Come Zip With Me: Ziplining With a Twist
Ziplining, A Bucket List Experience
One of the items on my unofficial bucket list was to zipline. Recently, a large cavern opened for zipliners in my area. It is a unique zip experience. I never thought about zipping in a cavern, but since it was close to home, I thought it would be a good experience for a beginner.
I am going on a cruise soon and wanted to zipline in a tropical rain forest. I thought this would be good practice, so I wouldn’t look like a complete novice.
The Cost of Zipling
It was a little more expensive than I had anticipated, but considering the great guides we had, it was well worth it. I might want to add that my husband and I were the oldest in our group, and while we didn’t jump fearlessly like a couple of the 17 year olds that were with us, we held our own.
What Will You See in a Cavern Zip
- The Cavern offers 6 ziplines and 3 bridges.
- There is basically no way back. Once committed, illness is probably the only way someone is going to come get you, and that would be very difficult since the levels of the ziplines went up higher and higher from the cavern floor.
- The tour is about 2 1/2 hour per tour.
- Available with a reservation or walk-ups can join if space is available.
Instructions on Zipling
A tour guides will begin with a training session.
- We were fitted with our gear, asked to sign our disclaimer, and given the basic rules and guidelines.
- Our group was large with 22 people, so the gearing up took longer than planned. The gear was much heavier than I thought. I have a whole new appreciation of mountain climbers.
- The session was very informative, and the first “bunny” slope we went on gave participants confidence.
- We were off to conquer the rest of the cavern.
The Darkness Factor of Zipling in a Cave
The darkness factor was something I wasn’t anticipating.
- The commercial for this cave on television made the area appear much lighter than when we were there. I am sure they added additional lighting to produce the commercial.
- It is not without lights, of course, but many lights are at the jump platforms or indirect lighting set back into the crevices.
- We also had white and red lights on our helmets that were used depending on whether we were walking or jumping.
How Difficult is Zipling?
Each level grew more difficult. The last two bridges were extremely difficult.
- The bridges were something similar to rope bridges with a larger walking area (thank goodness) and strong steel cables.
- The bottom of the caverns grew distant,
The Experience of Zipling
Since I have never been ziplining I can only speak from my experience.
- The two instructors with us were great.
- They were calming, encouraging, funny, and very knowledgeable. One group member said they had ziplined in a foreign country, and the zippers were responsible for locking in their gear but not here- thank goodness.
- There is a double locking system, if you are ever in a position where you could fall. I think it wouldn’t have been fun for me, if I had to worry about locking my own gear all the time.
- The instructors were focused and safety minded. I now have a greater knowledge if I would decide to participate in ziplining again.
In Retrospect
I have to say those bridges were scary, and I felt a little like Indiana Jones in the jungle. I’m sure some people had a little more adventure in their sole than I did. On the last zip, two zipliners were positioned side-by-side in a race. It was fun, but the jump off point was 82 feet from the bottom of the cave, and the jump was into total darkness. Talk about a leap of faith.
I am anxious to do this again, but I would rather do it outside. Not that it’s safer, but being able to see forests, lakes, and a view like a bird's view should be unbelievable.
For those who haven’t tried it. I would definitely go for it. Just be ready to sound like Disney's Goofy when you take that first step.
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