Monday, 12 December 2011

Famous Places for BASE Jumping - America

El Capitan and Half Dome, Yosemite Valley

Yosemite Valley is located in Yosemite National Park, Sierra Nevada mountains, California. It is a glacial valley and is 13km long and averages at 1.6km wide. It is surrounded by high granite peaks such as El Capitan and Half Dome. There is a Mediterranean climate in the park. This, along with the scenery attracts lots of tourists. BASE Jumping is illegal in any National Parks, and anyone caught jumping will have their gear confiscated and will have to pay a $2,000 fine.


El Capitan by Nick Strobel
El Capitan is located on the north face of Yosemite Valley. It is a 1095m high granite cliff. The El Capitan granite is relatively free from joints which is why it did not get as eroded as the rest of the valley. The face has long been a favourite for rock-climbers and is a popular and controversial place for BASE Jumpers. 




Half Dome by Sanjay Acharya
Half Dome is located on the eastern end of Yosemite Valley. It rises 1,444m above the valley floor. It is regarded as a good place to jump from as it has a ledge which extrudes from the dome known as the diving board. This allows jumpers to distance themselves from the cliff.


New River Gorge Bridge, Fayetteville, West Virginia


Bridge day is a one day festival in West Virginia where BASE Jumping is legal. On the third Saturday of every October, the bridge is closed to traffic and opened to pedestrians. More than 450 experienced BASE Jumpers jump off the bridge each year, with around 80,000 spectators looking on. 




"Bridge Day 2011" by Luke Nesler
Posted by at 21:34
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4 comments:

  1. Peter Lydon16 December 2011 at 09:49

    There's a famous rock in Norway called, I think, the Pilgram Rock or the Preachers Rock.....I wonder if it is better than El Capitan???

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jack18 December 2011 at 12:09

    Thanks for that, I'm doing another post on places in Norway anyway, and I'll be sure to include it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Unknown22 June 2016 at 19:38

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    ReplyDelete
  4. Unknown30 June 2016 at 21:32

    Dubai is truly a land of many wonders, where nothing is unattainable. This desert region boasts of some of the best ski slopes in the world, numerous man made islands, see more info

    ReplyDelete

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