I’m in The Crags South Africa. Bloukrans Bridge, just down the road is home to the highest fixed structure bungy jump in the world. Hmm, I’ve jumped the bridge over the Zambezi, but since this is the highest, I guess I’ll have to check it off the list.
The bridge is a concrete structure spanning a gorge with a small river at it’s base. On one side of the bridge I see rolling tree covered foothill mountains, on the other side I can see the Indian Ocean peek between the valley peaks flowing to the beach. The bridge stands 708 ft (216 meter) above the valley floor.
I don a harness for the jump and am sent walking down a catwalk attached underneath the bridge. I think they’ve designed this setup to scare the crap out of people before they even jump. The catwalk while well secured has a mesh floor you can see through as you walk the 100 yards or so to the center. Scarier is the steel mesh is squishy giving the sensation it’s going to give way on each step. This operation is well run and designed for mass numbers. They have up to 250 people a day jump here. There are a dozen workers under the bridge all working in well organized unison and it appears safety is high. From checklist, harnesses, and tethers for everyone, there are backups to everything as well. Within minutes my ankles are tied together and they assist me hopping to the ledge. Like I mentioned the last time I performed this stunt. It has got to be the closest thing one can do to simulate suicide. It’s everything but the splat. One, Two, Three and I jump. The bungee here is attached underneath and on the opposite side from where I jump, so in addition to the recoil it swings in a pendulum back and forth motion. Weeeeeee. I could do this again. Just like the last time, I’ve loved it to death. The only thing I don’t like is hanging upside down for the minute or two waiting for someone to be lowered on a boson chair to lift me back upright. In those few minutes the blood rushes to ones head. Having not liked that it the past I discover instead of looking to the ground if I look at my feet and back to the bridge, the pressure buildup is severely reduced. While I thought this would be my last jump, armed with this new insight, I have no doubt I’ll bungee other top spots as well.
Chuck full of adrenaline like I get from jumping out of a plane, I head to Monkeyland and Birds of Eden. Monkeyland is a free range primate sanctuary. All the monkeys here have come from captivity. They live in a protected forest area and we are guided through the forest while loads of monkeys swing from the trees and scurry across the ground. No cages or fences separating them from site. It appears like I’m in the jungle and seeing them in the wild.
Next up for the day I make a stop at Birds of Eden. It’s the largest free flight bird sanctuary/aviary in the world. It must be a day for the highest/biggest/largest things. I wander around in a lush forested area for hours. Sit patiently on a bench and watch as hundreds of birds make their way by, ever so patiently waiting to capture the perfect shot. Ducks, geese, parrots, flamingos, toucans, and I don’t know what other exotic species exist here.
