Canyon Grimsel

We just took this trip to a new level...

Interlaken is a huge extreme sports haven for the adrenaline seeking junkies. Since before we left we discussed canyoning and couldn't be more happy with our decision. Yesterday we finally got a taste what what his area is famous for.

We arrived at Outdoor Interlaken at 1pm and were greeted by our guides, Ian and D who were Scottish and Irish, respectively. We were in a group of 7(perfect small group). It was us, two girls from Philly and a father/daughter duo from Toronto.

After getting fitted for shoes, wet suits, life jackets and helmets we loaded the van and headed for the 50min drive to Canyon Grimsel. The weather had been cloudy all day and on the ride up we were warned by our guides that they were monitorin the rain and that they would decide when we get to the top. Because we were going in the canyon, a narrow window of space, we could get very lucky or unlucky depending on where the rain was headed.

Honestly, I was never scared but the butterflies did hit me a little when we were pulled over on the side of the road to put on our gear and I was fitting with my harness. "this is actually happening," I said to myself. That feeling quickly went away watching all of us getting undressed to our boxers then putting on these tight wet suits and jackets. Very funny.

After getting dressed we drove up the mountain about another 10 minutes. We pulled over on the side of the road and headed the rest of the way on foot. As we walked I caught one of the guides looking back to the other who was at the car checking the radar. I saw a big thumbs up and was delighted our adventure was officially on. Now I thought we were headed into the woods but all of a sudden we stopped and the guide began clipping himself into the side rails of the street. We were about to belay right off the side of the road.

I watched Steve and Greg go down with ease, channeled my limited climbing experience and said to myself, "let's do this." It all came back to me in seconds and I began taking jumps, freed my hands from the rope and enjoyed the ride. That is, until the big jump.

We headed down the canyon, which was FREEZING. Because of the wet suit, the water would rush in from your wrists or neck area and flow down your body like an intense chill. As long as you kept those parts out of the water, you really didn't notice it too much. First was a relatively small jump to get our feet's wet(pun intended). The jump was easy and after getting that rush of cold water to the face I gave an excited yell and double pound on my helmet which was the sign that you were okay.

The next was the big jump where the butterflies came back a little. It was a 30ft jump where you had to climb up to a small(enough space to barely fit two feet) platform. Before we climbed up, the guide had warned us,"If you climb up there, you are going to jump. So decide now." I said to myself, I was not going on this trip and not doing the big jump. I got up there and was trying not to think. The guide told me where to jump, I gave two thumbs up and he yelled 3,2,1 GO! And I jumped. No thinking at all. I fell only hearing the sound of the waterfall next me and BAM, hit he water, got that freezing rush of water to my face and popped out with a huge yell and an adrenaline packed powerful two fist pumps to my helmet to signal I was okay. Let ms tell you something, I was more than okay. I was fantastic. What a rush.

The rest of the trip was filled with slides, jumps and a zip line jump with walks through the canyon in between. It was a beautiful spot. I literally felt like I was in an episode of Man vs Wild following Bear Grills teach how to maneuver yourself through a canyon.

The whole group had a blast but the three of us in particular really the center of attention when it came to he entertainment. We were just being our goofy selves screaming, cheering and dancing. It was very nice to hear when everyone was leaving, the father in the group thanked us for making it so much fun.

The rest of the day we were on a canyon high, revelaing in what we had just done. It was so much fun we all bought the videos of it. So you will all be able to see us act like fools jumping off waterfalls.

We are headed to Geneva now. See you in a week in a half!

Dave