Bungee Jumping In Rishikesh

“Start moving slowly to the edge, don’t look down, don’t look down, just see straight, straight…”

“Stop now!”

“Jump in 3… 2… 1…” (I did not jump)

“Don’t look down, see straight and jump in 3… 2… 1…” (I did not jump)

18 hours before the jump, we were celebrating and hugging each other for completing one of the toughest River Rafting in India. While we were coming back to the hotel, I said to my friends, “Today is the day to remember. But, tomorrow will be more fun when we do the Bungee Jump”. All of a sudden, out of 5, 3 of our friends decided not to come, leaving me and Akshay in head-scratching. We both tried a lot to convince them in a chicken and egg situation, but nothing worked. When all was said and done, I ended up going with only Akshay. From what I understood, “Bungee Jumping is not for everyone!”.

7:15 in the morning, Akshay and I caught the colorful minibus from the Jumpin Heights office which was right next to our hotel. There were 10 people on the bus, almost everyone was a first-timer. It was one and a half-hour of a journey following the Ganga river from the streets of Rishikesh to the Garhwal mountains. For an instant, I forgot about Bungee Jumping and lost in that virgin territory.

I was almost hungry when we entered the bungee center from the parking lot. We walked down a staircase that led us to the reception area, locker cabinet, video showroom, and cafe. They made us sit in front of a large TV which was basically a 20 minutes show about Jumpin Heights, instructions, and safety precautions. It wasn’t that interesting. After that show, the staff at the reception asked us to fill out a few forms asking for some general details, a health questionnaire, and sign a mandatory waiver form. Then they asked us to empty our pockets, essentially anything that we could lose while jumping.

We both were in the first batch of the day. Heading towards the bridge, I saw a few people jumping from our batch and felt a little anxious. Making a face of “No Big Deal”, we sat in the waiting area.

“I’ll go first”, Akshay said

“Why? Is it because of fear or excitement?”, I asked.

“It’s not both. I just can’t see you jump first”, he replied.

I agreed because there was no time for an argument. He went and jumped like it was a piece of cake. He did it without any second thought, outstretching his arms in the air, making me feel like a cat on a hot tin roof.

It was my turn. Before I talk about my experience, let me introduce myself. I am someone who is never scared of heights, who never stepped back from any adventure, climbed the toughest mountains, diving depths, yet I got scared to do the bungee jump.

I stepped forward, my weight was written on my hand with a thick pen, so the bungee instructors began to tie the rope according to that. While tying, instructors started small talks: “Is it your first time?” “Where are you from?” “What’s your profession?” so and so. I was answering everything like we were sitting in a coffee shop. In essence, they said, “Start moving slowly to the edge and don’t look down”. I started walking like a helpless penguin. My heart was racing, the turbulent feeling in my stomach, and my legs stopped moving. The instructor already said “JUMP” 2 times and I didn’t jump. For the third time, he came near to me and said, “Don’t think anything, just look straight, take a deep breath and jump as you do in a swimming pool”.

For the last time, “Jump in 3… 2…” and I jumped.

Gravity!

Freefall!

Mini heart attack!

Died and came back to life!

Swinging and Bouncing!

World is Upside-down!

83 meters of a jump, just flew in seconds. It’s a combination of mixed emotions, fear, and pleasure. When I made it to land, I ran all over the place. Despite all of this, I did it, I did it and I did it.

The photo story:

Rishikesh is the hub of adventure sports and there is no doubt about it. You will find River Ganga flowing at its fast pace and surrounded by Garhwal Himalayas, making the river rafting and bungee jumping a fun-filled yet the most thrilling experience of a lifetime.

I always wanted to do something truly epic to remember our trip. I'm happy that I chose bungee jumping.