I forgot to mention the diaper...
5/25/10
So now that some of the adrenaline rush has worn off (not much though) my thoughts are gathering and I realized that I didn't properly set the tone for the canyoning experience.
First let me start of by saying that it was freezing. So cold that I was sure that the rain would turn to snow at any minute (oh did I forget to mention that part too, it was pouring!). The guides said something about it being 14 or 17 degrees Celsius. Since I have no idea what either of those are, I can just tell you that it was freezing and felt like it could snow!
Moving on to water temp. They said it was probably 1/3 of what the air temp was. You guessed it, freezing!
So before we even left for our adventure we had to get properly attired. This was a process that took much longer than I thought it would. We had 3 wetsuits on (ever tried to put 1 on, now imagine two additional layers of that on top!). These things gave a whole new meaning to squeezing 10 pounds of sugar in a 5 pound bag! The first wet suit to go on was a full length number with no sleeves that zipped straight up the middle (under that of course is the bathing suit). Next up is the long sleeved jacked (after getting this on I started to lose sensation in my fingers!). Finally the one piece long sleeved shorts wet suit. Putting a wet suit on over your skin is bad enough, but putting it on over a layer (in some cases 2 layers) of wet suit requires some stretches and maneuvers that I didn't know I was capable of (and that's just to get the thing so it's on, now you have to pull the crotch of the outer layer wet suit up from your knees). At this point I was thinking that I should had a cocktail prior to starting this endeavor! I was also thinking, "oh sh*t, I have to pee!" (too late for restroom breaks now...and really, did I think I was going to do the "Benjo Bounce" over a traditional toilet in this get-up?!).
Once we were fully wet suited out we had to put on our neoprene socks and then the special boots and we were ready to make our way outside for the next layer of our outfit (oh you thought I was done?!) At this stage in the game, I described the sensation of the "outfit" as a really big (tight) hug, that didn't stop!
Next up is the diaper. Yup that's what they called it. It looked like one I guess (at least from the back). It was a material similar to duct tape, and about that thickness and we stepped into it like a climbing harness (cozy I know!).
Last steps were the life jacket, helmet, and gloves. My gloves conveniently had a huge gash in the meat of the left hand (I was hoping that wasn't going to happen to my actual hand!). I was now looking and walking like Randy (Ralphie's brother) from A Christmas Story. There was no way my arms were going down at my sides!
The second I hit that water, I was glad to have the 987429483 layers of wet suit on...and oh yeah the diaper did a great job helping me slip and slide down the waterfalls and rocks!
So now that some of the adrenaline rush has worn off (not much though) my thoughts are gathering and I realized that I didn't properly set the tone for the canyoning experience.
First let me start of by saying that it was freezing. So cold that I was sure that the rain would turn to snow at any minute (oh did I forget to mention that part too, it was pouring!). The guides said something about it being 14 or 17 degrees Celsius. Since I have no idea what either of those are, I can just tell you that it was freezing and felt like it could snow!
Moving on to water temp. They said it was probably 1/3 of what the air temp was. You guessed it, freezing!
So before we even left for our adventure we had to get properly attired. This was a process that took much longer than I thought it would. We had 3 wetsuits on (ever tried to put 1 on, now imagine two additional layers of that on top!). These things gave a whole new meaning to squeezing 10 pounds of sugar in a 5 pound bag! The first wet suit to go on was a full length number with no sleeves that zipped straight up the middle (under that of course is the bathing suit). Next up is the long sleeved jacked (after getting this on I started to lose sensation in my fingers!). Finally the one piece long sleeved shorts wet suit. Putting a wet suit on over your skin is bad enough, but putting it on over a layer (in some cases 2 layers) of wet suit requires some stretches and maneuvers that I didn't know I was capable of (and that's just to get the thing so it's on, now you have to pull the crotch of the outer layer wet suit up from your knees). At this point I was thinking that I should had a cocktail prior to starting this endeavor! I was also thinking, "oh sh*t, I have to pee!" (too late for restroom breaks now...and really, did I think I was going to do the "Benjo Bounce" over a traditional toilet in this get-up?!).
Once we were fully wet suited out we had to put on our neoprene socks and then the special boots and we were ready to make our way outside for the next layer of our outfit (oh you thought I was done?!) At this stage in the game, I described the sensation of the "outfit" as a really big (tight) hug, that didn't stop!
Next up is the diaper. Yup that's what they called it. It looked like one I guess (at least from the back). It was a material similar to duct tape, and about that thickness and we stepped into it like a climbing harness (cozy I know!).
Last steps were the life jacket, helmet, and gloves. My gloves conveniently had a huge gash in the meat of the left hand (I was hoping that wasn't going to happen to my actual hand!). I was now looking and walking like Randy (Ralphie's brother) from A Christmas Story. There was no way my arms were going down at my sides!
The second I hit that water, I was glad to have the 987429483 layers of wet suit on...and oh yeah the diaper did a great job helping me slip and slide down the waterfalls and rocks!
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