Parasailing, jet skiing, and surfing are some of the water sports in Portugal. A very spontaneous adventure.
I read an article about good extreme sports, and booked this entire trip around one of the entries, the month before going. In fact, I got to the checkout on two different travels, and couldn’t choose one, so booked both – even though I couldn’t afford either.
As usual, everything was left ’til the last minute, and who knew you couldn’t book transfers the day before?! So I literally arrived not knowing how I’d make the 31km from the airport to the hotel. Oops! Thankfully one operator had a space.
Parasailing
I’ve had parasailing cancelled before due to too much wind, and this week lots of other watersports have been postponed because of the choppiness. Of all extreme sports, parasailing should have been, because let me tell you it was windy.
The ocean was so so wavy and the boat so so tiny. We must have got some serious air time between waves, before thumping back down and getting soaked. I had to sit on the back of the boat in my (always uncomfortable) harness and red life jacket, and after a moment’s hesitation got launched off the hull into the air. The wind must have dropped because my legs touched the surface before the red parachute took us higher and higher into the air.
Back in the boat, I threw up all over the side — definitely the second most unpleasant experience of my life, behind climbing that darn mountain.
Water Touch Bungee Jump
Okay, so here’s the whole reason I travelled to Portugal. I read a Red Bull article about one of the world’s most extreme bungee jumps. Here’s what happens: before going up the 131-foot crane, they weigh you and adjust the rope, so that when you jump, as you stretch to the bottom, your head dips below the surface of the water, before springing back out. It’s one of only five water touch bungees in the world, and the only one set in a marina in the ocean.
Yes, it was terrifying the first time, which is why I fell too flat to reach the ocean. So I went again. The second time I knew I wasn’t going to die, and it was awesome! After doing these extreme sports and recording at glorious 60fps, I went surfing the following day and lost my GoPro in the ocean. Yep, a wave just swept it right off my head (thankfully the insurance paid enough to buy another one). Anyway, enjoy the video I paid £10 for.
Update: This bungee jump has either moved away from Portugal or closed now.
The following day, the GoPro was swept out to sea whilst surfing, so that’s all for this trip folks!