When I watch this video, the scary part to me is not the possibility of falling. I fear that I’d feel compelled to try to grab the cable and completely destroy my hands.
I’ve never had to unclip the lock that connects you to the wire. You just swing around while still connected. Notice how she swings around without undoing any lock whatsoever?
It’s NOT fun to pull yourself in but I’ve never had to literally risk death because I got stuck. Wherever you were was sketchy as fuck.
The trolley snaps on the line, you have an angled decent and never think about it.
But what if there’s a long opening, as in longer than what you see in this video?
What if the weather starts to pick up and the line starts to sway due to winds?
Where I was at in Puerto Rico they had to let the slack out, storm was coming in, they pushed the women and children down first.
Afterwards told all the guys that we would all likely get stuck about half way and would need to unclip the top, spin around, clip it back and then pull ourselves the rest of the way.
Or walk back 6 hours in the dark, on muddy trails, in a rainforest.
I volunteered to go last because I was about to piss my pants from fear, practiced flipping around on the safety rig for a good 30 min, I got past the mid point by tucking and then quickly flipped around, closed my eyes and started pulling.
Adrenaline must’ve got the best of me, my wife said I looked like a machine I was going so damn fast lol
It’s been about 12 years since this happened, so I don’t remember the trolley parts fully.
Basically there’s a guide that sits on top of the trolley, prevents you from touching it with your hands (mostly), in order for you to swing around you have to flip the guide up, and unclip the pivot point or whatever it is inside the trolley.
This doesn’t mean the trolley is off the line or anything, just changing the orientation so it’s easier to go backwards and pull, the risk of falling is limited as your weight is keeping you on the line.
All that being said, you’re suspended above a huge gorge with nothing but a free fall into the abyss of trees, can’t go back up because you’d be pulling against gravity, the only option is to complete the turnaround.
Talking to the guides, they specifically told me they couldn’t come help because of how low the line was due to the storm and I was 190lbs, would be too much tension on the line.
I had bungee jumped in my teens a few times so I had some experience swallowing adrenaline, definitely felt like kissing the ground when I made it to the other side
This is located out on the barrier of El Yunque which is an actual Rain Forest.
We were out there first thing in the morning, no weather in site at 9-10am, you have to do a 1.5 hr training course; then grab lunch and out to the zip line course.
We paid for the full package as we had a group of 12 and 4 other people joined our group.
This was 8 or 9 zip lines but first you had to go up the mountain in trucks, it’s another hour or so to drive, terrain is sketchy.
After that you take the zip lines down the mountain with the last one being across the big gulch.
Some of the platforms are a bit of a hike, so add a 10 min walk to a few of them.
Ok so now we are basically at 2pm, plenty of time during the late summer for light, main guides’ radio starts going off, I hear the other side saying a storm is coming in fast, we need to hurry up.
Get to the third zip and he stops us to explain we cannot stop for pics or breaks, need to get off the course due to wind.
We are running now to the next are, 20 people running down little more than foot travel paths, wide enough but at the same time kinda dangerous.
Get to the second to last and that’s when he tells us they have to lower the line due to wind. Ok whatever.
As the ladies go off the final zip he explains in full that we have a choice, unclip and row backwards as he’s taught us (technically speaking, the risk is minimal, the line is buoyed by your weight, it can’t come off unless you lift yourself up), or walk the 6 hours+ back…in the dark.
Everybody was fine, they were happy we got across and got some solid arroz con gondules when we were across.
It’s just rather scary to lift that plate up and turn around, I caught a glimpse of the gorge while I was pulling…the shiver it sent down my spine hasn’t been forgotten.
I’ve been ziplining multiple times in different counties and never had to do this. Notice how the girl just spins around naturally cuz she isn’t holding onto the wire? She doesn’t unclip anything.
I dunno why this guy is acting like he wasn’t at the absolute sketchiest ziplining place in the world, but thats where he was if he had to disconnect anything to pull himself in.
You pop up the top of the trolley, pull down on the mechanism inside it and then spin around, lock it back up.
Your weight is holding you down so there’s very little chance it’s coming off the line, but for that split second you have to swing with it open…I could’ve used a new pair of shorts lol
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u/Warzenschwein112 Mar 04 '25
Yes, but I would not put my hand up there, because I like my fingers.