But Wait—There's More
Find other great ideas in these related stories:
- The Last Wild Place ›
- 11 Hard-to-Get-to Hotels ›
- Last-Minute Escapes: Beach Vacations ›
- New Zealand's Otherworldly Landscapes ›
- Adventures That Give Back ›
- World's Sexiest Fitness Retreats ›
- How to Vacation Like Indiana Jones ›
- Comeback Destinations for Experienced Travelers ›
- Choose Your Own Adventure ›
- Controversial Tourist Attractions ›
- Do-it-Yourself Olympic Winter Sports ›
BASE jumping, Bridge Day, New River Gorge, Fayetteville, West Virginia
Why watch: Skydiving's rebellious offspring goes mainstream. Kind of…
BASE stands for Building, Antenna, Span, and Earth—which basically means thrill-seekers jumping off very high places and, after a few seconds holding their nerve (creating high levels of endorphins in the process), deploying a parachute. The BASE scene remains largely underground and mostly illegal, at least as far as leaping off man-made structures is concerned. But Bridge Day, held at the 876-foot-high New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia, represents a rare opportunity for hundreds of BASE jumpers from around the world to express themselves without breaking into a skyscraper at dawn and escaping post-jump in a getaway vehicle. It also gives us earthbound mortals a rare opportunity to see BASE enthusiasts letting it rip. If watching the action with several thousand other nervous, awestruck spectators (from safe vantage points up on the bridge) isn't exciting enough, there's also the option of doing a tandem BASE jump. Who on earth came up with that idea?
Bridge Day, October 15, 2011
RSS Feeds