Paragliding, also known as running off a cliff with a myriad of different materials combined into one, was one wild ride for the six most brave members of the EGL crew. It all began once upon an early time when only the dogs were barking aimlessly and the alpacas were gnawing at the grass. The time was roughly 5:30 in the morning when the gang first regrouped for the time of their lives. Breakfast at 6:00 was the next order of business. Without question, a few of us pondered the idea of this being our last breakfast we would ever experience, but alas continue your reading - no bad news will be reported in this story.
Once the food was scarfed down and the nerves were beginning to fire up, the most courageous group of men and women within EGL embarked on an epic journey via the one and only van, which we picked up at the Universidad Andina. Leaving the bounds of the main streets of Cusco, the driver, aptly-named Edwin, lead us through the endlessly congested avenues of the big city. Along the way, many seamingly-random members of the Peruvian society jumped in for a ride. It turns out these civilians were the men and women with whome we'd be floating through the skies.
With a van full of thirteen human bodies, we commenced to scaling the winding roads, taking us to our final destination upon a hill scattered with several radio towers. The ride up was both smooth and rough, jumping from paved roads to solely dirt tracks many times. The van's transmission took a toll, but the six of us with our new amigos settled in at the top of the mountain. Here's where the fun starts.
After peaking over the edge of the pseudo-mountain, snapping a few photo gems, and being debriefed by our leading extreme sports guide Patrick, we were ready to experience a once-in-a-lifetime event. Trevor was up first for apparently no reason in particular - maybe he was the bravest of the six(?). Strapped in his gear with Elvis, another extreme sports enthusiast and expert, the two men sprinted off the cliff, parachute beginning to rise. The breeze was light, but the wind gusts were present. Almost immediately, Elvis and Trevor feverishly elevated to the empty skies. Handling the wind turbulence like a pro, Elvis guided Trevor on a twenty-five minute ride of pure bliss. Trevor was fortunate enough to video nearly all of the flight, obviously to share the experience with his loved ones. Oddly enough, the landing was up there on the list of "most exhilirating happenings of paragliding." Why, you ask? Well, the landing was right in the middle of a field full of lambs, sheep, goats, and horses. Don't you fear, though, because not one animal was injured in the making of the paragliding experience.
After seeing Trevor perfectly dismount from the cliff, Ryan decided to make things a little more interesting with her takeoff. After running for a little bit, she opted to faceplant right before the edge of the cliff, doing everything in her power to not do what the instructors advised. Although her run off the cliff wasn't much of a run at all, her guide fixed the problema, and they were then off to explore the skies like no one could have expected. Up for roughly twenty minutes also, Ryan overcame her fear of heights and enjoyed every bit of the glide.
After failing to jump off the cliff after Trevor, Jamie regrouped himself and went after Ryan instead. There were no issues with his takeoff, and his flight was definitely a good one. He managed to some pictures of his day in the skies. With a camera of his caliber, it was a bold move to risk losing his expensive equipment.
On deck was the one and only Kelly. After running like Usain Bolt off of the cliff, Kelly and his instructor immediately soared the skies and rised to heights no other paraglider reached that day. The expected height of flight was 1,000 meters - Kelly easily reached 2,000 meters. Consequently, his flight was the longest, standing at roughly 30 minutes. Without a doubt, Kelly had the best ride of the evening.
Next, Leif took flight. After leaving the cliffside, Leif immediately muttered the word "alright." It was an adequate word; however, "thrilling" or "I'm going to die" may have been more suitable. Throughout his glide through the breezy Peruvian air, Leif could be heard letting out shrieks of excitement and enjoyment. He landed in the fields full of farm animals with a priceless smile glazed on his beautiful face since he was able to get on video his meeting with the hallowed farmland.
The last member of Team Paragliding to explore the skies was Andrew. After taking several videos of others running off the cliff, it was his turn to paraglide. Without an issue, he dismounted the hill with his instructor tightly strapped to his back. Although he didn't reach the altitude of that of Kelly, Andrew soared for a good twenty minutes, weaving back and forth through the empty sky. He was rather nervous before his ride, but after there was no ounce of nerves in the man's body.
Alas, all six members took their turns floating through the air, and all six members enjoyed every ounce of it. Many a times, Team Paragliding noted that rafting was the worse choice of the two options. Whether there is any truth in that idea is up to the reader to decide.
The ride back to homebase was a long one, involving dropping off several of the Peruvian passengers and forking over some cash as expected. Finally, the group reached the Santa Maria house all in one piece, brimming with an amazing story to tell everyone. In all honesty, it was an utterly mind-blowing experience for each member, and each member can only wait to tell his or her grandchildren about it. I mean, let's be honest, how many people can say that they've been paragliding in Peru? Not many.
Once the food was scarfed down and the nerves were beginning to fire up, the most courageous group of men and women within EGL embarked on an epic journey via the one and only van, which we picked up at the Universidad Andina. Leaving the bounds of the main streets of Cusco, the driver, aptly-named Edwin, lead us through the endlessly congested avenues of the big city. Along the way, many seamingly-random members of the Peruvian society jumped in for a ride. It turns out these civilians were the men and women with whome we'd be floating through the skies.
With a van full of thirteen human bodies, we commenced to scaling the winding roads, taking us to our final destination upon a hill scattered with several radio towers. The ride up was both smooth and rough, jumping from paved roads to solely dirt tracks many times. The van's transmission took a toll, but the six of us with our new amigos settled in at the top of the mountain. Here's where the fun starts.
After peaking over the edge of the pseudo-mountain, snapping a few photo gems, and being debriefed by our leading extreme sports guide Patrick, we were ready to experience a once-in-a-lifetime event. Trevor was up first for apparently no reason in particular - maybe he was the bravest of the six(?). Strapped in his gear with Elvis, another extreme sports enthusiast and expert, the two men sprinted off the cliff, parachute beginning to rise. The breeze was light, but the wind gusts were present. Almost immediately, Elvis and Trevor feverishly elevated to the empty skies. Handling the wind turbulence like a pro, Elvis guided Trevor on a twenty-five minute ride of pure bliss. Trevor was fortunate enough to video nearly all of the flight, obviously to share the experience with his loved ones. Oddly enough, the landing was up there on the list of "most exhilirating happenings of paragliding." Why, you ask? Well, the landing was right in the middle of a field full of lambs, sheep, goats, and horses. Don't you fear, though, because not one animal was injured in the making of the paragliding experience.
After seeing Trevor perfectly dismount from the cliff, Ryan decided to make things a little more interesting with her takeoff. After running for a little bit, she opted to faceplant right before the edge of the cliff, doing everything in her power to not do what the instructors advised. Although her run off the cliff wasn't much of a run at all, her guide fixed the problema, and they were then off to explore the skies like no one could have expected. Up for roughly twenty minutes also, Ryan overcame her fear of heights and enjoyed every bit of the glide.
After failing to jump off the cliff after Trevor, Jamie regrouped himself and went after Ryan instead. There were no issues with his takeoff, and his flight was definitely a good one. He managed to some pictures of his day in the skies. With a camera of his caliber, it was a bold move to risk losing his expensive equipment.
On deck was the one and only Kelly. After running like Usain Bolt off of the cliff, Kelly and his instructor immediately soared the skies and rised to heights no other paraglider reached that day. The expected height of flight was 1,000 meters - Kelly easily reached 2,000 meters. Consequently, his flight was the longest, standing at roughly 30 minutes. Without a doubt, Kelly had the best ride of the evening.
Next, Leif took flight. After leaving the cliffside, Leif immediately muttered the word "alright." It was an adequate word; however, "thrilling" or "I'm going to die" may have been more suitable. Throughout his glide through the breezy Peruvian air, Leif could be heard letting out shrieks of excitement and enjoyment. He landed in the fields full of farm animals with a priceless smile glazed on his beautiful face since he was able to get on video his meeting with the hallowed farmland.
The last member of Team Paragliding to explore the skies was Andrew. After taking several videos of others running off the cliff, it was his turn to paraglide. Without an issue, he dismounted the hill with his instructor tightly strapped to his back. Although he didn't reach the altitude of that of Kelly, Andrew soared for a good twenty minutes, weaving back and forth through the empty sky. He was rather nervous before his ride, but after there was no ounce of nerves in the man's body.
Alas, all six members took their turns floating through the air, and all six members enjoyed every ounce of it. Many a times, Team Paragliding noted that rafting was the worse choice of the two options. Whether there is any truth in that idea is up to the reader to decide.
The ride back to homebase was a long one, involving dropping off several of the Peruvian passengers and forking over some cash as expected. Finally, the group reached the Santa Maria house all in one piece, brimming with an amazing story to tell everyone. In all honesty, it was an utterly mind-blowing experience for each member, and each member can only wait to tell his or her grandchildren about it. I mean, let's be honest, how many people can say that they've been paragliding in Peru? Not many.
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