For anyone who is looking for extreme adventure, abseiling is an absolute must. This includes an adrenaline pumping activity where you descend down with a special rope. Traditionally, this involved only descending a rock face, but more and more commercial abseils exist today. Now, even buildings and skyscrapers are used to satisfy the thirst for thrilling recreation. Other choices for abseiling are waterfalls and caves.
Why Abseiling
Abseiling is not just a kind of sport that you can indulge in. It is also a unique way of interacting with the landscape. One of the reasons why abseiling is exceptionally popular is because it is easy to learn since there are no special skills required. With just a few lessons, a beginner can slide down the rope as if he or she is a master. Some helpful safety techniques can be found here: http://www.climbingtechniques.org/rappellingabseiling.html. If you are ready, here are the highest abseils you can try:
Arenal Volcano National Park
The trip starts from the town of La Fortuna de San Carlos in Costa Rica. After 30 minutes of driving, you will enter a flourishing tropical rainforest that surrounds the Arenal Volcano. Walk for a few minutes and you will see the first waterfall where you can start your abseil adventure. From the waterfall, you will descend into a striking canyon. This is one of the highest abseils where you will make five descents – four alongside the waterfall and one along a rock face.
St. George, Utah
If you are around St. George in the US state of Utah, you have a number of good spots to do your favourite sport. These include Zion National Park, Virgin River Gorge, Dixie Rock, and the Kolob Plateau. St. George features many sandstone rocks, which make the city a great place for descending. Most of the locations allow the climbers to access the very peak of the formations. You have two options here: you can either go down the rock formations or you can walk and climb to another peak where you can descend on another abseil.
Kaaterskill Creek and Falls
The creek known as the Kaaterskill Creek is located in Catskill, New York. This gorgeous creek is almost 26 miles long, but what makes it really interesting is the Kaaterskill Falls. The waterfall is renowned all over the world for being the highest abseiling location with two-tiered falls. It is also one of the oldest attractions in the United States since it has been featured in many books as early as the 19th century. This abseiling spot is definitely not for the weak-hearted as it features a 260-foot descent. You can learn more about Kaaterskill Falls here: http://gonewengland.about.com/od/nyattractions/ss/aakaaterskill.htm.
Egmont National Park
For those eager to travel around the world for some crazy abseiling, here is another location to try: the Egmont National Park in New Zealand. The national park is famous as it serves as the home of Taranaki Volcano, which is also known as Mount Egmont. Taranaki is considered as the most beautiful volcano in NZ simply because it bears a faultless shape. It last showed activity in 1775, but many of the NZ volcanologists believe that it is dormant and not extinct yet. Taranaki is almost 8,300 feet high, but it has a much shorter side on the south with almost 6,500 feet.
There are many tours that provide abseiling among other activities. These tours have professionals that will guide you if you are a newbie. You may have to make a reservation first and register. Do not forget to bring all the essentials such as gloves, ropes, and knee-pads. A complete list of abseiling gears can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abseiling#Equipment.