September 22nd – Always do three things that might kill you before breakfast.
I’ve actually already written a bit about this, which was actually posted the day it happened. But, what the heck, it’s in my travelogue too, and this time, I have pictures! and Video! So, re-read.
We were picked up at 9am — which seemed positively decadent as far as sleeping in. I had my alarm set for 8:45… but was up at 8, because … well, who can sleep in past 8 anyway?
Yeah, I’m not really sure who I am anymore either.
This was our day of Adrenaline. I should mention that I’m pretty much a full fledged adrenaline junkie. This shouldn’t come as any surprise — I love motorcycles, skydiving, sex, drugs, and rock & roll. Ok, maybe not drugs, but everything else? Pretty much. “Flinging myself off of a very high platform” was something I definitely wanted to do on this trip if I had the chance.
We arrived at the gorge before too long, and they pretty quickly got Beth and me strapped into our harnesses — basically, a glorified climbing harness with some extra chest straps and such. The manufacturer was called “Scavenger” … seriously, no company involved in making safety equipment should EVER be called Scavenger. I was losing a bit of faith at this point, but oh well. What am I going to die of, old age?
The first leap of faith of the morning was the Flying Fox. The basic concept is that you’re buckled in from the back, and you run off a platform and fly across the gorge Superman-style. “Leap of Faith” being the operative word, as you literally have to start running on the platform and fling yourself off of it. I’m very annoyed with myself — Tara, who had decided against any sort of death-flings, was a wonderful videographer… and I managed to delete the video of my flying fox run. Crap. However, I did get Beth’s jump. Mine was about the same, save for the hesitation.
It’s absolutely lovely up there. With the Flying Fox, there’s nothing below you but the Zambezi river, and it’s WAY below.
People keep asking: Weren’t you scared? Well, of course I was. Absolutely terrified. Seriously, how can you stand up there held together only by some flimsy straps and not be crapping your pants? There’s something wrong with you if you can do that without fear.
And that’s just it. I love the fear. It’s exhilarating. The rush you get from things like that… it just can’t be beat.
Hey, it’s either that or heroin.
So, they pulled me back up, and Beth had her turn. She was a little more reluctant than me, but figured that if I had survived… well, she probably would too. The way I see it is that I’d rather regret doing something than regret NOT doing it.
After Beth’s flying fox, we were off to the next platform. But first, they had to turn our harnesses around so that buckles were in the front. The next “ride” would be the Zipline. Similar to the flying fox, you’re on a pulley system, but this time you’re sitting upright, rather than in a Superman pose.
It also goes about a zillion times faster. Yeeeehaw!
Once I stopped sliding, I realized I had completely forgotten what they’d said about how I got back… I looked around and hmm, I seem to be very far away from where I started, and there’s no good way to get back. So… well, figured I’d hang around for a bit, didn’t have anything else to do… eventually, someone slid out to get me. Ah, now I remember — with this one, someone zips over to you a little bit more slowly and pulls you back in.
The next item on the agenda was the Gorge Swing. It’s … basically like bungie jumping, but without the being-hung-by-your-feet thing. Instead, the same harness from the Zipline is used, and you’re hooked into … well, a big rope, really. I did my first jump by doing a handstand then being pushed off the ramp. Eeee! Welcome to about 3 seconds of freefall, then a great deal of swinging back and forth at the end of a very long rope. As I swung around at the bottom, I waved to a bunch of white water rafters going by under me and said hello — they all cheered at me. It was incredible.
Yes, there are people in that picture. You may need to view the full size to see them.
I was pulled back up, and it was then Bethany’s turn. They got her strapped in, and… she refused. Said no, no way, wasn’t going to happen, untie her, forget it, back up, no no no. So… after trying to convince her a bit, they finally untied her and she came down. Since there’s no refund… we asked if I could do her jump instead? No problem — so we strapped me back in, and this time I jumped straight off — actually, more like dove forward. This was actually a lot more fun — and a lot scarier — than doing the handstand, since … crap, I can SEE what I’m about to do, and you want me to just jump off? I practically did a somersault on the freefall, before reaching the end and swinging about wonderfully.
Once again? Totally amazing. Freefalling may just about be my favorite sensation.