Ziplining down rocky Ras Al Khaimah
The longest zipline in the world is 2.831 kilometres long, in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE. Photo: Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority
The first time you face the void is when your insides register the enormity of what you're about to do. This is a literal void I'm talking about. I was all harnessed and zipped up, hands down, feet buckled up, GoPro fixed firmly on to the helmet and contact lenses secure behind a wraparound pair of glasses. Underneath was a 1,680 metre drop. Where my eyes met the ground were only dry-desert rocks. Rugged, jutting out, not a green break in sight. This is also about the time when all my atheism left in between the heavy breaths, as I prayed to be delivered; safe, on the other side.
1,680. That number had branded itself on to my psyche, as my mind tried to figure exactly what it meant. Okay, so, 1,680 metres would mean 168 stories. That's about two Burj Khalifas, stacked one on top of another. Or five Eiffel Towers, vertically placed one on another.
My frantic calculations were interrupted when the walkie-talkie set in my instructor's hands blared out, "Incoming in 5, check."
There were more checks. The pulley was tightened. The harness was tightened. The backpack was checked. My hands were lifted, one after the other, and I followed the instructions to keep them at the back, holding on to the rope that these people had provided. The next few fractions of a second were all a blur. Soon, a voice whispered into my ears, "Enjoy!"
Takeoff.
I was ziplining down the world's longest zipline somewhere on top of the Jebel Jais mountain peak in Ras Al Khaimah, in the UAE. There were a lot of numbers to reckon with:
- 1,680 metre height
- 2.831-kilometre zipline
- 150-160 kmph speed
- 1,09,085 people had attempted this before me
- and the most important one: 0 accidents
There was some solace in the fact that out of those 1 lakh+ attempts, none had gone awry. Sure, people have returned from the edge, but alive.
The Jais Adventure Park in Ras Al Khaimah did make us sign an indemnity waiver like all other extreme adventure sports folk do, but they were confident in what they were doing. I was pretty unsure about trying the zipline. It's not my usual idea of a vacation activity. A glass of cocktail and a book and shopping and walking around tiny European towns is where I belong. But there was a lot of convincing. There was also the fact that I perhaps would never do it if not now.
So, one May morning last week, we decided to seize the day, que sera sera. We left our resort, the sprawling Hilton Ras Al Khaimah, to try our luck on the world's longest zipline. Till this point, that phrase was just another phrase to roll your tongue around and let fall off. Our black-paned Land Cruiser climbed the serpentine roads up the Hajar mountains. I took in the arid landscape, trying to draw parallels with the mountains back home in Ladakh.
The Hajar mountains translate to 'Rocky Mountains' or 'Stone Mountains' and Hajar epitomises that name to the T. This range lies in the Arabian Peninsula, shared between Oman and the UAE. The highest point in the UAE was called Jebel Jais, and it was in Ras Al Khaimah, the emirate that I was travelling through. The highest peak of the Hajar mountains is in Oman, Jebel Shams.
Jebel Jais is 1,911 metres above sea level. Our destination was a point that said 1,680 metres.
With every turn in the road, as the residual desert bushes made way for rock and more rock, a pair of wires appeared out of nowhere, slicing the clear blue sky. "Is that the zipline?!" I exclaimed, and it was met with affirmation. A dance of disbelief took hold of my insides. I was going to go down THAT?! What? How? Whose brilliant idea was this? Why can't I fly the normal way, you know, in an airplane?
Anyway.
As the car finally pulled in through the gates of the Jais Adventure Park, we got off to meet our fate. We registered ourselves, took the GoPros, and made our way to the first safety briefing. There was a video, there were instructors who made you feel at home while they were harnessing you. Later, a friend from back home joked, "I like how they have already put you in body bags."
Well, jokes apart, once we were in our superman suits, hair tied in low ponytails and covered with hairnets and stuffed in a helmet, we stepped into another car. This one was a ride to the top.
Some more turns on that road, and it began becoming increasingly clear that there was no escape. I had to go through with it. Of course, I could back out at any moment, but did I want to? A faint 'no'.
So, off we went.
Once on the launch platform, there was another round of safety briefings. "There is only one rule when you're on the zipline: you have to keep your hands firmly tucked behind your back, come what may." The thought of seeing your arms ripped off by the wind when you're hitting speeds of 160 kmph was enough to do the rest. We took our photos, handed over our phones to our saner friends who decided to stay on ground, and stepped up on the platform.
There it was. The void.
The next five seconds were perhaps the most excruciating of waits I have ever been through. The five seconds seemed like five years as safety check after safety check was ticked off. I knew I had to battle those five seconds. I mumbled a "I'm a little nervous" to the safety instructor, who hit back with, "Yeah yeah, everyone is nervous." Okay then.
Once I took off, it all made sense. Why 'insane' people 'risked their life' for a few minutes of adrenaline. There are no thoughts in your mind in those two minutes of flight. There is the sky that you are zipping through. There are the rocks below. There simply is nothing else. You can feel every pore of your body responding to the speed, aligning with it, beautifully; a waltz that you don't want to end. Not yet.
Then there is a hitch. You can see more wires and ropes and another platform. Your first flight is over. The two minutes are up. It is time to get out of the harness and face reality once again.
After the world's longest zipline, was the world's shortest. From this platform that was suspended in the middle of nothingness to get to land, you had to get into another harness. This was a zipline you had to sit and complete. And this one was over in the blink of an eye.
My feet on firm ground felt funnily wobbly. We made our way back to the Adventure Park. There, at 1,484 metres is a restaurant called 1484 By Puro, an ode to the height it sits at. The reward was laid out.
There were cocktails to be downed, a lavish spread of the freshest of salads and wasabi prawns and pizza to be devoured, and the view to inhale.
As we made our way back from Jebel Jais, a wayward bird appeared somewhere in the sky. I was there. Just moments ago.
The prices for the zipline depends on the month, day, and weather. All prices here: Visit Jebel Jais.
1 AED = Rs 22.51 (as on May 19)
(You can also go on a 'Sky Tour' where you take six ziplines from mountain to mountain.)