#7: Zip Line Park

Maya and Luca at the Park in March

A couple of months ago I was introduced to Trinity Forest Adventure Park by my sister-in-law and friend, Allyson, when we met there with our kids over Spring Break. I had never even heard of the concept but trusted Allyson as she always seems to be in the know about fun things to do.

Billed as a combination of a canopy tour, challenge course and zip line adventure, Trinity Forest consists of cargo nets, bridges, climbing features, balance beams and other features that allow guests to travel from one part of the course to another always attached through a lock-in harness system.

When we visited in March, I had lower back pain that left me as a spectator/ photographer, but it looked like so much fun that I’ve been wanting to go back ever since. So, a family trip on Mother’s Day sounded like the perfect mini-adventure!

My First Zip Line

The park features aerial courses at four levels ranging from the beginner yellow to challenging black. I opted to start with yellow as an orientation with hopes to try all four levels during the three hours we purchased. Since Maya, our eleven year old, had been through the park before, I paired up with her to learn the ropes. My husband, Rick, paired up with our seven year old, Luca, as everyone under eight must be accompanied by an adult.

The park was almost empty so we made it through the yellow course quickly with only a brief hesitation the first time I went on a zip line element. The zip lines were easy and fun, but it took a little getting used to hanging and pushing off with enough momentum to make it to the next platform. The other obstacles were fairly easy, just requiring a little balance and a conscious effort not to look down.

After yellow, one of the park workers suggested we skip green and blue and move straight to the black course. It was tempting and Maya was eager to take him up on it, but I decided baby steps might be better and convinced her we would just skip green and try the blue course. That was probably a good decision since she started feeling sick after the first element and had to be escorted off the course (not an easy feat when you’re attached to a wire about 30 feet up). Hot and maybe a little dehydrated, she eventually made it down and headed to a picnic table to rest and have some water.

Luca and Rick

Confident Maya was OK, I caught up with Luca and Rick who had just finished a green course. I was excited to advance to blue with Luca…but she decided green was too challenging and begged to move back to yellow. I was a little disappointed, but couldn’t say no. So, I got to do the beginner course AGAIN.  I was faster and more confident that time and so ready to move on afterward, but Luca was tired and ready to stop. Oh well, at least I tried and learned a little about the zip line and harness system. I’m eager to return (without kids) and tackle the black course. I won’t count that as a new 40x40 experience, but I do hope it will give me the challenge I was looking for. Plus, I hear it’s a great workout.

Experience #7 was not quite as expected, but how can I complain about an afternoon adventure with my awesome husband and kids? 33 new experiences to go…