Stomach churning, legs tangled in jitters, I am about to take the leap off a 15-feet tall cliff. Looking down at the ferocious waters, my head swirls but before I know it, I’m in the air, plunging feet first into the sea. Seconds later I resurface, only to be swept by a feeling of natural high.
I am coasteering along the Pembrokeshire coastline of West Wales, getting a taste of the country’s wild side. Along with my group of travel partners, our wits and courage are put to the test.
What is Coasteering?
Coasteering involves scrambling around the coastline from rock to rock, navigating sea caves, clambering up to the craggy cliff tops and jumping off into the waters. Participants are given wetsuits and crash helmets and are accompanied by instructors to ensure safety. A brand new sport that pioneered in the area, coasteering is the trendiest outdoor activity in town and the Welsh coastline is said to be the place to try it.
Scaling the Pembrokeshire Coastline
Earlier that morning, we had started out from a gorgeous, quiet bay, clambering along the steep cliff surface to get to a tiny pebble beach where we would start our navigation. Our instructors from the Preseli Venture, John and Libby, guided us through the wading water, constantly watching out for the tide.
Our first element to navigate:a sea cave. The raging waters threw us around the giant cave, like a washing machine swirling its dirty laundry. We giggled and laughed like a bunch of school kids, enjoying the thrill more than anything.
Soon came the scaling and we were clambering up barnacle-studded rocks like drenched monkeys. We started out with a low cliff, belly-flopping our way into the water to make sure we were comfortable leaping off.
Higher and higher we went to plunge off from greater heights, challenging ourselves to our limits. The highest height was topped at 15 feet, where it was still safe to jump. For someone wild at heart but wimpy with heights like myself, cliff-jumping was more fun than terrifying, and more adrenaline than nerve-wrecking.
Here’s a video of me and our group jumping off a 15-foot cliff. Check out our pre-jump screams!
IMAGES VIA: Nellie Huang
