Our favorite family adventure is ziplining! In fact, I planned an entire trip around ziplining down the side of a mountain in New Hampshire during the fall. The first time I took my children they were 11 and 15. It was terrifying. There was only one line and when you stepped off the platform you had to freefall for about 10 feet before the rope was taut enough for you to begin zipping. After 5 seconds that initial silent, terrifying scream turned into the loudest screams we have ever uttered. Of course, we loved it and wanted to do it again. We have been ziplining in four states (Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Colorado and Hawaii), only the first adventure had a freefall. Everything else feels tame by comparison.
We chose Kohala Zipline because they had the most lines, nine, for us to zip on. You will be zipping through trees and over the Halawa Gulch. You start your adventure at the Kohala Zipline building located in Hawi (located almost at the northernmost tip of the island). There you will watch a safety video, get fitted for your equipment, rent a GoPro (if you desire) and board their large off road vehicle that will bring you to the ziplining course. They also offer raincoats, they do not cancel for rain unless it is lightning, very windy, or a complete downpour. I was the only one who accepted, as it was very cloudy, and it also served as a windbreaker and I knew that I would be chilly riding in the open air vehicle that we were about to board. We decided to rent the GoPro (they recommend not bringing anything with you that may fall out of your pockets when you are zipping, including phones, cameras and keys). All of the pictures of our experience are freeze framed shots from the GoPro. The guides will also take group photos for you which are available for purchase after your trip. They are pricey, if you buy a few of them it is probably cheaper to rent the GoPro instead. Be careful getting on and off the truck! It is very easy to bump your head on the bars overhead. We successfully, and with out injury, boarded the truck for the 15 minute ride to the course. It does go ‘off road’ and gets bumpy the closer you get to the course.
Ziplining at Kohala Zipline
We were very happy that our ziplining group only contained our family. I am sure if we had been there during the peak season, we would have had a larger group, which slows things down. In the photo above, you can see the circular platform that rings the trees. You land and take off from these. Vito is a natural and has no fear of heights…unlike his sister.
Ziplining at Kohala Zipline
This is the first course we have ever been on where you have to hand brake. I did not know this until we were watching the safety video describing how to do it. It is not clear on their website that you will be handbraking. They describe it as “controlling your speed”. What is handbraking, you ask. You literally put your hand on the cable, BEHIND your gear, press down on the cable and slow yourself down. It does not hurt, but you will feel the heat through the gloves. I was a nervous wreck after they talked about losing your fingers if you put your hand IN FRONT of your gear, and of course, I was the only one who did just that. I did not lose a finger, as I was going too slow at the time to chop it off, but I did manage to get the glove all tangled up in the gear and had to yank it out, spin myself around, and pull myself (hand over hand) on the cable until I made it back to the platform. On all the other courses we have been on, either you naturally come to a stop or there were wood blocks on the cable about 10 feet from the platform that ‘catch you’ and slow you down, while the guide gets stuck catching you, if the block hasn’t slowed you enough, and helping you land on the platform. We were told if we braked too early we would stop on the cable and would have to pull ourselves to the next platform. Of course, if you were stuck, they would come out and help you, but if you were able, you were expected to do it yourself. My daughter, loves ziplining, but also has a fear of heights, so it takes her a few zips to get comfortable. Adding handbraking to the mix made that a little more difficult. Her first zip she stopped herself about 30 feet from the platform. We were all laughing as she was dangling and shouted out, “I think I know how to brake!” Pulling yourself to the platform actually is not difficult at all. You just swivel yourself backwards, grab the cable, and star hauling yourself in. Kira and I were the only ones who stopped ourselves short a few times. The guide at the end does signal you when you should begin to brake, but sometimes you feel like you are going too fast to stop in time….you really aren’t….but if you are like my daughter and I that won’t matter and you will want to brake early.
Sky bridge at Kohala Zipline
There are also 5 suspension bridges that you cross on the course. They are a bit wiggly, but you are attached to an overhead cable the whole time. It is impossible to fall. At each platform one of the guides will cross or zip first. Then each person crosses or zips at a time. While you are waiting you are hooked to a cable attached to the tree. The guides will tell you about the history of the island, the flora and fauna and will recommend the best places to eat, get smoothies and snacks in the area. Their recommendations were amazing. I am sorry that I do not recall the name of the location where they told us to get smoothies, but they were AMAZING! Just do yourself a favor, and go where they suggest!
Siblings Racing on the Double Line at Kohala Zipline
Another thing we loved about this course was that it ends in a double zipline, which means you can race your siblings or spouse to the final platform. We did purchase a picture of our kids at the beginning of this zipline, looking back at us and waving. It is one of my all time favorite pictures. In fact, it is up on my wall, in a frame that is very hard to mount (which is why I didn’t take it down, scan it, and post it here).
Rappelling to the Ground at Kohala Zipline
The final excitement for the day involved rappelling from the final platform down to the ground. I did know about this ahead of time, it is clearly stated on the website. I have to say, I was dreading it. I knew if I showed any hesitation that it would make my daughter even more nervous than she all ready was about getting back on the ground, so I quickly volunteered to go first saying how fun this would be. As the guide was giving me directions on how to rappel, you would think he was telling me how to attain world peace, as I was listening so intently to every word he uttered. You will never believe what you have to do. You stand backwards on the edge of the platform, with your feet half way off. Then you slowly lean yourself back while keeping your feet on the platform (basically so you don’t run in to it). Once your feet are even with your waist, you are supposed to release your feet and lower yourself down to the ground. I don’t remember exactly what we even did, there was some type of hand brake that you kept squeezing and releasing. Well, I made it as far as the picture above shows successfully. Then I was hesitant about releasing my feet. The guide kept telling me to let my feet fall, but I just kept sinking my butt and ‘holding on’ with my feet. I finally released my feet when they were level with my shoulders. Not because I wanted to, even though everyone was laughing at me, but because I wasn’t flexible enough to keep them up there any longer. I then took about 8 minutes to very, very safely lower myself to the ground. I could hear the guide telling my family, “I’ve never seen anyone go so slow!” He kept encouraging me to “Go a little faster!” I yelled something back about “The turtle and the hare…slow and steady wins the race…” He responded with, “Your not even moving right now!” I eventually made it to the ground and felt a great sense of accomplishment. This was something none of us had ever tried before, and although I didn’t excel, I survived to tell the tale!
Rappelling to the Ground at Kohala Zipline
That is me on the ground, watching my son, who volunteered to go next. I think he was on the ground in under two minutes, followed by his sister, who also came in way under the 8 minute mark. My husband appeared to not want to let go of the platform either, but was not flexible enough to have a choice. When he got down he said, “I understand now why you weren’t letting go.” It’s weird, but it gives you a sense of security having your feet on the platform, even though it clearly isn’t holding you up. At this point, you get back in the truck which brings you back to the company’s building. You return your gear, view and select any photos you might be interested in and are merrily on your way. They do have a gift shop and bathroom in the building.
All in all, we loved it! We would absolutely do it again. The course was great, the guides were fabulous, the location was beautiful. If you have never ziplined before and are really nervous, you may want to first try a course where you do not have to brake yourself. That would be my only hesitation in recommending it for everyone.
Should you choose this adventure, it lasts approximately 2 1/2 – 3 hours. You must be at least 8 years old and weigh between 70 & 270 pounds. You are required to be able to walk two short hikes, with all your gear (which weighs about 20 pounds, I think). The terrain is uneven in places, has some stairs and has a bit of an incline. You will be given snacks and water half way through. There is also an outhouse at the rest stop. The snacks are nothing to get excited about. I believe our choices were fruit snacks or granola bars.
On our way back to the hotel, we decided to take a more remote and scenic drive back to the hotel. But first we stopped at Holy Smokes BBQ. Their food is simply PHENOMENAL! As always, wishing you happy travels and fantastic adventures in this thing called life.
(All pictures are available as Fine Art Prints or Digital Downloads for purchase at full resolution through Alamy. If you see something you like, click on the link. If you are unable to find it, use the Contact Me page and I will make sure the image is available.)
Interested in reading about more of our adventures?
Flying High ~ An Aerial View of Kilauea
Stargazing Above the Clouds at Mauna Kea
Pin for Later!
Ziplining in Hawaii
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