Ziplining, only for the physically fit?

[Annefran]

Hi,

 

I've heard so much about zipling and was thinking of trying it on our next cruise next March with my daughter. She'll be 15 and I am sure won't have a problem with doing it. I, on the hand, have osteoarthritis in my left hip which presents some issues with doing everyday things (putting on pantyhose, tying my shoes etc.). Don't get me wrong I'm in pretty good shape and strong but may not have the flexibility I used to have before the arthritis. My question is how physically fit or demanding is ziplining? What does it entail?

 

Any info is greatly apreciated! :)

[leavnofingerprints]

I am far from being physically fit and did this last year in Costa Rica. It was without question one of the most fun excursions I've ever done. Don't miss it! The only tricky part I found was holding the line behind my head with my right hand. We were provided with special thick leather gloves to be used for braking. I never did quite get that part down and had to be stopped one time by their emergency brake. :o

 

LNF

[Travelgrrl]

I did this in Puerta Vallarta and while it was extremely fun, it was kind of physically demanding. You do have to climb up trails/steps and also those metal kind of twisty staircases quite a bit at the beginning, and several times during the adventure. (In order to get you high enough to 'zip' down.)

 

Also, you needed to be able to tuck your body into kind of a fetal position while zipping - knees close to your chest, etc. We didn't have the kind of brakes that 'leavenofingerprints' described, instead there was a person on the next platform who used these kind of bumper things to slow us down and stop us. But you had to be able to hop off the 'landing site' with some alacrity after the attendant had unhooked you.

 

There were some people who didn't maintain the 'tucked' position, and in a worse case scenario, they would get 'stuck' in the middle of the track and someone would have to scooch out there and rescue them. Scary and embarassing!

 

That being said, it was a blast. I would do it again in a New York minute, and I'm not exactly Jane Fonda. More like Jane Austen.

[JanSun]

I am in my mid 60's and overweight. I wanted to do this for years and finally got my chance in Costa Rica. It was everything I had hope for and I felt safe. I would say there are two demanding physical skills. One is that you need to be able to stand on one leg and hike the other side of your body up a couple of inches so that they can attach the clip to your body hardness and the second is to be able to lift your legs out straight (not perfectly but higher than just hanging down) while zipping so not to hit tree limbs. If you are small and lite weight that may not even be a problem. At 220 pounds I was hanging low and on several occasions brushed against the tips of tree limbs. No damage to myself only just some clip leaves left in the forest. Do wear shoes and not sandals.

 

Al

[zantedeschia]

I've heard so much about zipling and was thinking of trying it on our next cruise next March with my daughter. She'll be 15 and I am sure won't have a problem with doing it. I, on the hand, have osteoarthritis in my left hip which presents some issues with doing everyday things (putting on pantyhose, tying my shoes etc.). Don't get me wrong I'm in pretty good shape and strong but may not have the flexibility I used to have before the arthritis. My question is how physically fit or demanding is ziplining? What does it entail?

 

Which port? The zipline in Ocho Rios has a dirt trail with many, many crude and uneven steps on approximately a 10 to 15 minute walk downhill. If you have problems with mobility, you probably won't be able to do it.

[Annefran]

Which port? The zipline in Ocho Rios has a dirt trail with many, many crude and uneven steps on approximately a 10 to 15 minute walk downhill. If you have problems with mobility, you probably won't be able to do it.

 

Not sure yet, we are currently booked on Explorer and will stop at 7 different island (Barbardos, Antigua, St Maarten, St Thomas, St Kitts) just to name a few. Or we may go on Liberty which stops at Labardee. I will tell you that I did try to climb the Dunn Falls and got off half way up. I didn't have the strength in my left leg to pull myself up and fell. So from all the postings, I may not be able to do this either :rolleyes:

[brooklintee]

I've done 2 zips - Costa Rica & Antigua. The zips themselves don't require any physical strength - make sure you can climb stairs though, as you will need to climb up a few sets of wooden stairs in order to get to the higher lines. Note in Antigua...I would recommend you do only the ziplines and not the challenge course. It is very physically demanding.

 

Enjoy!

[BrendaVP23]

I recently did this in Puerto Vallarta and there were people of all shapes and sizes and ages and no one had a problem doing it at all.

 

The end, however, had about a 10 minute walk mostly uphill/up steps

[shadowspark]

I'm not the fittest either and I was able to complete our zip-line journey in Belize in 2005. I would agree with other posters here that the toughest part was climbing the steep steps and stairs to get up trees.

 

It's fun and make sure when you get gloves you get both with padding. My gloves padding fell off so it was tricky putting the break on the grapply thingy connected to the line. The added risk to burn my hand made it a little more exciting though since it forced me to go fast down the line.

 

Some tips:

 

If you bring a disposable camera, make sure you have a flash. When you're in the jungle, the rainforest eliminates a lot of natural light so pictures do not develop very well unless there's additional light added.

 

If you bring a regular digital camera, make sure you have a water proof housing and/or case. There were puddles and if you happen to do a 2 in 1 (we did a Cave Tubing *AND* Zip Line) you won't be worried about your camera getting damaged.

 

Keep yourself hydrated as climbing up those stairs and hiking back can be tiring.

[hcw80]

I did the Tree Farm Zip line adventure in St. Martaan a few weeks ago. Lots of fun, but it was taxing in some parts. You did need balance and the fact that I am petite made some of the stations easy and some difficult. I had a hard time with one bridge where the leg span between the braces was large and the swinging out from one brace to the next was tricker for me than my husband.

 

However, that being said, I saw some children around age 10 finishing and some women of a certain age having a great time. (I was one of them).

[erniesband]

I did this at 50, with my 20 year old son. I'm a very short woman (under 5'), and exercise, but I'm certainly not an athlete. The St. Maarten course is a challenge course, with a lot of elements, not just zip lines, and it's a ball. I didn't find it particularly taxing (in fact, I was ready to do it again when I reached the end), but there were a couple of elements when my height (or more appropriately, lack of it :D ) added a capital C to challenge. I'd love to talk my husband into doing it next January, but they do warn that people with back problems avoid it, and I'd hate for the 2nd day of the cruise to be the last he's comfortable!

 

Jodi

[Annefran]

Wow,thanks for your insights and information. I'll have to really think about whether I will be able to actually do it. Keep the comments coming.

[Fisical1]

There are different types of Zip lining so check out which one the ship provides. We used a private tour and went to a Zip lining place that was not crowed plus very new in Costa Rica. It did not require you to do the braking!, but if you did not make it to the end you did have to turn around and pull yourself. You need to be comfortable in somewhat fetal position (legs up towards chest) Its the best thing we ever done! Also you were given one place to quit if it was not for you.

[aoinmd]

Is there a zipline in Labadee? What's the minimum age?