Originally Posted by
gooselee
+1
Should add, too, that the rule about not taking cameras/phones/etc. isn't entirely just so they can charge you to take photos (and I agree that the prices are actually quite reasonable vs. what lots of other attractions charge). It is legitimately a safety issue - there are parts of the climb where there is literally nothing there to stop dropped items from falling all the way down on to an active roadway. Cell phone falling from >200 ft + cars travelling at 40-50 mph = not a good thing.
What's kind of cool is not having a camera/phone allows you to really just take in the experience while you're up there. I like photography and enjoy fiddling with my camera quite a bit, but sometimes it's nice to just use the two lenses inside your face.
+1
I do photography for a living. Have easily $50k in camera gear and 10x that in marketing hardware. Sure, I would have loved to take a tripod+cameras and do a slider timelapse, but I so much more enjoyed the experience.
They take a few photos at different parts of the trek. Keeps you from thinking that you should be tired/exhausted by this point. Price is very reasonable when your done and worth it for them doing all the work and you enjoying the sights and the trip.