The highlight of my vacation last week was my ZIPLINE canopy tour at Cypress Hills Eco-Adventures. It was crazy / fun / scary / exhilarating all at once!
*** skip to the end if you just want the video highlights… if you want full dets, read on… ***
Here I am, suited up and nervously waiting to get started…
- Sidenote - I’ve become very UN-adventurous over the last few years. In fact, I think after having kids something must have changed in my brain chemistry to make me develop all kinds of dorky fears. For example, I don’t like being in really crowded places, I’ve had a few weird elevator-related moments, I’m nervous about flying, and can’t handle HEIGHTS anymore. So, why the heck would I choose to step off of a 40 foot platform to go hurtling through the air on a zipline???
It’s all because of this guy:
Jori… my cousin… like a little brother to me. He’s the President, CEO and founder of Cypress Hills Eco-Adventures. It’s a world-class zipline tour, and there really is nothing else like it in Saskatchewan (maybe even Canada???) He just started up the business this year and it’s unique and exciting and impressive. I’m so freakin’ proud of this guy!
Also… have to give a BIG shout to Rhett:
He’s also my cousin (and like another little brother) and works as a tour guide at the zipline. Without him making fun of encouraging me, I probably wouldn’t have even let go of that first pole, let alone step off the platform.
Anyways… back to the adventure…
The first thing you have to do is climb up a 40 foot rope ladder to a small platform attached to a pole. Also worth mentioning is that fact that the pole kind of sways like a tree. Here’s the view looking down… notice how tiny Jeff and the two boys look! EEEEK!
Thank goodness Jori and Rhett are pros at this… they made the tour super fun, even though I was terrified a wee bit nervous. (Notice me clinging to the pole for dear life.)
For the record… the zipping part (where you are flying through the air) is super FUN and not really scary at all… except for the part where I somehow spun around and came barrelling into the platform backwards. I’m pretty sure I almost hip-checked Jori right off of the platform. (I blame that incident on the Bud Light Lime weight I’ve gained this summer.)
Anyways… two of the more crazy parts of the tour were:
1. Teetering my way across the sky-bridge. Just EEEK.
2. Climbing from one tiny platform (already 40 feet in the air) straight up this pole, and somehow hauling my ass over and onto an even higher platform. Jori makes this look easy. IT WASN’T!!!
So after 4 zips from platform to platform, you end up at a super long line that goes over a little valley. The best part about it was that you land on the ground at the other side! I totally felt like a pro at that point. Hahaha. My confidence level skyrocketed once my feet were back on solid ground.
Jori told me that the tour would be empowering, and I was all “yeah, yeah, whatever…” but IT TOTALLY WAS! You have to try it to know what I mean. I HIGHLY recommend it. If you live anywhere near Cypress Park, it is worth the trip to experience this adventure. See the Cypress Hills Eco-Adventures website for details.
And finally… check out my video footage. It was so super fun. Big time thanks to Jori and Rhett for the awesome tour!
Carissa's Cypress Hills Eco-Adventures Zipline Tour from Carissa Erickson on Vimeo.