So after that tour we took for the first half of the day we decided to take a drive down to Kawarau Bridge to jump off it into the river 43 metres below with a bit of stretchy rubber attached to our ankles. This action is also known as bungy jumping. It was awesomely terrifying. The bungy cord is strapped tightly around your ankles, so you shuffle out to the edge of the ledge in a way that feels none too confident. Add to that the gorge yawning beneath you and the knowledge that in a few moments you are going to leap into it's mouth and it's pretty nerve-wracking up there. On the drive to the bridge I still hadn't fully made up my mind as to whether or not I would do it, but the argument that won me over was basically that I'd regret not going no matter how much I convinced myself it wouldn't have been fun enough to make it worth the terror. Plus on arrival we found that there was a discounted rate for family (two adults and two children) so that further confirmed my decision, and in a way of laying it on thick this bridge is the original location for commercial bungee jumping. So I went. Despite being very nervous on the drive I was surprisingly calm once there, even while waiting in line on the bridge. But once I started having the cord strapped on I started to get nervous and question myself just a little, and while being led out to the platform my mind was going nuts; "For what conceivable reason are you doing this?" Then came the countdown, just a simple "Five four three two one GO!" During that moment I just thought "Oh man oh man oh man waaaaaaaaeeeeeee this is fun!" The initial drop was altogether far too much like those dreams where you're falling, but as soon as the cord started to stretch and you started slowing down it was great. After bouncing around some I was gathered in by two guys in a boat down below, disconnected from the cord and sent on my way back up the stairs. Over in an instant, but an unforgettable experience.
We also got the pictures from the company, so here are some of the better ones that they got.
Don't look so thrilled. Someone might mistake you for an optimist. :P
ReplyDeleteI really really really really want to bungee jump. Definitely something on my bucket list. I have done a 100 ft sky coaster thing (basically a giant, face-down sleeping bag-type swing) over a 1000 ft gorge, though, so that must count for something. :P I was trying to talk someone, anyone into going with me but they all said no. :/ Then I got in this thing alone and was hauled up a 100 feet (at about 25 ft I was dead sure it was at least 200 ft up). Then, when I was up at 100 ft they told me I had to pull this little cord which would send me flying. About that moment I sincerely questioned any particle of sanity I previously thought I possessed. The wires supporting me looked drastically weaker; I wondered why I hadn't taken such a good look at them on the ground. But I pulled the little cord and screamed all the way down. At the bottom of the hundred feet it really jerked up and then I went out over the gorge, and I screamed even louder. My brothers said I screamed louder than they ever heard anyone ever scream, but of course they talk nonsense. But after the first plunge I switched to whooping and fist pumping. :P So I lived, and quite happily--having all of the sense flown out of you does miracles, truly.
haha... ikr? That looks terrifyingly fun.. The water is quite picturesque however... A very interesting colour..
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