the canyon alone. Everything I’ve read about this project argues that it’s all about money, money, money — and in the most cynical way possible. The developers, by all accounts, have lied to and manipulated their way into this project. But then that’s what it appears to be like in the US — everything is for sale. Everything.
Don’t be silly, there’s LOTS of things you can’t legally buy in the USA.
The versions of incandescent light bulbs people actually want to use. Large non-diet soft drinks in New York City. Food most kids like in public schools. Women. Well, except in certain Nevada counties.
An unmodified foreign car. Cuban cigars. Hemp rope, and more aromatic variations thereof. Automatic weapons. Products containing dog or cat fur. Pharmaceuticals unblessed by the federal government. Any creature designated as endangered by the federal government. Payday loans, though only in more enlightened counties.
Software designated as a “munition” by the federal government to non-US persons. Software found in violation of a ludicrously generic “patent”.
Non-Apple computers running Apple operating systems.
You shouldn’t take this whole “land of the free” thing too seriously. It’s more of a slogan, y’know? Give people actual liberty, and what would we need with those half million plus people in DC?
“Don’t be silly, there’s LOTS of things you can’t legally buy in the USA.”
Yes… not legally. But that doesn’t mean it’s not for sale and that you can’t buy it. This is the United States of America we’re talking about. 🙂 It’s not illegal until you’re caught.
Where is this mythical land where you’re imprisoned for crimes you committed but before you’re caught? Sounds suspiciously like Minority Report.
“Where is this mythical land where you’re imprisoned for crimes you committed but before you’re caught?”
I don’t know? You tell me. Since that’s not what I wrote or even implied? Why have you got a bug up your butt about my comment?
Perhaps I misunderstood you, then. You wrote:
I’m not sure what you mean by that. Do you mean to imply that in the United States, the laws only apply if you are arrested (“caught”) in the act, and if you aren’t caught, then you haven’t committed a crime?
Or that if you weren’t caught, then you don’t go to prison – which seems true everywhere?
Or something else?
I only raise the point because you appear to be criticizing my country again after saying:
That also sounds quite insulting, and similarly untrue.
Hope that clarifies why I care.
“I only raise the point because you appear to be criticizing my country again…”
It’s my country too. And despite it’s problems, I like it here, though the bread and beer is better in Germany, the French aren’t as morally uptight, and the British are way better (and brilliant) at being rude.
“It’s not illegal until your caught” is a colloquial expression, and meant humorously (and a little sardonically). Sort of like: “The future ain’t what it used to be.” ~ Yogi Berra.
So, to sum up: I was conceding your point, but adding the sardonic disclaimer that ultimately everything is for sale (whether it’s legal or not), including the Brooklyn Bridge which, by the way, I’m selling (and about which you can contact me privately if you’re interested).
Ah, I see what you’re trying to say. Humor, sarcasm, and sardonic comments often translate poorly into text. I’ll certainly agree we have our challenges and quirks, but I remain bullish on the USA. When we hit bottom, we tend to bounce.
I hope we can find a decent compromise between protecting the weak and protecting liberty soon. We seem to be doing rather badly at both lately. We could do much better.
Edited 2015-02-23 00:26 UTC
Which o/s will it run?
If it is MS then I say NO. Anything else OK, they can build all over.
Correct. We consider and believe that the creation is one of God’s finger prints.
not “we”
I sometimes hike the canyon. Very dangerous place, and beautiful.
Trying to civilize it too much is a bad idea.
I live in Scottsdale by the way.
I do not agree with the development.