Travel Alphabet History (Z) Zipline
For my birthday in 2011 Joe and I went to Catalina Island. I had been wanting to go and check it out ever since I moved to Los Angeles and they were offering a free ride over to the island and back on your birthday that year so I seized the opportunity. The ferry is usually 70 dollars round trip. My birthday luckily fell on a Sunday so Joe and I went for the day.
I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do when we got there. I had a magazine with all kinds of ideas. Parasailing, Snorkeling, Ziplining, or walking along the ocean floor in these new dive helmets? I decided I would pick one thing to do so I picked Ziplining. I think the boat ride was an hour but I popped a Dramamine and slept through it. Once on shore we walked around a bit admiring the clear water. We ate Fish and Chips on the pier and continued on along the beach. We went to look at the Casino. It’s been there since the 1920s so the architecture was pretty interesting. It wasn’t what I really expected though. It was just a movie theater and hall that rich people could rent out. I had thought it was an actual Casino for gambling.
They had a rock climbing wall that cost 5 dollars for one climb and I definitely wanted to try it. It was only hard at the top because the wall curves outward and it’s hard to hold on and try to press the button at an angle where you kind of hang off. I did it though and felt pretty accomplished. Dropping down is the fun part because you just let go and glide slowly down to the ground. We then sat on the lawn waiting until it was time for our Zipline tour.
They first went over all the safety instructions. There were two cables that we were attached to. Each holds 10 tons on its own so ziplining is actually very safe. One of our instructors would go over first and then catch us as we came down. There were five stations total. We drove up the mountain to the first station. I actually volunteered to go first. As he opened the gate and I looked down I got scared. It really throws you off to look down at the straight drop. My instructor said, “You just step off.” I almost went then stopped and said, “I just step off?” to be sure. It was almost like he was going to push me because I was hesitating so much. He told me to look straight ahead and not down. I took a breath and just did it. After the first time, which is scary, it becomes fun and I started to look forward to the next zipline. At each station our instructors would tell us about Catalina Island’s wildlife and plants. I wondered why they kept going on and on about it, but I realized that it was actually the echo part of our echo zipline tour.
Ziplining was really fun and I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful view. The deep blue ocean off to the right of me and nature’s greenery off to the left. It was actually another person in our group’s birthday so everyone sang to him. I thought that was funny because I never told anyone it was my birthday. I liked having that little secret all to myself.
After the zipline tour ended there was only one more thing I wanted to do. Jump in the ocean. It was cold and the shore was rocky where I decided to go in. The sun was setting fast so there wasn’t a lot of light left, but I was going to do it darn it all. So I stripped down to my swimsuit and jumped in. Simple as that. Joe thought about getting in but I told him he didn’t have to. It was pretty cold. I was only in swimming for a few minutes before getting out. I dried off and Joe and I had dinner at a seafood restaurant on the shore. The sun was almost set and the sky was ablaze with pink clouds. After dinner, Joe and I went to catch the ferry back. By then the sun had gone down and it was really cold. I had a great day but I was eager to get back out of the cold.
I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do when we got there. I had a magazine with all kinds of ideas. Parasailing, Snorkeling, Ziplining, or walking along the ocean floor in these new dive helmets? I decided I would pick one thing to do so I picked Ziplining. I think the boat ride was an hour but I popped a Dramamine and slept through it. Once on shore we walked around a bit admiring the clear water. We ate Fish and Chips on the pier and continued on along the beach. We went to look at the Casino. It’s been there since the 1920s so the architecture was pretty interesting. It wasn’t what I really expected though. It was just a movie theater and hall that rich people could rent out. I had thought it was an actual Casino for gambling.
They had a rock climbing wall that cost 5 dollars for one climb and I definitely wanted to try it. It was only hard at the top because the wall curves outward and it’s hard to hold on and try to press the button at an angle where you kind of hang off. I did it though and felt pretty accomplished. Dropping down is the fun part because you just let go and glide slowly down to the ground. We then sat on the lawn waiting until it was time for our Zipline tour.
They first went over all the safety instructions. There were two cables that we were attached to. Each holds 10 tons on its own so ziplining is actually very safe. One of our instructors would go over first and then catch us as we came down. There were five stations total. We drove up the mountain to the first station. I actually volunteered to go first. As he opened the gate and I looked down I got scared. It really throws you off to look down at the straight drop. My instructor said, “You just step off.” I almost went then stopped and said, “I just step off?” to be sure. It was almost like he was going to push me because I was hesitating so much. He told me to look straight ahead and not down. I took a breath and just did it. After the first time, which is scary, it becomes fun and I started to look forward to the next zipline. At each station our instructors would tell us about Catalina Island’s wildlife and plants. I wondered why they kept going on and on about it, but I realized that it was actually the echo part of our echo zipline tour.
Ziplining was really fun and I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful view. The deep blue ocean off to the right of me and nature’s greenery off to the left. It was actually another person in our group’s birthday so everyone sang to him. I thought that was funny because I never told anyone it was my birthday. I liked having that little secret all to myself.
After the zipline tour ended there was only one more thing I wanted to do. Jump in the ocean. It was cold and the shore was rocky where I decided to go in. The sun was setting fast so there wasn’t a lot of light left, but I was going to do it darn it all. So I stripped down to my swimsuit and jumped in. Simple as that. Joe thought about getting in but I told him he didn’t have to. It was pretty cold. I was only in swimming for a few minutes before getting out. I dried off and Joe and I had dinner at a seafood restaurant on the shore. The sun was almost set and the sky was ablaze with pink clouds. After dinner, Joe and I went to catch the ferry back. By then the sun had gone down and it was really cold. I had a great day but I was eager to get back out of the cold.