WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2014 - A DAY OF THRILLS

Some of the events of this were set up by Tom on Tuesday when he made a phone call to the paragliding company called "Tandem Paragliding".  All the info was on the side of the van that we saw parked when we came to the valley after being on Schilthorn mountain on Easter Sunday.  In fact when we watched the people packing the equipment after a landing, we asked one of them for a business card and from it had all the contact information.  In the phone call on Tuesday Tom made arrangements for the van to pick up our group of 6 at the train station in Interlaken at a specific time on Wednesday morning.  When Tom first made the call it seemed that he was the only one interested in participating in tis activity but as he relayed the details given and shared the anticipation and excitement I began to think that I might like to make the jump, too.  As the van driver drove us from Interlaken back to the landing location in Lauterbrunnen valley, he mentioned that the "pilots" would need to determine if it was safe for each of us to make the jump.  At that valley, given the known "take off" conditions (run through snow, ice, then mud before being airborne) the pilots determined that with our individual body weights, I could make the jump, but, unfortunately, Tom couldn't.  So, I committed to the event.  My "pilot", Drew, said he would have a camera and take pictures and I was glad because there was no way I would want to be holding a camera and trying to take pictures during something so stressful.  So, I passed my camera to Sylvia, unloaded my pockets and gave everything in them to Sylvia, then kissed Sylvia, and thn Drew, and I boarded the required transportation (same as we used on Sunday) to reach the summit of Schilthorn mountain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once there we walked to the proper location for launching and as I strapped on the necessary equipment Drew explained how we would begin.  So we began running in the ice and snow and mud, On our first attempt Drew aborted the take off and we tried again.  Starting in the ice and snow that was ankle deep, followed by mud that was almost that deep, and finally we were off the ground and floating, floating...floating...  Initially,  I was so scared I basically didn't look down or out--just tried to concentrate on what Drew was telling me.  We dropped from the level of the mountain top and suddenly we were faced with a very white cliff behind us.  Drew said they referred to it as "The Wall".  Floating downward 10-15 feet away from The Wall I saw a waterfall.  Drew said that it was the largest waterfall in Switzerland and we floated directly in front of it.  I looked closely at the waterfall and remarked how beautiful it was.  Then Drew said something to the effect that he could feel me relaxing and said that I could sit back in my seat.  I did feel more relaxed for the moment, then I looked down and the valley below was so far down and everything looked so small that I remarked, "Oh my god" and became very tense again. We turned and looked again at The Wall.  Meanwhile,  Drew had on a pole that he held out away from us a camera and he was snapping pictures.   He suggested that I hold my arms out from my body (as if I was flying) and I was so afraid of falling out of the seat that at first I was reluctant to do that.  Finally, I did and again he took some pictures. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We're getting lower.

And, as we landed, Drew grabbed the chute to keep it from becoming airborne again.

 

Jim & Drew congratulate each other.  Thanks to Drew, we made it!

 

And, once again we were at the landing strip in the Lauterbrunnen Valley.  This jump (20-30 minutes) was exciting, scary, thrilling, and unforgettable.  I thought, what an accomplishment for my year 71 of my life! 

 

 I was sad that Tom, who had wanted so much to do a jump, could not do it.  I talked with Drew about Tom's situation and Drew said there was another group of tandem paragliding operators working off a mountain above Interlaken.  He said that the conditions for the take off area there were not so restrictive.  So, after we had finished with everything:  the chute, the money, the thanks, Drew provided Tom the number to call for the Interlaken group.  Tom immediately called and was able to schedule a jump for 3 p.m. today.

 

This time we didn't take the 1.25 mile hike to the town of Lauterbrunnen but asked the van driver to let us off at the Trummelbach Falls that were nearby.  Trummelbach Falls are a series of ten glacier-waterfalls inside the mountain made accessible by tunnel-lift and illuminated. The Trummelbach alone drains the mighty glacier defiles of Eiger (13,020 ft), Monch (13,474 ft), and Jungfrau (13,642 ft) carries 20,200 tons of boulder detritus per year.  Its drainage area is 15 square miles, half of it covered by snow and glaciers. The falls carry up to 5,284 gallons of water per second.  Below we walk into the tunnel of the falls.

 

 

Because these falls were basically dark and the illumination was mainly of the water the pictures are not worth posting.  They are all black holes with something white showing.  (Sorry).  We did enjoy visiting this place and seeing the really interesting cave with all this activity.  After we finished our time at the falls, we boarded a bus that would take us to the nearby train station.  From there we boarded a train taking us to Interlaken and once in Interlaken, located a large Coop grocery store that had a restaurant on the upper floor.  There we had lunch before Tom's jump.  Shortly after we had finished lunch Tom's ride appeared and he left with the driver.  We began the 10 or so blocks walk to the field where Tom was scheduled to land.

 

A few blocks from the train station the city of Interlaken looked as if it was "all decked out"  for spring.

 

And then we arrived at the field and waited.

 

These pictures are the first ones I got with my camera of Tom in the air. (I'm sure those of us with more powerful cameras were able to get many photos from the time he jumped from the mountain as they took for my jump).

Tom & pilot landed in the grass.

 

Tom said he wanted to yell "Ricola" but was told it was not a Swiss word.  So he yelled "matterhorn"!  The time was once again exciting (equal to the earlier exciting time) to discuss what he saw and how he felt.  Everyone, including me, was thrilled for him and glad he was able to make the jump!

 

 Even if it's not a Swiss word, I found a sign with it!

 

On the walk back to the train station I snapped these pictures.

 

Shop appear to not yet be open.  I would guess the busy hours for it are after dark until early morning.

And then, a beautiful church.  Wonder if it was open?

 

We returned to the chalet in Brienz, to all those suitcases that had to be packed and ready to leave early tomorrow.  A joint effort in the kitchen yielded a delicious soup and was enjoyed by all.