Triumph over TreeUmph!

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/03/2019 (2486 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The glaring sun bore down on me in the Florida forest, making me crave the tiny patches of shady reprieve.

The stifling heat caused droplets of sweat to trickle down my face, and anytime my heart started racing too fast I’d close my eyes, take a few deep breaths, and just listen. The sounds of the songbirds and the whispering wind brought peaceful reprieve. I could hear leaves rustling above me, beside me, below me. Then I’d slowly open my eyes, realizing once again exactly where I was — harnessed high-up in the treetops. Higher than my comfort zone.

Welcome to TreeUmph! Adventure Course — a place designed to test your nerve, fitness and endurance. One of Florida’s most unique attractions, you will either love it or hate it, and most likely both. TreeUmph! features five levels of obstacles nestled among the trees, spanning 10 football fields and getting higher, harder, progressively more difficult, and consequently more frightening the further you go. Those who make it all the way to Level 5 will reach 60 feet in the air (if they dare).

The rest of us will drop out (sometimes literally) at some other point along the way.
But first, everyone starts by checking in at ground zero, where a guide will meet you, fit you for gear, gather you together with a group of strangers, and make you watch an instructional video. It’s at this point you may slowly begin to realize what you might have gotten yourself into.

Next is hands-on instruction, a practice run through the ‘demo’ course, and the full-on realization of exactly what you have gotten yourself into. It’s at this point you might choose to back out completely, not even passing go. However, if you prove to yourself that you can clip, unclip, climb up, climb down, and cable zip without too much trouble, and are not overly petrified by any of it, you’re ready for the big-time.

Making your way over to the course and falling in line, suddenly you’ll find yourself at the first level where you must climb a ladder, step onto a small wooden square, clip in (with two safety clips), and prepare to walk the first plank. It’s at this point you know there’s no turning back.

Adventurers move through the terrain at their own pace, pushing themselves as far as they can (or want to). For the next two hours I forged forward across bouncy ropes, along swingy boards, up-and-down wobbly things, through twists and turns, all while swatting away what locals call ‘love bugs’ — red and black critters that don’t bite, but do incessantly land on you. I’d breathe a huge sigh of relief each time my feet touched a sturdy platform — or even better, solid ground — gaining a little more confidence with each section conquered, each fear overcome.

Guides are out and about in the forest to encourage you should you need a little coaching or coaxing, or assist you should you get yourself into a predicament from which there is no plausible escape. Take a drop at any point, either by choice or by accident,  and the harness stops you from falling too far. It’s at this point you will simply hang there, doing the “dangle of shame” until rescue arrives.

I pushed myself mentally and physically as far as I could, fully completing Level 3 before choosing to exit on my own terms without aid of the rescue team. Regardless of where you tap-out on the adult course, all levels lead to the 650-foot Triumph Zipline, where you end the adventure by whizzing all the way back to the parking lot where you started.

For me, TreeUmph! can best be described as moments of pure bliss mixed with sequences of sheer terror. It was exhilarating and empowering to be challenged in so many ways, and pushed past my own limits.

And after it was all over, at that point, I felt pretty darn proud of myself.

RoseAnna Schick is an avid traveller who seeks inspiration wherever she goes. Email her at rascreative@yahoo.ca