Our group consisted of four fit persons and me. When I asked the most enthusiastic guy what canyoning exactly means, he told me briefly: “It’s climbing down waterfalls with a rope.” Perfect, an uncoordinated girl abseiling down waterfalls. [break]I could see this going wrong already. But when all three expert canyoning guides showed up and gave us the gear, I felt more at ease. With our helmets and wetsuits on, we were ready to go on the Panglang canyon and conquer the seven waterfalls.
The guides led us to the first waterfall, located fifteen minutes walk from the resort. During the walk, we passed a little typical village, where old Nepali people were sitting outside and laughing at these funny people in wetsuits. We stopped at a certain point and I couldn’t help but smile when I saw the tiniest waterfall in the world. Canyoning didn’t seem so wild all of a sudden. How could we even climb down this little puddle of water? One of the guides broke my happy bubble when he sat down and used the waterfall as if it was a slide. “After coming down this little slide, we arrive at our first canyon,” he said, with a smile on his face while mine was fading.
The first waterfall was a bit of a warm-up, because two guides were helping us climbing down. They buckled us up, and with the help of these experts and the professional gear, I felt totally safe. The first steps down the waterfall were quite scary, because the guides kept on saying that we should put our body facing the waterfall. It’s not the easiest thing to climb down, floating horizontally in the air while you’re holding nothing but a rope. But the guides yelled directions, and when I slipped, they told me how to get back up. Thanks to them, I survived my first canyon.
The second one was somewhat different. We had to climb down ourselves. The guides would still tell us what to do, but we had to carry our own weight now. Plus this waterfall gave us a nice cold shower when we came to the center. On my own slow tempo and completely focused, I climbed down without falling or slipping. I started to like this sport more and more. After every canyon, we had to wait a little while for the others to come down before we could move on to the next waterfall. Those minutes I spent enjoying the magnificent view of the beautiful nature around us, and of course to encourage the other team members. The girl who was behind me slipped on the wet rocks while climbing down, but the guides told her exactly what to do to get back up so she could come down safely.
Every waterfall was a little bit higher than the last one, and we topped it off with a 45-meter waterfall as our final canyon. I had an amazing experience, and besides from sore hands and shaking legs, I managed to do seven canyons and stay in one piece.
Canyoning is not only a good workout for your body, you also have to use your head and stay focused. The talented guides follow you with every step and lead you when something is about to go wrong. As pioneers of canyoning in Nepal, The Last Resort and their crew know what they are doing, and although canyoning is all about having fun, they will always put your safety first. If you want to taste more of this adventurous sport, you can decide to do a three-day canyoning trip.
The first day you do the Panglang Canyon, where you climb down seven waterfalls and end with the 45-meter long run. The Kanglang Canyon on the second day is more advanced; you do eight abseils and end with a 60-meter waterfall. The Bhulkute Canyon on the third day includes nine abseils, hiking and swimming. The Panglang precipice is always possible, no matter what season. But the Kanglang and Bhulkute cliffs depend on the water level.
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