last weekend, I travelled to bohol together with the alfon and the berdin’s.
other than the usual popular scenic spots tour in bohol, one of the itinerary for the three-day vacation was to go to e.a.t. danao or the extreme/eco/educational adventure tour. the ecotourism concept is set-up to benefit the municipality of danao, bohol and its people. a local government unit initiated and managed facility with a huge nature park. the area used to be the base camp of the revered boholano hero, francisco dagohoy, who led the longest philippine revolutionary movement according to history.
it was one of the wish list by the nieces of jet to experience the thrilling outdoor adventures namely; suislide, caving, river tubing and the plunge to name a few. But since we only have a limited time, the girls opted to have the “suislide” while I and jet chose the “plunge” (we already have tried the suislide four years ago – still in e.a.t. danao).
suislide is basically a zip-line consisting of a pulley suspended on a cable mounted on an incline cliff. the suislide has two lines, going forth and back. its starting point is parallel to the sky ride and plunge’s height. suislide is the local version for zipline, a sky ride or a slide for life. sui-slide is coined from the word, “suis“ (the sound of the cable ride once you get to slide) and “slide”. it could also mean for some who is so much petrified with heights to be a suicidal slide. it traverses around half a kilometer from one mountain to another, taking you to less than a minute exhilarating ride.
the plunge is a canyon swing adventure attraction mounted over a 200 meter high and 300 meter wide gorge. a person would have to do a 45 meters free fall before being launched on a pendulum swing measuring to a hundred meter diameter. cable has a maximum working load of 5 tons. now longer (70 meters) more fear some.
for me, the “plunge” is the best “fear factor” experience amongst the adventures offered. the plunge was even more nerve-racking compared to the suislide. you have to plunge or literally drop to an open air helpless (but the harness is there). you fall with too much speed making you hold on to your breath involuntarily. before jumping in to the bridge with my feet up, like bungee jumping (aka spiderman), i convinced myself that this is just easy for me. i have tried the roller coasters in universal studios singapore, where you are reversed a couple of times in mid-air as if you fall together with the other riders which was exhilarating. but the plunge is way different – you are just on your own.
others chose not to try these types of adventures because they are afraid. what if? what if? what if something would happen along the way? i respect their choices. to each is own. well, i also have my own fears, but i chose to face them. this is one way for me to overcome my fear of any kind – to overcome stumbling blocks so that when the real situation comes, you are prepared.
this experience made appreciate my life more. its actually more than liberating. its bliss!
George St. 