A different sort of après ski - James Cove, Champery, Switzerland.
Monday January 25, 2010 - Email this article to a friend

Some of you will be familiar with the adventure forests that are springing up in the woods in some ski resorts with zip, wires, pulleys, rope bridges and the like.

They are very popular in the summer.

In the Swiss resort of Champery, in the Portes du Soleil, they now open them up in the winter and at night.

The adventure was on offer in the resort this week so it seemed an opportunity not to pass up, as it's only available for just a handful of times in the winter months when conditions and numbers allow.

Into the voidSo, last weekend, instead of a more traditional après ski, I found myself half way along a 200m zip wire and 60m up in the air. It was night time and pitch black as the battery in my head torch had just given out. I was cold, my heart was beating just that bit faster with the adrenalin flowing through my body and the words of the instructor were running through my head.

"Occasionally someone gets stuck and we have to winch them down and they are usually pretty scared but it doesn't happen very often."

But, despite all that I was having the time of my life.

In theory it is all quite easy. You put on a safety harness and you have two ropes with karabiners on the end and these are secured to a safety wire at all times that runs alongside the obstacles.  These include ropes bridges, net walkways, steep wooden ladders and the aforementioned zip wires. 

To make it more interesting it is all done high up in the trees.

I have done it several times in the summer, see the video below of some kids going over a gorge in Saas-Fee last summer on a zip wire.

Wires in winterIt's a bit scary in places as you launch yourself into the void, but a good challenge too.

But at night, in the snow, it was an altogether different experience as it made the technique harder with gloves on and there was a bit of ice and snow to contend with in places.  And of course it was dark, but that did at least mean you couldn't see how far down it was to the ground.

The adventure forest in Champery consists of 60 obstacles and 5 zips wires. It has taken 3 years to build and has used 7km of wires.

"It has been very carefully built and obviously meets all the relevant health and safety requirements," says the man who runs it Fred Soustre. "It may look a bit dangerous but it is not and of course the little bit of danger is part of the excitement and experience."

There have, so far, been no injuries.

Now it may not to be to everyone's taste but if you want something a little bit different to do and have a sense of adventure then give it a go.

It's certainly something out of the ordinary.

For more information see www.champery-aventure.ch

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