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A zip line and tree-top adventure experience opened last week at Go Ape at Lums Pond State Park.
Go Ape is the first zip line treetop adventure course in a state park on the East Coast and the first course in Delaware. It is operated in partnership with the Division of Parks of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control.
The course spans seven acres and features five zip lines. Also included are two Tarzan swings and a series of rope ladders, bridges, swings and trapezes, many with views of the pond.
The course wowed those in attendance at the kick-off event last week with its over-the-water zip lines. The park is located in the Bear-Glasgow area in New Castle County.
Dan D’Agostino, USA managing director for Go Ape, said the company had been looking at Delaware and other areas for several years.
The company responded to a request for proposals and came up with a deal with the state.
Go Ape differs from the zip line attractions that have sprung up in tourist areas, D’Agostino said For one thing, navigating the course can take three hours. Those using the course can skip the more challenging features, D’Agostino said. Those signing up also have to take a 30-minute safety orientation.
The long rides have created some challenges in marketing the venture, since some people are on a tight schedule and want to take a quick ride.
At the same time, D’Agostino points to a core group of enthusiasts he describes as a “tribe” who may become requent visitors. Go Ape also appeals to mountain bikers, runners who like obstacle courses and other enthusiasts, D’Agostino says, although he is quick to add the course is geared to a variety of fitness levels.
Those in attendance at the kick-off did see the potential of using Go Ape as a site for employee events and team-building exercises.
Ken Grant, Newark, a social media specialist and marketing director, was at the kick-off event, but waited until later in the weekend to try the course.
“The entire experience is fun, challenging, and thrilling. You find yourself looking at an obstacle like swinging platforms and thinking ‘there’s no way I’ll be able to do this!’ and then you do it,” Grant says. “Each zip line is a thrill, but to finish with a 700-foot ride starting at five stories up is absolutely incredible. As exhausted as I was at the end of the course, all I could think was, ‘when do I get to do it again?’”
“We are so pleased that Delaware families have their own zip line adventures available to them at a great location like Lums Pond State Park,” says DNREC Secretary Collin O’Mara. “This is a course that allows us to ‘live life adventurously,’ and experience the park like never before, from 50 feet up in the trees, hanging by a wire.”
O’Mara is an outdoors enthusiast who reportedly has ridden zip lines in Europe.
To date, Go Ape has partnerships with park departments in Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, Rockville, Md. and Williamsburg, Va.
Under each partnership, a portion of every ticket sold goes back to the respective park department while 100 percent of the capital investment is paid for by Go Ape.
Go Ape leads park stewardship programs, develops educational signage, hosts yearly fundraisers to raise funds for the park, and provides free and discounted tickets to underserved and special needs communities.
More information, including directions can be found at www.goape.com/zip-line/delaware-lums-pond-state-park. GPS directions are: Lums Pond State Park, 1042 Howell School Road, Bear, The cost is $35 (ages 10-17) and $55 for adults. (Video by Ken Grant).
