SKYDIVING (nuff said)

Little Preview

We woke up basically on the side of the road and we wanted to get packed up and on the move since we were in a pretty awkward spot. There were even a couple of like 40 year old hitchhikers near us . . . so yeah it was time to go. We also had to figure out where the hell we had to go to do our skydiving. If I remember right we were scheduled to go at like 1 or something. So off in search of the internet we went. Unfortunately we didn't have much luck and it was getting a little stressful not knowing where to go. I also wanted to see if we could find a place for me to shower as I was getting a little grimy and I wanted to look good before I jumped out of a plane :).

The scenic view from our camping site

Saaby

This would be where our tent was

Don't completely recall how we found out where to go but we did (I think we went to a petrol station or something) and we had to head back up towards Abel Tasman. Off we went. We found the place with like an hour to 45 minutes until we had to check in so we decided to head up to the ocean for a bit. This was my opportunity to wash my hair and freshen up. I also took the time to call me madre and let her know I was planning to jump out of a plane at 13 000 feet in less then an hour. Surprisingly she was calmer than a clam. All I can remember is her asking me if I was nervous (which I wasn't in case you were wondering) and wishing me good luck. I love my mom :). I remember telling her if I died she could give my room to Diezel (I knew that would make his day). The time came and we headed to go check in.

My dirty pre jump bathtub. It may look mucky but just wait to you see how great my hair looked ;).

Pretty sure I took this when I was talking to Mama Schmitt

We checked in. And waited. You don't pay until after the jump (which is a very good marketing scheme on their part) and we had decided to do 13 000 ft which is the smallest jump at the place. While we waited in anticipation one of the workers (a tandum in training) came out and talked to us about the jump. Long story short he called us a pussy for doing the 13 000 foot drop and we decided to do the highest possible jump (that goes for anywhere) at 16 500. He basically told us that the free fall is to short at 13 000 and we would be so shocked from the jump that we wouldn't acclimate in the short time and be able to enjoy the fall. That would have been about a 45 second free fall. So we went in and changed our plans. They say go big or go home and Minnesota was way to far away.

We then went and put on our gear. We also found out at this time that we may be able to bring our cameras up in the plane and then take it out when the parachute was out since we didn't want to pay for a photographer.

Damn my hair looks good.

Hat

Red, white and blue.

Pre jump

So we were in our suits and waiting for the tandems to get down from their current jump. I must say those puppies were snug and rode the crotch but I was to excited to give two shits.

The tandems made it down and went in to re-up. They came back out, introduced themselves and gave us some instructions on the jump. Then we headed to the plane (can't remember my tandems name but he was the same height as me and a really nice guy). 

The plane

So we got into the plane and began heading up. I sat in the very back and my tandem sat right behind me. He then began strapping me to him and told me I would need to put on an oxygen mask when we reached 10,000 feet. It was quite a snug fit. We also had a group of three guys with us who were jumping out at 13 000 feet. They were training him in and it was his first solo jump.

Getting in.

Taking off.

Hey there! (notice the hair)

So the procedure for the jump was as follows. After D.J. jumped we would scoot to the edge of the plane where I would be hanging out over the edge and the tandem would be holding on to the side of the plane. I then had to bow my body out in a banana shape while holding onto the straps on my shoulders. He would then let go and off we would go. After a few seconds he would tap my shoulders and I would let my arms hang out. I would then have to maintain the banana shape with my body as we went.

Up and up we went. As we climbed my tandem would point out different landmarks such as mountains and coasts. It was sweet as. Then we got to 10 000 feet and the oxygen mask went on. 

Tandems can do up to 20 jumps a day.

"Above the clouds where the sounds are original"

Oxygen mask

Then we got to 13 000 feet and the three bloaks did their jump. Once they jumped it was my tandems job to close the door as we still had 3 500 feet to go. The thing was he was having difficulties closing the door and anywhere he went . . . I went. So I was basically stuck at the edge of the plane looking out the door and down to earth while he was struggling to shut the door. I will admit my adrenaline spiked a little bit at this time. 

More views

Jumping out at 13 000 ft. I must say he looked a lil nervous.

I tried to snap a picture when my tandem was trying to close the door. My face is slightly back and to the side.

The climb continued and I was getting more and more anxious to do the jump. The tandem went told me to tuck my camera away and put my goggles on. He went over some of the procedures one more time then told me to grab my straps. We were finally at 16 500 feet. D.J. was the first to go. Then my tandem started scooting over to the edge and next thing I know I had my feet out dangling from the plan. I then bowed my body out waiting for the push.

Then it happened. Down we went. That initial fall was one of the greatest feelings of my life. It was absolutely mind boggling. Soon I felt the tap on my shoulders and I let my arms loose and held them out like an eagle soaring through the sky. The wind was blasting my face and the air was quite cold. I could feel how thin the air was. My ears were popping from the pressure but I didn't give three shits. I had to yell I literally couldn't hold it in. Then I began to just enjoy the scenery. The contrast of the ocean and the golden beaches were awe inspiring. Then there was the mountains that I was actually looking down on. Apparently the tandem noticed I got a little quiet as I looked around and he gave me a little hand signal, I'm assuming he was seeing if I was still conscious. What an incredible experience. This is another moment where I am going to have to sit and expand my memory on paper if I want to capture the moment properly. 

Then came the parachute. BAM there was a sudden jerk and we were floating. It was dead silent in the air. My tandem then unstrapped some of the harness which created a small seat that I was lifted myself into and simply enjoyed the ride. Every now and then he would pull on one side of the parachute and we would spin, swirling round and round in the air. This is where I'm really pissed that my videos won't work because I did take my camera out and took some neat vids. But if you wanna see them your just gunna have to wait til I get back. I'm trying to figure out how to convert the vids so if anyone has recommendations please let me know. 

The earth was slowly getting closer and closer. When we landed I basically had to lift my legs up and hold them out in front of me and we skidded onto land on our asses. It was fricken awesome. The high I felt is indescribable. My body was absolutely revved for literally hours after we landed. I'm not kidding when I say it was one of the best feelings in my life. We then met up with the guy that got our gear for us and went back to take our shit off and pay. It was funny because I had such a high I was a bit disoriented. 

What's good

Gabe getting out of his parachute

Self Explanatory (hair got a little messy for this one)

After the jump we decided to go and visit a couple of beaches and do a little hiking to end our final day in the south island and it was a much more beautiful day then the one before. I'm not going to write much more and just show photos as I need to continue on a marine environment lab report I have due in a few days. There really isn't too much to say any ways, it was a pretty chill rest of the day.

We walked along a trail that lead to many golden beaches. It was a trail you could hike for days if you had the time.

Fantail, another beautiful native NZed bird. Was considering getting this tattooed.

Quail

Whew, this has been pretty long. But after this hike we had to leave Abel Tasman and Nelson and head back towards Picton where we had to catch a ferry in the morning. Plus we wanted to find a decent spot where we could have a fire, drink and play some cards and enjoy our final night. I'm pretty sure I couldn't stop smiling the entire day, my adrenaline was still going.

We found a good spot pretty early on our drive but we figured we could find a better spot closer to Picton. Turns out that wasn't the case so we had to over shoot Picton to find a place to camp. It wasn't a prime spot but we made light of it and had a pretty fun time the last night.

I once again will prolly come back and add to this but for now this will have to do. The next post will probably be fairly short as we leave the south island. I didn't revise this either so there is probably typos and spots that don't make sense. My bad.

Date 4/17/12 (17/4/12)

Picture I forgot to add from our hike