It's another blue sky frosty day and consequently it's freezing. I'm paragliding today from Coronet Peak, one of the busy ski areas around Queenstown.
Coronet Peak is buzzing with activity and there are long queues for the ski lifts. At the top the paragliding guide asks me to follow him on what he calls the 'goat track'. I didn't bargain I'd be knee deep in snow and clambering around the side of a mountain dicing with death. He says if I slipped I'd probably be ok as the snow is soft. Good to know. What am I doing?
I'm strapped into my harness and in two large strides walk off the side of the mountain attached to the guide. Very quickly I'm soaring above the snowy peaks and the hubbub of skiers. I hardly feel I'm moving at all - just hovering in the air. The peaks are glistening brightly in the sun but within a few minutes I'm freezing. The guide asks me to smile for the camera but I can't feel my hands anymore and my brain has gone into hibernation. I'm in the air for 20-25 minutes. The views are spectacular - I can even see Lake Wakatipu in the distance - but all I can think about is hot chocolate from Patagonia's.
As we start descending the guide asks if I want to 'spiral for fun'. I'm not really sure what he's talking about but say ok. We start spinning quickly until I'm a few feet from the ground. I can't say it does a lot for me. I now realise this was a deliberate act (and not an accident) on the part of the skydiving instructor in Taupo except he didn't ask me first.
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