Victoria Falls Gorge Swing: Wild Horizons Adventures

Victoria Falls Gorge Swing:
Wild Horizons Adventures

Wild Horizons – Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
Telephone  +263 (13) – 42313/42314
Email – info@wildhorizons.co.zw
Facebook Wild Horizons

March 13
I decided to tackle the morning at about 09:00.  I wanted to start it earlier, but it was important to have a fresh of a mind for the day so I stole a little extra sleep.  I was at Wild Horizons at 10:00.  Today was certain to be a great day.

[su_note note_color=”#b0b1b6″ text_color=”#030303″ radius=”6″]If you are ever in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, make a stop at Wild Horizons to say hello to Eddie.  If you are looking for one of the brightest and most genuine smiles you may ever encounter, Eddie is wearing it.  When I stopped in yesterday, trying to make plans about what adventure I was going to do, he helped me choose a half-day adrenaline adventure.  He is one of those humans that just exhumes positive energy.[/su_note]

Victoria Falls to the left!

In no time after I arrived at the Wild Horizons office, there was a driver and a truck to take me to the Lookout Café.  The perfectly manicured property of the cafe is on the side of an incredibly deep and extremely beautiful gorge carved out by the Zambezi river, just downstream from Victoria Falls.  If you are looking for a one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the world, well, here you are…

As I went to the counter to check in with the Wild Horizon crew, they wrote a number on my hand with black marker.  I looked at it and told them, “The last time someone put a number on me was when I was in prison.”  That sure made them laugh.

Wild Horizons/Prison number.

A man named Nacho was in charge of me.  Nacho was local Zimbabwean and not Mexican.  Yea, I know, it surprised me too!

Phase #1 – Flying Fox!
Nacho geared me up in a harness and walked me to the Flying Fox, which is cable that goes out over the gorge!  I was attached from my harness to the cable, standing on the platform peering to the depths 120 meters below.  Yeah, that is right.  It is 120 meters from the cliff I was standing on to the river at the bottom of the gorge below.  Bhuzani, who was running the Flying Fox explained to me that I was to run as fast as I could off the end of the platform, which is essentially running off of a cliff and potentially plunging 120 meters down to the river below, except for the harness that will keep you attached to the cable and give you a crazy ride.  When I was unhooked from the safety line to hold me in place, it was just a matter of running off the platform.

Beaverman attempting to be Superman.

[su_pullquote]Maybe that is why men get themselves into trouble so often…[/su_pullquote] Bhuzani counted down, “5, 4, 3, 2, 1!” and I ran as fast as I could to the end of the platform and when there was no longer platform under my feet, I was totally airborne and Flying Foxing through the air across the gorge.  It was a great feeling that I did not really think anything about until I was across the gorge and had stopped.  That is when a man’s mind wonders how strong the harnesses are and how good the clips are to hold you in the harness.  I remembered thinking that the equipment had all looked new, so my slight anxiety faded.  But, it is amazing how things happen so fast that a person does not really think about possible consequences until they are in the middle of some kind of crazy action.  Maybe that is why men get themselves into trouble so often…

The scenery… (whistles).

Anderson, another helper had the job of pulling me back in from across the gorge.  Anderson is the hardest working man on the job, as he tugged in 200 meters of rope attached to me, which brought me back to the cliff and onto secure cliff-earth rather than cable suspension over a 120 meter deep gorge.  It was nice to be back on land!

[su_quote]That initial plunge was fantastic! And the views. Wow.[/su_quote]

Phase #2 – Zip Line!
Nacho, Anderson and Bhuzani walked me to the Zip Line, where I was required to unharness, the harness was reversed so that the attachments were in my front, and I was re-harnessed.  Bhuzani hooked me to the Zip-Line as I stood on the edge of a platform and then sat on the steps on the edge of it.  I was ready, and I just jumped off the edge of the platform.  I was not initially ready for the speed at all and it surprised me.  All of the sudden I was travelling somewhere between an estimated 80-100 km/h, rushing down the cable of the zip line across the gorge.  That initial plunge was fantastic!  And the views.  Wow.

The Zip-Line cable I would be riding.

Anderson came out to collect me on a seated ride that he was able to speed control.  When he got to where I was, hanging over the center of the gorge, he hooked a cable to me and Bhuzani ran a machine that brought us back in to the land.  It was great.

It is better up here.

Phase #3 – The Gorge Swing!
This is the one I was waiting for.  This is the climax, possibly of all of the adventure activities in all of Victoria Falls.  The giant Gorge Swing.  I was thrilled and I was nervous.  But, I could not wait.

– A 70 meter straight down free fall from the edge of the platform.
– A 95 meter rope swing.
– From 120 meters high on the side of a cliff above the gorge.
– Speed of up to 110 km/h as you fall off the edge of the cliff.

Nacho walked me to the platform where I was safety hooked.  The swing of the rope was hooked to the front of my harness.  I actually felt anxiety at this point for what I was about to do.  When I was unhooked from the safety line and there was only one decision to make, I noticed the weight of the rope of the swing that was hooked to a cable 100 meters across the gorge…  I just stopped thinking and suddenly Bhuzani counted down, “5, 4, 3, 2, 1,” and I jumped straight down off the platform, off of a cliff.

Here goes!

Well, the speed of my body free-falling through the air surprised me.  I fell so fast that part scream/part yell came bursting out of my throat.  It was completely involuntarily, but I guess something carnal in me thought it was completely necessary.

See that little dot? Yea, that is me swinging across the Zambezi River.

That fall.  Wow!  It was crazy.  Then, the fall turned into a completely smooth transition of a swing when I reached the end of the rope and I just kept on moving but now in a forward motion as I swung out way across the gorge on the end of the rope.  Amazing.  The rush that ran though my body…  Incredible.  The Wild Horizons crew allowed me to swing until there was no momentum left and then the platform machine pulled a rope in that brought me in.  I had to walk vertically up the side of the cliff at the end of the return and then I was back on land.  Outstanding.

If you like adrenaline, I have a thing for you to do…test some vertical limits!  Wow.  Wild Horizons.   Wild adrenaline rushes and stunning Horizons…

What a day…!

Victoria Falls Gorge Swing:
Wild Horizons Adventures