Day 32: Bungy Jump!!!

Wednesday 6th January

I did a Bungy Jump!!! Then came to Queenstown

Distance: bus, 67km, and I bounced half a km on the end of the bungy cord

Total Distance: 4452km

I did a Bungy Jump! Off a bridge! Into a glacial river! It was nuts! I'm so pumped now :)

We drove from Wanaka to the crazy Puzzling World with its maze, then to a giant fruit shop to pick up some goodies before getting on the road down to Queenstown. On the way we passed the Bungy Centre at Kawarau. There were just two of us, me and a little blonde American(?- some Europeans have an American accent, she isn't loud or shouty). 

We had our feet strapped together, attached to all the ropes and bits, then placed on a ledge over looking a river. It was a beautiful place. I didn't notice. Hmmm....that's a long way down.

43m over a river. It's the original site that AJ Hackett used after he invented, developed, then profited from people throwing themselves off stuff attached to high tech elastic  bands.

Still a long way down. Under the steel bridge the waters are pure blue, due to the water being glacial melt. They swirl under the bridge, disrupting the surface. I'd asked to be dunked in the water up to my shoulders. Well, you just have to, don't you? The lack of surface tension would make the landing softer. Still had to remember to keep my hands in an over-the-head diving position and chin tooked in. Safest way to do it. One girl off the previous bus didn't and now she has burst all the blood vessels in her left eye. Safety first!

3...2...1...

It's a very long way down.

I don't want to do it.

Just a little jump of the edge.

What if I catch my feet on the edge. That'd look silly and hurt.

Just go.

Looking back at the video I can see what happened. My knees sort of crumpled, and my feet did a tiny hop forward. It was like a Loony Toons manuver. As I left the ledge my body stayed upright. I fell standing. Then gravity and the rope caught up. My body slowly turned, the rope caught, and I decelerated just enough to dunk all the way up to my chest in the cold water.

I screamed

I screamed like a little girl

Then I screamed with joy

Then I screamed because I could scream

Then I screamed because no one told me to stop

I was dragged down into the boat in the river and taken back to dry land.

What a buzz. I'll post the pictures when I get them off our driver.