The craziest thing I have EVER done in my life - Switzerland day 3

Today was pretty wild, in a good way. I woke up at 8 and by 9am 5 of us girls were on way out the door. The plan for the day for me because I had about .40 cents left on me was to lay low and just wander around Interlaken until we had to meet the bus at 3:30 to head back to Florence. 4 of the girls though that I had been hanging out with really wanted to go canyon jumping so I said I would go along and take some pictures as well as take the videos of them jumping.

I should explain here a little what canyon jumping actually is. It is similar to bungee jumping but some people say way cooler. With bungee jumping you are jumping from the same point where your rope is and it is an elastic rope so you bounce up and down a few times once you have fallen head first. Well canyon jumping has the same idea but resembles a swing set. So the rope is actually held in the middle and it is an actual rope (not a bungee cord). You are on one side of it being held up like you are on top of the swing ready to drop. Then once you jump off the platform (feet first), you fall 150ft going 120km/hour into the canyon with the rocks on either side of you, only feet away. You keep falling straight down until the rope catches and then you swing crazy fast through the canyon. You swing a few times and then they send another rope out to you that you grab onto and then pull yourself to the side where you climb the few steps on the ladder and then you are done. Sound intense? ;)

It only took about 20min or so for us to reach the top of the canyon and then about 20min after that everyone was paying and getting harnessed up. By this point, I had still decided that I wasn't going to jump for a few reasons. To be honest, I did actually want to do it but I really didn't have the money and I was pretty sure that I would be over the jump weight limit. I really didn't want to chance killing myself this close to me coming home. lol

Well, all that changed all of 2min later when I learned the weight restriction was double me. My credit card was swiped and I was getting harnessed up. :{ I wasn't scared...yet, but as we got close to the edge I was starting to feel a little frightened. Their was 11 of us all together (5 from our group and then 6 others). When he asked who was going to go first, I jumped right in there! Yup, the person who wasn't even going to do it, went first. So instead of me taking pictures and videos for the other girls, they had to do it for me. lol :)

As he started hooking me up to the actual rope, fear started to go through me. When I say fear here, I mean it... REALLY mean it. I said a little goodbye message on my video (just in case) and then he moved me to the platform. By this point, even he had to give me a little pep talk and as I stood there with tears of fear in my eyes they counted me down. 5-4-3-2 and as they said 1 I was off! I just did it. I didn't think about. I just ran off the platform, screamed and started falling. The fall itself took less that 3 seconds and then I started swinging but as you can imagine it actually feels like you are free falling to your death until right then when you think you are going to fall onto the rocks the swing part catches you and then you just swing and enjoy the ride. :)

It was the most intense, crazy thing I have and ever will do in my life! Its still hard to believe I actually did it and I can't wait to show you all the video of it. So, obviously one day later as I write my blog about my canyon jumping experience, I survived it. I not only survived but realized now that I really can do anything that I put my mind to. The girl who can't climb a ladder because she is afraid of falling off, jumped off a cliff in the Swiss Alps!

The afternoon was much quieter and we just hung out and had a lazy lunch. After lunch I headed to the lake to get a few last minute photo's and then I headed back to the hostel to meet the group and head back to Florence.