Gorge walking, canyoning and gyhll scrambling are roughly the same thing, you find an atmospheric gorge with deep pools to jump, slides and huge waterfalls, you combine it with willing adventurers, some specialist equipment and experienced guides.... and there you have it, an amazing experience! We are blessed to be within a short hop of one of UK’s most amazing gorges, Ash Gill. Heres an account to feed your imagination, Just over the border in Cumbria you arrive at small lay-by next to a bridge, with no clue as to what to expect! It all becomes clear, as you cross the bridge all kitted up you can look over the edge and see a huge waterfall dropping below you, the river takes its course downstream, surrounded by precipitous cliffs and the evidence off mans struggle to extract metal from the earth! At this point, excitement and nerves begin to rear their head, you see one of the guides scramble over a wall and disappear and this fuels the intrigue. You descend a winding path, the grouping buzzing with nervous excitement, you come round a corner and you see a huge waterfall, cascading over a cliff and onto the jagged rocks discarded at the bottom. As you traverse the gorge toward the waterfall you can see a cave has been hewn out of the rock face behind the falling water, you see one of your guides waiting for you, last time you saw him he was disappearing over a wall. As you get closer to the falling torrent you can see a rope dangling down, you skirt around the waterfall into the cave behind, the noise is deafening and the spray is soaking you. One of the guides starts to tell us what we are about to do, you concentrate on their words.. “you’re going to come up one at a time, we are going to clip you onto this rope, get it nice and tight and then you’re going to jump out into the void!” There is a tangible silence, then a series of looks and nervous laughs give way to excitement and fear, as you step up for your go you feel the spray on your face, you step onto the spot and you are held from behind while one of the guides clips you on, the rope is tight, in fact you’re on your tiptoes! The guide steps away and begins a countdown... 3....2....1....go! You swing forward and are immediately hit by the torrent of water, you’re soaked instantly! As you pass through the cascade and emerge into a void, a huge space below your feet. Then gravity catches you and swings you back through the falls, you’re soaked again. The guides have done this many times; they manage to swing you into the heaviest flow every time! You swing in and out a few times before one of the guides catches you and wrestles you back onto your feet... The adrenaline is pumping around your body, the water was cold but you don’t feel it. You watch your mates step up for their goes, and then the guide turns and says... “That was the introduction, the best is yet to come”.................
The gorge walk that we offer at the Kingsway is second to none! A perfect activity for Stag and Hen doo’s, Birthday Parties or just a group of friends wanting to have an incredible experience.
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AuthorHi everyone, Archives
August 2016
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