The thought of zip lining through a St. Lucian Rain Forest just two days before our wedding frightened me. Months prior, I had even made up my mind not to participate just in case something awful happened like getting scratched in the face with a branch or breaking my elbow before our “big day”. But about two weeks before we left for St. Lucia, I thought to myself, “How many times will I get the opportunity to zip line through a rain forest? In fact, how many times will I even get to visit a rain forest?”. I faced my silly fears and geared up for a great adventure! In the process, I managed to talk around twenty of our family and friends to join us (including a couple of people with fear of heights).
Me Zip Lining!
It was a thrilling, unforgettable experience! People in our group who I totally expected to back out at the last minute rose to the challenge. Sure, the ladies had to wear very unattractive hair nets under our helmets but it was a sacrifice we were willing to make! We went down several zip lines (around 10 or so), swung like Tarzan from one tree to another, and repelled down about 75 feet from the top of a tree!
Cory swinging like Tarzan!
Cory repelling down the tree!
I actually did experience one minor injury- rope burn on the back of my arm. It happened as a rope whipped up during my tree repel. Although you can see it in a few of our wedding pictures, it’s totally not a big deal! It actually reminds me of the awesome time we had in the Rain Forest! Other cool things we discovered in the Rain Forest…
A Wax Apple-grows like crazy in the Caribbean per our tour guide! It looked like a mini apple/pear hybrid. Of course, I tasted it!
It was very juicy and refreshing with a slightly sour taste. We also spotted a Cashew tree!
According to our tour guide, the cashew tree produces both a fruit (the cashew apple) and a nut (the cashew). In its raw form, the cashew nut is not edible due to a toxin called urushiol which is the same chemical in poison ivy. If ingested, it can cause skin rashes. The cashews we find in stores are steamed and/or roasted to release the harmful toxin. The cashew changes color during the processing. Cashews have high levels of essential minerals—iron, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, copper, and manganese. One ounce contains 160 calories, 12 g fat, (mostly healthy fats). 5 g protein, and 1 g fiber and is one of Cory’s favorite snacks!
What was the last adventurous thing you did?
Have you ever tried an “exotic” fruit?
Kasey
Wow, how incredible! Zip lining sounds amazing! I have always wanted to do that.
I tried lycee fruit a while back and I wasn’t too much of a fan.
I’ve always wanted to zip line! How fun! The last adventurous thing I did was dune buggying on our honeymoon…it was insane!
Kristen- I had to look up lychee fruit! I had never heard of it.
Nicole- Dune buggying sounds like so much fun!
I had so much fun zip lining. The rain forest was awesome!!!! It felt good when it rained a little! I didn’t get to try the wax apple because I told my husband to hold mine for a second and he ate it! He liked them. It was a great experience!
Wow, that looks like SO.MUCH.FUN! I’m so glad you went for the zip lining.