Nik Wallenda completed a tightrope walk over part of the Grand Canyon Aerialist Nik Wallenda completed a tightrope walk that took him more than 400 metres over the Little Colorado River Gorge in north-eastern Arizona on Sunday. Wallenda performed the stunt on a five-centimetre-thick steel cable, above the river on Navajo Nation territory near the Grand Canyon. He took just over 22 minutes, pausing and crouching twice as winds whipped around him and the rope swayed. Thank you, Lord. Thank you for calming that cable, God," he said about 13 minutes into the walk. He didn't wear a harness and stepped slowly and steadily throughout, murmuring prayers almost constantly along the way. He jogged and hopped the last few steps. Winds blowing across the gorge had been expected to be about 48 km/h. Wallenda told the Discovery Channel after the walk that the winds were at times "unpredictable" and that dust had accumulated on his contact lenses. "It was way more windy, and it took every bit of me to stay focused the entire time," he said. The 34-year-old Florida resident is a seventh-generation high-wire artist and is part of the famous Flying Wallendas circus family. His great-grandfather, Karl Wallenda, fell during a performance in Puerto Rico and died at the age of 73. Several other family members, including a cousin and an uncle, have perished while performing wire-walking stunts. Sunday's stunt came a year after Wallenda traversed Niagara Falls, earning a seventh Guinness world record. Before the walk, a group of Navajos and other Native Americans stood along a nearby highway with signs protesting against the event. The Grand Canyon is held sacred by many Native American tribes.