(My solo road trip of western Canada – Monday 28th September)
I have done a few crazy things in my life, things that have challenged me (for the better), scared the living day lights out of me, things I have regretted doing, and naturally made mistakes along the way. When I was younger, I used to love going to theme parks, going on roller coasters was my thrill, I used to also go on other ridiculously crazy rides, for example where you drop from a massive height and drop through a black hole, as you sit there, not knowing why you came here in the first place, why you are doing it now and where you are going to next!
As I have gotten a little older (not too much though I should stress!) I don’t get the same buzz from these things anymore, and although I am not too comfortable anymore with heights, I have been looking for something else, something that will bring back that original buzz I used to get when I was younger, the difference being now, is that I am more aware and more conscious of my actions, but I am looking for more adrenaline rushes to energise and revitalise me…something that I can do, look back and say to myself, yes I did it and I have no regrets…I think I have found it?
I was told that if I visit Whistler, I should go Zip Lining, apparently, it was quite famous for it, I looked into it and I thought I would give it a go seen as though I was here. What I did, made my adrenaline and heart pump so hard it hurt my chest, that was just after my first zip line of what is known as the ‘Eagle Tour’…it was honestly amazing, I still remember standing there as they attached the harness and looking at the mountain in the distance which I was supposed to be heading towards, and thinking ‘I don’t think I can do this, I don’t think I want to do this…it is very high’. I did do it and I just wanted more and more, there were four more Zip Lines left of this Eagle Tour, but then…
Then, I did what is called ‘The Sasquatch’, well, let’s just put it this way, the ache from the adrenaline I got from this, reverberated around my body…it was a totally awesome ‘natural’ high! From what I know, it is one of the top 10 Zip Lines in the world…”I did the Sasquatch, will you?”.
Just a note for anyone who may do this. If you have a Go Pro, definitely take it, I don’t have one but I rented one for the day. I wore mine on my wrist as I wanted more freedom to film different angles to give a more real experience as opposed to having it on the helmet. If you do The Sasquatch in particular, just be conscious of the fact (as you will see), that your wrist may hit against the handle, especially as you reach high speed going through the trees.
http://www.ziptrek.com/
http://www.ziptrek.com/en/whistler-canada/tours/ziptrek-sasquatch
The Eagle Tour Facts: 5 zip lines and 4 tree top bridges. Height range from 675ft – 2,400ft with the longest descending 30 stories! The whole tour is linked by zip lines, suspension bridges, tree top lookouts and trails…
The Sasquatch Facts:
Over 2km long (7,000ft) continuous zip line!
Longest zip line in Canada and the US!
Over 600 ft above ground at certain points during the zip!
It opened in July 2015, the fastest speed when I went had been over 145kmh, I managed to reach over 125kmh…and I went upside down! Totally mind blowing, an experience I will never forget, and I have ‘almost’ destroyed my fear of heights…Sky dive next?