Jun 13, 2015 6 min read

ALLISON PARK – I’ve never been fond of heights. Scratch that. I flat out hate heights.

So, as I reached the top of a rope ladder some 30-plus feet off the ground for the first set of obstacles at the Go Ape site at North Park, I began to question what in the world I am doing this far from terra firma.

Looking at the tiny platform I was expected to step onto at the top of the ladder, I took two steps back down the ladder. This wasn’t for me.

Then, I looked down to the ground and saw two 10-year-old boys in our group patiently waiting for me to get up there so they could start. I decided I’d better just get up there and get it over with.

So, began two hours of harrowing challenges that pushed the limits of sensibility while also offering some good, clean fun.

Go Ape is a tree-top adventure that began in England in 2001. The adventure course company has 28 courses in England, Scotland and Wales, and made the jump across the pond in 2010 with a course at Rock Creek Regional Park in Rockville, Md.

The course at North Park, one of 11 in the United States, is in its third year of operation and offers a number of challenges to test the most fanatical of fitness experts.

Of course, it can be as difficult or as easy as participants wish. There are five different courses from which participants can choose, at least one of which isn’t quite as high off the ground as the others. They range from 20 to 42 feet off the ground and include 33 obstacles, zip lines and Tarzan swings.

Johnny Weissmuller I am not.

In some cases, participants can choose to attempt a crossing of an easier obstacle rather than tackle some of the more difficult ones.

On this day, however, my partner, Observer-Reporter assistant night editor Mike Kovak, and I try to tackle the entire course.

Kovak is fitted with a GoPro camera to record our progress, while I carry other tools of the trade, a notebook and recording device.

After our instructor, Hillary, gives us a quick how-to on securing our harness at each step, we’re on our way.

First through the course, Kovak attacks the obstacles with reckless abandon. On the other hand, I am going for accuracy, not speed. No sense in needlessly testing to see if the safety harness works.

My recorder stays in my pocket. I won’t be interviewing anyone up here, though I’m doing a lot of talking to myself. Most of the words I’m muttering, however, aren’t fit for public consumption.

My notebook? That wasn’t a problem either. It fell to the ground somewhere on the first obstacle and was taken back to the main office by another friendly instructor. Better it falling than me. Sacrifices have to be made.

It’s not until about halfway through the challenging course that I forget that I’m three stories off the ground and focus solely on the task at hand.

And those tasks sometimes take some thought on how to accomplish.

For example, on one challenge, there are several three-foot long boards suspended in the air that you must walk across. Sounds simple, right? Trouble is, they aren’t connected to each other, so when you reach the end of one board, gravity pulls you away from the next one and you find yourself doing a split 35 feet in the air as the boards move in opposite directions.

I’m sure it looked really good from the ground.

Another obstacle simply had waist-high rings hanging in the air. Do you try to hand-walk across them or put your feet into them and use the guide line for balance?

And to get back to the ground at the end of each set of obstacles, a zip line awaits.

This is where I run into problems.

Hillary tells us at the beginning of the day how to handle the zip lines. If you’re coming in feet first, run into the landing. If not, just slide into the mulch-filled pits at the end.

On the first zip line, which is the shortest one, I’m coming in feet first – until the final 10 feet when my body turns. Do I try to run into it or slide?

I do both and neither.

My right leg pays the price, getting turned underneath me. The pain I feel as I navigate the final four obstacle groups is later diagnosed as a sprained ligament and slight fibula fracture.

I battle through the rest of the day regardless and enjoy overcoming my aversion to heights, at least for a few hours. And I get in a nice workout along the way as I cling to each tree and obstacle as if somebody was going to try to shake me out of my treetop perch.

It’s a fun day for the family and, if you choose, take your fishing pole along. North Park Lake is right next door.

If you’d like to schedule a Go Ape adventure of your own, you can do so online at http://goape.com/zip-line/pennsylvania-north-park. Or call 1-800-971-8271.

Outdoors Editor F. Dale Lolley can be reached dlolley@observer-reporter.com.