Adventure Capitol of the World, Queenstown NZ
It was my last day in Queenstown before I would be flying back to Auckland to make my way back to the states. I had managed to make it through 3 weeks of traveling 2000 miles across both islands of New Zealand.
It was my first solo trip, first time driving on the left side of the road, first time to the southern hemisphere, and my first time eating a famous pepper steak pie (which I still crave almost on a daily basis). Being that my trip was shaping up to be one of many first. It seemed obvious that I do my first bungy jump at Kawarau Bridge, which ironically happens to be the world’s first bungy jumping spot.
Since their opening in 1988 they have had 100% success rate but that didnt change the fact I was not a fan of heights. But for some reason I came to the conclusion that jumping off a perfectly good bridge might help me to overcome my fear. To say I was nervous on the fifteen-minute drive would be an understatement. When I arrived at AJ Hackett bungy, I took a few deep breaths before making my way into the building.
Once inside,
I headed for the check in desk where I was told to step on a scale, the girl quickly wrote 86 on my hand before pointing me outside towards the bridge. I didn’t even know if 86 was an accurate weight but I gave them the benefit of the doubt because I didn’t bother doing the conversion to pounds.
Here goes nothing..
I tried to avoid looking down when I walked onto the bridge, but it was difficult to ignore the sound of the water rushing below. Luckily there was only one person in front of me, so I didn’t have much time to think about all the things that could go wrong. I was weighed a second time, 86 again, and told to take a seat. A chatty employee immediately began weaving a towel between around my ankles followed by a nylon cord. He then lifted me up and helped me to waddle to the edge, since my feet were tied together.
I thought my heart was going to beat out of my chest when I stepped onto the wooden platform and took my first look down at the river, 141 feet below. I was told that if I wanted to be dunked in the water, I would need to fall straight down. Warning that if I made a swan like jump, I would lack the force to get me to the river.
I could feel my toes desperately clinching to the platform as he counted down 3…….2……1…. BUNGY!! There was no hesitation on my part as hurled myself off the edge. Falling feet first, then flipping upside down before briefly slamming into the river!
Smiles for days,
I could feel the smile stretching across my face as I bounced around waiting to come to a complete stop before being pulled into the raft. I made the mistake of going barefoot, not knowing I had to walk back up a rocky trail to get back inside but I was too hyped up to care.
Honestly, I am not sure if jumping helped ease my fear of heights or not but looking back my only regret was not jumping twice! If that says anything.
If you are interested in taking a jump yourself be sure to check out AJ Hackett, they have locations worldwide. Also, I would recommend purchasing the video/photo package. I used a GoPro but think that the professional video would have been something neat to have. Live and learn though!
Have you ever been bungy jumping? Leave a comment and tell me about your experience!
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