I have always been super scared of heights. So much so that I even dread into stepping in the balcony of my apartment which is on the 13th floor.
And I can forget about high amusement park rides and even terraces.
But earlier this year, I ended up walking on the edge of the tallest free-standing structure in the Western Hemisphere.
What made it possible? And more importantly why?
I got selected to attend a Hackathon (Product development competition) at the University of Waterloo in September'19. And I made my plans to attend that since I missed out last year as well due to my Canadian Visa taking a long time to getting processed. But this year, with a Visa in hand, I was all set to embark on first international as well as solo trip.
While this blog will focus mostly around my Living Life on The Edge adventure! I will surely post about my complete Canadian adventure which was fun filled and exciting from the very start to the last leg of racing against time almost missing my flight back to India.
Great, so back to the most exciting adventure of my life!
While searching for attractions and places to visit in Toronto or even Canada itself, one place which will be present in all the itineraries and lists will be the CN Tower. So that was bound to be one of the places I was to visit. When I looked up more deeply around it I figured the CN Tower itself had a few different attractions like the LookOut, Glass Floor, SkyPod, 360 Restaurant and Edge Walk.
Just reading about the Edge Walk excited me to the core! And that was it, I decided at the very moment that no matter what I'm going to do this.
I had a feeling that this might actually be something which helps me overcome that mental barrier which comes to me with heights.
Day of the Walk
I was traveling solo on this trip but found few more people in Toronto who were going to attend the same competition in Waterloo. I proposed doing the Edge Walk with them. But the destiny was lined up to make the introvert in me take on my demons alone.
I went to their registration and booked my slot for 4:30 PM. An Edge Walk takes around 90 minutes. They made me read a long list of instructions and policies before I signed up.
It costed me $195 CAD + taxes made it $225 CAD. Yes, the cost of walking around outside on a tiny ledge of the famous Toronto tower is expensive. However, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I was willing to take it on!
I still had two hours to kill before my edge walk. So I went around the CN tower area and explored Ripley's Aquarium, Steam Whistle Brewing and The Rec Room.
After spending some time there, I started walking slowly toward the CN Tower in Toronto to do the Edge Walk, a hands-free circumnavigation of an exterior ledge on Canada's highest building.
It's the scariest thing I've ever agreed to do, the last scary thing I tried to do was walking on a tightrope in an adventure camp and that didn't turn up well for me as well.
I reached the Edge Walk Basecamp and found out that atleast I wouldn't be going through this ordeal myself. There were two more people joining me in my group. Yu-Nah and Ye-Hoon from Korea. They were also new in Toronto joining college pursuing a degree in English.
The first thing they put me and the others into was not a jumpsuit.
Rather before proceeding with anything, we are tested for alcohol, with a breathalyser. There is a no-tolerance policy, so if you're found with alcohol in your system, you will not be able to go. The staff also spend a LOT of time talking to you, asking questions and generally assessing your mental state for both terror and drugs.
My pre-walk guide for the day was Paul who was very excited to learn that I came all the way from India to participate in a software competition as he was from IT as well.
We were put into our jumpsuits and safety harnesses and Paul answered all our questions patiently. I shared all about my fear of heights and even asked him how many people have backed out of doing it while at the top.
The answer was 61. And when I told him that I might actually end up being the 62nd. He said, that if I was mentally strong enough to come all the way till there without anyone close, then I was going to definitely pull it off without any doubt. I think his confidence in me was enough to boost my morale and confidence up.
Then we were introduced to our walk-guide who would be taking us all out on an adventure of a lifetime very soon, Abdel.
Abdel was quite a cool dude, and I owe it to him for helping me out up top and have me trust the harness with my LIFE.
We then posed for a few pictures before finally ascending to the EdgeWalk platform in a while.
We were then escorted out of the waiting area to the dedicated lift, while the staff shouted ‘Edgewalkers coming through' and everyone around claps. The entry to the lift was a VVIP experience, almost like astronauts going up the elevator on an Apollo mission.
I just kept smiling and waving. I had never been this nervous before, but yeah I never was about to do something this terrifying!
We went up in the lift, and it took about a minute to cover 116 storeys and reached the final staging area. There was another staff member here who checked our gear and harness (for the third time), then attached us to ropes which are attached to a rail. This rail runs around the outside edge of the CN Tower and is what connects you to safety.
I caught up with her later to get the pictures and have to mention, she looked somewhat similar to Scarlett Johansson!
Once we were safe and secure for the final time, Abdel stepped out onto the ledge, then invited us all out to join him. Though my two Korean friends were excited and quick to go out. I was still a bit reluctant and super nervous to go.
At that moment, I let go of whatever the hell I was thinking and just walked out and looked over Toronto.
And then tried to look down and... DAMN... brain blanked!
I will let the pictures tell the rest of the story of my stay up there.
VENI VIDI VICI.
I Came, I Saw, and I Conquered my fears and lived my life on the edge!
It was the best thing I did in my 2019 or rather in my life. I was able to take control of my vertigo - my worst fear. Walking on the Edge made me believe tremendously in myself and now I know, if I set my mind to something, have the right people to motivate me, I will overcome any mental barrier and achieve whatever goal I set out to!
Fear of something is only until you take control of it. And this control isn't something easily achieved. You have to break all the known barriers and push yourself way beyond your limits to achieve that comfort and peace once and for all!
#TravelAdventure2019
