We felt our day at Grouse Mountain deserved it's own blog. The mountain is about 15 minutes outside of Vancouver. This is where Art, Les, Joanne, and I decided to try "Ziplining". I suggested it and thought it would be fun, but when everyone agreed to try it, I started to get nervous!
Once at the mountain, we took a gondola ride up to the "Flight Center". Here we were fitted for equipment, including helmets and harnesses, and given some instructions. The harnesses themselves were on our backs, and when we sat they fit under our legs, providing support, and felt like being in a sling chair. We each were given a metal apparatus with 2 wheels, which would attach to our harnesses and then the wheel side would be placed on the cable. We were responsible to carry these to each of the runs. Actually, they were quite heavy for Joanne and I to carry, especially when walking up some of the terrain and climbing up the different platforms where the ziplines were located.
There were a total of 5 separate runs we would take. Each was in a different place, with it's own platform at each end of the run. There were 2 cables side by side, so 2 people could zip together, although depending on weight and position, usually one person got across before the other. We had 2 guides with us the entire time, and one would zip before us and wait on the other side until everyone got across, and then the other guide would zip to join us. The first run was short and not very fast, so you could get the hang of it. The second run was very fast, and they said we would be going about 50 mph! Just before the end of a run, we were instructed to assume the "crash position", which meant you tucked your head and feet in to prevent whiplash and injury when you reached the giant "spring" at the end, used to stop the zipping person. Would that person be called a "zipper"? Even though we all maintained this position, running into a giant spring at 50 mph made you see "stars"!!!!!!!!
After the first 3 runs, we were all having a great time and feeling comfortable, when we were informed we would be taking the chairlift up to the last 2 runs. I started getting nervous again, thinking we were high enough already!! Once off the chairlift, we even had to climb higher up the mountain to get to the other platforms. By the time we reached the higher elevations, it had become somewhat foggy. Our last run was the length of a football field and we would be sailing way above the pine trees on the mountain! It was exciting and frightening, all at the same time, especially with the intermittent fog. Because of the fog, you weren't sure where the end of the run was, so you could assume the crash position! Fortunately, the guides were watching out for us, and yelled when it was time to assume the position. We all had a blast, and were so proud of ourselves at the end of our ziplining adventure!!
The rest of our day on Grouse Mountain proved to be lots of fun also! There was a lumberjack show where 2 lumberjacks competed in different events such as log rolling and climbing up and down a tall timber. We weren't sure if the winning lumberjack really won, or if they took turns during each of the shows. Oh well, it was quite entertaining anyway! Besides the lumberjacks, there was also a "birds of prey" show. We got an up close look at some beautiful birds, such as a Red-Tailed Hawk and Bald Eagle. To end the day, we were able to observe 2 resident Grizzly Bears. They were pretty big fellows!!!!!!!!!
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