Editors' Picks

Kawarau Bungee

Arrow River Bridges Ride, Arrow Junction, New Zealand

In 1986, New Zealander A J Hackett first took a daring leap off a bridge, tethered only by a super-stretchy elastic cord strapped around his ankles. The technology may have been fine-tuned somewhat, but essentially, daredevil bungee jumpers are still using the exact same method innovated by Hackett. (“Bungee" is Kiwi slang for an elastic strap). The place where he opened the world’s first commercialized bungee platform is Kawarau Bridge, near Queenstown.

Originally, Hackett had a one-month lease on the bridge (and his workers were paid a commission per jumper), as general consensus agreed that as soon as he killed a tourist, the whole operation would be shut down. With the subsequent success, the operation kept growing and growing – today, Hackett runs three other bungee sites around Queenstown and some 30,000 jumpers leap from Kawarau (and bungee is actually the safest of Queenstown’s adrenaline-infused offerings, including paragliding and jet boating).

Written by Simone Girner

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