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Stepping into the void

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Post by tocyvi Thu Dec 19, 2013 8:36 pm

Anyone who has been up the Aiguille du Midi (height: 3842m) will know what a fantastic sight it is. You don't, of course, need to slog up there; you simply jump into 2 cable cars and let them do the work. But now, there is an added attraction; you can step into a glass box and be suspended above a 1000m fall, with only a sheet of glass between you and an entrance into the Guinness Book of Records:

http://www.theguardian.com/travel/gallery/2013/dec/19/glass-skywalk-french-alps-pictures-chamonix

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Post by Inkflo Fri Dec 20, 2013 12:06 pm

Wouldn't have a problem with stepping into that, it's the cable car I can't do!
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Post by tocyvi Fri Dec 20, 2013 12:37 pm

Hi Inkflo. I'm intrigued by the fact that you could do one and not the other, but these things are not necessarily a matter of reason, are they? I've been to the Aiguille du Midi and I didn't have a problem with the cable car but I did suffer from mild altitude sickness.
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Post by Tony H Fri Dec 20, 2013 1:16 pm

Couldn't do that  affraid  I used to fly hot air balloons many years ago... no problem with being in a small wicker basket at several thousand feet but put me on a roof of a normal house and I freeze and my legs go wobbly.

No rhyme or reason to our fears
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Post by Le-Dolly Fri Dec 20, 2013 3:53 pm

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http://www.pink-electrique.fr

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Post by Tony H Fri Dec 20, 2013 4:58 pm

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Post by tocyvi Fri Dec 20, 2013 5:07 pm

Thanks for posting, Le Dolly. I think the Beeb needs to check its facts about the situation, however:

"At 1000m above sea level"

Trip Advisor has some additional information about the chair lift journey to the top:

"Do NOT take this ride if you suffer from vertigo or agoraphobia.  Many people also have issues with altitude sickness...you are lifted from 3000 feet above sea level to over 12,000 feet above sea level -very, very quickly (20 minutes).  Almost ALL persons will feel light-headed once arriving at the top (due to lower atmospheric oxygen levels at that altitude).  There are several staircases up at the top; while walking up steps some folks feel a bit dizzy.  Once at the top, it takes anywhere between 20-40 minutes to acclimate to the (3842 m) 12,605-foot altitude.  People with heart conditions take note!

The views from up top, especially on a clear day, are unquestionably BREATHTAKING.  Remember, you are lifted nearly two miles above the village of  Chamonix, so you will almost feel as if you are in an airplane when looking down from the observatory.  There are many places where the rocky, sheer cliffs drop down hundreds of feet below you.  Quite a few people are visibly affected by this.  You walk across a small, steel bridge that's hundreds of feet above the ground above a precipice.  Also, the final 150 meters, the cable angles up at a very steep rake.  The cable car is lifted nearly vertically (75° angle) during this pitch and a few folks were somewhat apprehensive."
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Post by tocyvi Fri Dec 20, 2013 5:12 pm


The last photo is brilliant.
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Post by simmo Sat Dec 21, 2013 2:01 pm

Hi folks
Hights no problem, Although Anything off the ground over 300mtrs i  like to carry a chute. Caused a bit of a flap when i flew from Cyprus to Israel on a civil flight to join the IDF freefall parachute team for a bit of fun. The Airline staff did not like my cabin baggage,one PC Chute and a reserve Chute. It seemed to worry the other passangers for some reason.
Simmo at 560mtrs in the high Correze (with my feet firmly on the ground).

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Post by Inkflo Sat Dec 21, 2013 3:05 pm

tocyvi wrote:Hi Inkflo. I'm intrigued by the fact that you could do one and not the other, but these things are not necessarily a matter of reason, are they? I've been to the Aiguille du Midi and I didn't have a problem with the cable car but I did suffer from mild altitude sickness.
I don't have a problem with the height, went to the very top of the CN tower with no worries at all and stood on the glass floor looking down. It's being suspended in mid air that I can't take!
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Post by tocyvi Sat Dec 21, 2013 4:57 pm

Inkflo wrote:It's being suspended in mid air that I can't take!

I don't have a problem with being suspended in mid-air; being in mid-air and not being suspended, however.....
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Post by Inkflo Sat Dec 21, 2013 5:31 pm

tocyvi wrote:
Inkflo wrote:It's being suspended in mid air that I can't take!

I don't have a problem with being suspended in mid-air; being in mid-air and not being suspended, however.....
exactly, I rest my case!
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