Bungee Jumping

Okay, so now that I have told you about last Saturday morning, I will move on to the more exciting activities of the afternoon. After returning from Alianza, we (Nolan, Al, and I) had lunch at Subway. Al only had a six-inch sub because we were planning to go bungee jumping, and he was concerned the jump might make him sick. After lunch we got on a bus and headed south toward Cola de Caballo. This was no ordinary bus, but was more like the stereotypical Mexican bus that you would think of: packed with tons of people, doors barely hanging to the hinges, kids hanging out windows…the only thing missing was a guy with a guitar and some chickens. Anyway, we took the bus as far as it would go (about 30 minutes south of the city) and then jumped in a cab with the craziest old man I have met in quite sometime. By this point, we were out in the country, driving up a mountain, and it is quite common to see people on dirt bikes, four wheelers and dune buggies. This old guy was taking way too much pleasure in trying to run kids off the road who were coming down the mountain on dirt bikes as we were coming up in the cab. Every time we passed a group, he would swerve into their lane, yell something in Spanish that we couldn’t understand, and then start laughing at himself. I have to admit, it was pretty funny. By the way, the picture below is Nolan and Al outside the Italian restaurant where we found the taxi. Am I the only one that thinks this is a funny picture? I didn't think so.



So, let’s get back to the story. After we arrived at the Hotel Cola de Caballo, we quickly found the bungee platform. It was a long metal walkway thrust off the edge of a steep cliff, with the treetops about 300 feet below. It reminded me of the saying “walking the plank.” After paying our 330 pesos (about $30) and getting some quick instructions, we were ready to go. The guys had already decided that I should go first, and I was feeling pretty confident, so I got strapped in and headed for the far end. I can honestly say that I felt nothing but excitement until about 10 seconds before the jump. One of the workers told me that he was going to count to 3, at which point I needed to leave the platform. Once I was standing on the edge, looking down at nothing but treetops 100 meters below, I must admit that I was a little scared. As the rope was thrown off the deck, the weight of it began to pull on my feet, and I held onto the railing for dear life. I finally reassured myself that the rope was going to hold me, and told myself not to think, just to jump. I heard 1, 2, 3, BUNGEE! and I only paused for a split second before leaping out into nothing. It was honestly much more difficult that I had thought. Below is a picture of me in free-fall, right after I left the platform.



Once I was in the air, it was impossible to speak. I couldn’t have screamed if I had wanted to. I fell for almost two seconds before the trees stopped getting closer and I felt myself springing back skyward. The transition was surprisingly smooth. It was at that point that I began to whoop and holler with glee. I was having a great time. I have a video, but I haven’t found a site that will host the file format. I am hoping to be able to post it soon. For now, you will have to settle for more pictures. The next one is at the bottom of my freefall, right before the rope took over.



After I went, Al and then Nolan took the plunge, and they both described similar experiences. All three of us said it was much more difficult to jump off than we had anticipated, but we were all very glad that we did. Al completed his jump in complete silence, earning him the nickname “The Silent Thrill-Seeker.” The following picture is of Al during his jump/fall.



Nolan attempted to yell “Geronimo” on the way down, but as I mentioned before, it’s really impossible to scream until you have hit the bottom. He was pretty noisy after that, and I think he may have enjoyed his jump more than anyone. I wish I could show the video, because he wasn’t able to say anything coherent for about five or ten minutes after coming back up. The following picture is of Nolan swinging through the forest upside down.



If you enjoyed the story of this adventure, tune in tomorrow. The bungee jumping was only the very beginning of the fun and craziness that we experienced this past weekend. I will tell you a little more about it next time. This final picture is of the three of us after we successfully had bungeed the tallest jump in Mexico. By the way, the cans of Tecate in the picture are not ours.