As part of the Brand New Dynamic Me, I had decided to have a go at Zip Wiring. Zipworld in Snowdonia is the home of Velocity, the Longest Zip Wire in Europe and the fastest in the World! Also Titan, the largest zip zone in Europe where you can reach speeds of up to 70mph. I decided to start with Titan, which is 3 separate zips and, enlisting the help and moral support of Beth, booked the trip for Monday.
Monday dawned and it rained. It rained all the way to Llechwedd, it rained all the while we had coffee and it rained half an hour before we were due to zip. We were both soaked just from walking to the buildings from the car and thought that zipping was not going to be much fun. So throwing ourselves on the mercy of the organisers asked for a postponement which they very generously gave us. Booked for Wednesday.
So there we were having travelled to Llechwedd, not sure what to do. At the same site are the Llechwedd Slate Caverns which I had heard good things about, so nothing ventured and all that!
They take you in a little cable car sort of thing down to the caverns and you are escorted through the separate caves by a guide with an audio commentary at each one.
The story was fascinating. Boys would start an apprenticeship at 12 years old and then spend years working in almost pitch black excavating slate. The conditions were horrendous and the life expectancy of the workers was between 40 and 45 years. It must have been an unimaginably hard life for very little reward.
The caverns were well lit for us although it was still extremely dark down there.
My main criticism of the visit was that we were rushed. The audio presentations were on timers set at the start so we had a set amount of time to get to each one. There was no way I was able to use a tripod and set up a shot so they are all hand held with the ISO up to 12800 and fingers crossed for focussing. The lighting wasn't continuous so again it was a bit pot luck how they came out.
All through the tour you could see on the walls long thin grooves. When we got to the last cavern the guide explained that these were where the miners drilled to make holes for the gunpowder.
Each hole took many hours to drill and were then filled with explosives and lit using a twine fuse. These were extremely unpredictable and many people were seriously injured or killed. In this over cautious Health and Safety ruled world we live in, it is so hard to imagine the way people were forced to work.
Wednesday
Our rescheduled trip to the Zip wire. Wednesday dawned and the sun shone. It shone all the way to Llechwedd, it shone all the while we had coffee and it shone all the way up to our zip, all through it and it is shining even now as I blog! The weather has been perfect with not a cloud in the sky! Such a difference from Monday.
We started off being dressed in bright red jumpsuits with a sort of large harness contraption on us which included a seat which was extremely elegant. Not! When we had to walk between zips, there was a certain amount of waddling going on!
We were driven up to the start of the first zip. You could see the top of Snowdon so clearly as there wasn't a cloud in the sky and the views were unbelievable, you could see for miles in every direction. I must add here that I didn't take my camera with me as I didn't think it would be possible to take pictures. However, I think next time I might be able to slip my old small compact in a pocket in the jumpsuit. So the next picture isn't mine, but is taken from the Zip world website
We were strapped onto the wires very securely and at no time did I feel unsafe. Although the first "take off" was probably the hardest. The gates in front of you opened up and you just had to lift your feet to be on your way. My first thought was "don't want to" but gave myself a very quick and stern talking to and away I went. I was expecting a drop, but there wasn't. I just glided! I went fast but it didn't feel like it because it was so smooth.
As you can see from the website pic, it ain't elegant, but I have never done anything like it. You soar over quarries and mines, down the sides of mountains and across the most dramatic and beautiful countryside. Yes, you are very high and moving fast but that feels unimportant. It feels safe, extraordinary and completely awe inspiring!
Lessons Learned: All my life I have convinced myself that I am a coward and wouldn't do anything any more adventurous than the Peter Pan ride at Disney! I have now realised that I was wrong. I am brave, strong and have an insatiable love of life! I want to do wild things, I am going to be someone my family have to keep up with, and not the one holding the bags while they do exciting stuff!
Bright red jumpsuit with attached safety harness isn't really a good look on me! Clashes with the hair!
Diet Diary: Another 2lb down, thats 9lb in total. Just 1lb off my first camera bag! Woo Hoo!!
Love this reassessment of who you are! Inspiring. I should do that too.
ReplyDeleteIts a really interesting and quite scary thing to do as I have found i am re-evaluating many aspects of my life. But it has so far been a blast and I wish I had done it all years ago.
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