A thrill seeker I am not! I don’t like roller coasters, I would never white water raft, hell I don’t even like to drive fast but when the opportunity came up to do zip lining I jumped at it. I very literally jumped off of a perfectly good working platform high in the trees.
Go Ape Zip Line and Tree Top Adventures in Lums Pond, Bear Delaware was NOT what I expected. I got up that morning and prepared myself for a short excursion in the woods where I thought I was just jumping out of a tree and landing gracefully at the end of the line.
What I didn’t expect was the ropes obstacle course I had to maneuver to get to those zip lines.
The course is made up of numerous rope ladders, 42 exciting crossings to include the Double Stirrups, Zigzag Trapeze, Flying Carpet and Canyon Crossing, 2 Tarzan swings and 5 zip lines.
When it got to moment where your only option was to jump and glide across the pond I happily did it because that meant I was giving my hands, arms and legs a break from the workout of climbing and strategizing the complex obstacle course.
I am not an athletic person but I kept up with my friends, Robin, Florida Steph and Kelly.
In fact Robin was my motivation to take a slightly more difficult path and overcome my laziness.
Robin was my motivation to keep going and not cry at the base of the tree
Go Ape Zip Line is new to Delaware. In fact I hadn’t heard of it until we were invited to try it out. The instructors give a great tutorial on safety, jumping and climbing the ropes.
You aren’t left out in the trees wondering how to get yourself out of the situation. I wish I had researched a little more on what to expect because I would’ve planned better for my own comfort. While I had one of the best times and overcame a bit of fear i’m not sure it is something I would ever do again. The obstacle course kicked my ass but the zip lining was amazing.
Here are my tips if you’ve ever wanted to try this for yourself.
- Wear gloves
- Make sure your shirt has sleeves
- Wear lightweight and flexible sneakers
- Brace yourself for the landing
- Get a Go-Pro to catch the action
The shirt sleeve and brace yourself comments come from the crash landings most of us experienced. The ride down to the end is peaceful and relaxing but then the realization hits you that you have to stop. The instructors make it look simple but none of us were able to master it. In fact I landed on my back each time. Luckily for me I had on a tee. My partners and their skinny bodies wore tanks that exposed their backs and arms to the mulch burns upon impact.
The next day I felt good, slightly sore but most of the discomfort was from the “whiplash”.
It’s definitely something everyone should experience. If you are afraid of heights this is the perfect way to fight that, not too high but definitely up in the air.
Visit Go Ape to find a location nearest you.
