Leap of Faith at Great Canadian Bungee

One Small Step, One Giant Leap: Bungee Jumping!

My brother is a few years younger than me, but his birthday falls on the day before mine. This lead to a lot of mischief when we were younger, but now it’s kind of cool to celebrate together. So when he told me he wanted to bring his family up from North Carolina to Ottawa for our annual get together at the time of our birthdays, I knew I had to come up with something special, especially since he was turning thirty!

We’ve always been pretty wild, specifically when we get together and even though we’ve had a lot of adventures, when I casually (and jokingly) mentioned that we should go bungee jumping to commemorate him turning thirty, I honestly didn’t expect him to go for it.  But go for it he did, and since he was down to plummet to the earth, I couldn’t back out (I mean he is my little brother).

For the next month we talked back and forth, usually trying to get the other to renege, but neither of us would cave in (even though I was a bit scared), and the plans were finalized to take the leap at Great Canadian Bungee on the day of his birthday.

The day for our Bungee Jump arrived

As the day of his birthday arrived and we drove out to scenic Wakefield, Quebec from Ottawa. My brother and I kept pointing at buildings,  estimating if they were close to 200ft; because that is how high we were jumping! The Great Canadian Bungee boasts the highest jump in North America and as my brother and I pulled into Morrison’s Quarry, nothing could prepare us for what was before us; 200ft is a bigger jump than either of us had imagined. We sure picked a serious jump for our first bungee jumping experience.

Surrounded by the picturesque rolling Gatineau hills, the quarry – which has an awesome spring-fed lagoon-  is a magnificent place. It reminded me of my childhood home in the Appalachian mountains of Tennessee and I would have certainly enjoyed the view more had I not been steeling myself to a dive into the middle of it all!

As we checked in, I was reassured by the professionalism and attention to detail from the staff. Once my brother and I took the 200ft hike up to the top, the surroundings took my breath away.  The view was so beautiful and removed from the city’s bustle, I couldn’t help but pause to take it in. At that point though, I felt more scared than ever to jump off since I was taking in the magnitude of everything.

Pushing past the fear, my brother and I strapped into the gear – he was the first to jump. As I watched him stand on the ledge and take off,  I reflected on how great it is to have this guy in my life for thirty years. It’s such a big brother thing to make you do something heart throbbing and terrifying on your birthday, isn’t it? 

Making The Jump At Great Canadian Bungee

When my turn came to jump I cleared my mind and took in the view again, I didn’t think too much about the jump and there was no way I could back out now (especially since my kid brother already did it), but standing on the ledge I certainly had a moment of doubt which passed over me like a wave. I was ready.

I stepped into the air and plummeted to the ground faster than anything I had ever experienced. It is hard to describe what I felt, bungee jumping was not like anything I had ever done before (and I have done some pretty scary things), it was equal portions of terror and awesomeness. And the jump isn’t singular – the rebound causes you to continue to bounce up and down (even exceeding the height of other popular bungee sites!) between the sky and the lagoon beneath, which elongates those duelling feelings of terror and awesomeness! 

Afterthoughts on making the highest jump of my life

Driving away from Morrison’s quarry and The Great Canadian Bungee, I thought to myself, okay that was awesome now that it is done, but never again. Yet funny enough, now a month later,  both my brother and I are getting the impulse to jump again!

If you live in the area or are planning a visit the Outaouais region and want to try something totally adrenaline pumping, I absolutely recommend a jump at Great Canadian Bungee. When it comes to adventurous activities, all the criteria was met: safety, professionalism, experience, and environment.

You can learn more about the experiences available at Great Canadian Bungee on youtube and connect with them on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram. 

This piece is in collaboration with Great Canadian Bungee and Tourisme Outaouais. All opinions are personal.

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David Smith

Contributor at The Best of this Life

Hey, I'm David! Communications Coordinator at Propagate, an E-Commerce Partner Firm, and Project Manager and Contributor at bestofthislife.com. I see every day as an opportunity to make good stuff happen and take on new adventures. I'm a self-proclaimed 'cool dad' to two wild things who make life exciting and fun. MBA Graduate, Navy Veteran, and Total Nerd. Let's Connect!

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