Bungee Jumping

28-2-2014

    Bungee Jumping is the most terrifying thing I have ever done. Yes, I did it. No, I don't know why. I don't consider myself an adrenaline junky (at least I haven't before) and honestly, the whole concept of jumping off of something very high, attached to an elastic rope, seems like a very poor strategy for cheating death. However, we were in Queenstown, and Queenstown is known as the adventure capitol of the world. You can hang-glide, paraglide, mountain bike, skydive, whitewater raft, jet boat, ski, snowboard, and do anything else you can think of. It's where bungee jumping was invented. I assume by A.J. Hacket, since that's the name of the company who runs it now. They have the best reputation in New Zealand, and the option to jump at a number of places, including the Kawarau Bridge which is where the very first bungee jump ever took place. That's where we went. First off, because it's a bridge. Because jumping off a cliff attached to something stretchy and swinging is not cheating death, it's suicide. If you happen not to die, you have just unsuccessfully committed suicide. 

     So, anyhow, the Kawarau Bridge is just East of Queenstown, over the Kawarau River. It's a big, beautiful, turquoise river, swift and deep. It's one of a few rivers around Queenstown. (The other, the Shotover River, I'm just itching to kayak!) When you jump you get the option to not touch the water, touch it, or dunk in it. We, of course, both opted to touch it. A little different than most but without my head going underwater. Or so I thought. Once I was all strapped up they said, "Make sure you really jump out, don't just fall straight down, or you'll get wetter than you want. And make sure to touch the water with your arms first, and tuck in your chin."

    Oh great. This sounded like a bad idea.

    "On the count of three. One...two..."

    "Wait!" I said. "Is there a good spot to aim for? Any advice?"

    "Just look up at the other bridge," said the guy counting.

     Yeah, right... Okay, I'm just going to pretend I'm on a diving board. A really, really high diving board. And my legs aren't going to flip over my head. This is just like cliff jumping. Sure...

    "Three!"

     Oh shit. Sorry, but that's what went through my head. I jumped anyway. From the sound of it, it was jump or be pushed, and I was absolutely not going to be pushed. 

     According to the guys who picked me up on the boat, I screamed like I was being murdered. I told them that's because that's what it felt like. I was falling, too high up, so I screamed. When I was done screaming I was still falling, so I screamed some more. I've never screamed in my life. Until then, I was pretty convinced I didn't know how. I proved myself wrong. 

     Just about the time I thought falling was fun I touched the water. It felt very gentle, barely even noticeable except suddenly I was rising back into he air and the top of my head was now wet. So was my sweater (it was cold that day!), but just the shoulders. I guess I didn't jump out far enough, because I dunked. Or it was a little prank by whoever set the length of the line, but I doubt it. 

     The fun part was actually bouncing around in the air after the first drop. I thought I would hate that part, but I didn't. There was no whiplash, like I had imagined there would be. It felt more like jumping on a trampoline without touching the trampoline. 

    Before I even stopped bouncing or swinging the chase boat was extending what looked to be a giant PVC pipe for me to grab so they could pull me into the boat. I accidentally body slammed the guy at the stern (back) because I was still swinging. He grabbed my shoulder like he was going to body slam me into the bottom of the boat. He did flip me, but gently. It was the best way to get me into the boat.

    It was all very quick. I walked up, gave them my ticket, they ushered me onto the platform and set me up, counted to 3, then I jumped. A few seconds later I was picked up and ferried back to shore, where I climbed many stairs back up. Except for the fear, it didn't feel much different from jumping off the diving board in a pool, swimming to the ladder, and going back for more. Only the "more" would have been expensive again, and probably just as terrifying, so there was no "more". 

     If my descriptions aren't enough, I hope to be posting pictures, and maybe even video, of our bungee jumping. Then you can literally see the terror on my face.

     I'm still not certain if it was fun or not. I think I probably won't do it again, but then I never thought I'd do it in the first place. I think I did it because it's an uncommon opportunity to be able to bungee jump at the very spot that inspired the whole thing to begin with, the spot of invention: the Kawarau Bridge.