On Sunday we went to the "Meža kaķis" adventure park, i.e., "The Forest Cat".
The team is assembled
The gist of the entertainment in the park is as follows. Steel and rope cables are stretched between the trees, with various obstacles attached to them like nets, bungee swings, rope-suspended steps, and tightropes you have to walk across while playing the part of a circus performer. Platforms are built on the trees, which you reach after finishing an obstacle. In total, there are four trails in the park, differing in difficulty level — green, blue, red, and black. On the green trail, all obstacles are very simple and are located at a height of 2-3 meters. But by the black one, the fun turns into almost a SWAT training ground, suspended at a height of 15 meters. And like nutjobs, we went up there with our own money, hehe. This kind of entertainment costs $17 for 3 hours, but if you linger, no one's going to kick you out. The price supposedly even includes health insurance.
A place for kids and cowards
It all starts with the issuing of the harness, which consists of three connected straps — two around the legs and one around the torso. Attached to the straps are two carabiner clips and one pulley block for ziplining down the cables. On top of that, they give you gloves dipped in colored rubber so visitors don't scrape their hands bloody. Despite the rubber, by the end of the visit, the gloves turn into rags, which logically explains why you don't have to return them.
The training area
Getting the aforementioned gear can drag on for quite a while due to a hefty line (weekend, duh). After you get the green light to proceed, the instructor shows you how to use the equipment properly. The rules are simple and there are only a few of them, but I still didn't get one of them anyway because they were explaining in Latvian. However, I was quickly corrected.
Ready to go
The rules are as follows: 1) Only attach the safety carabiner to the red cable or the gold ring. 2) One of the carabiners must always be attached. You finish one obstacle — you unclip one carabiner from your belt, and clip it to the safety cable on the platform. Then you unclip the second carabiner from the safety cable of the previous obstacle and clip it to the safety cable of the next one. This way, you're always hooked up, and the worst that can happen to you is a sprain or a bruise. 3) The pulley block for riding the cable should only be attached to the gold cable, which is specifically meant for this. (This point isn't always followed, but more on that later). 4) There should be only 1 person on an obstacle at a time, and two on the platform around the tree. It must be said that all the safety cables are made of steel and look like they could easily withstand several tons, which is good, because under dynamic load (i.e. the acrobat's carcass taking a tumble), the force can multiply by 10.
The start of the green trail
I should mention that I weigh 110 kg at a height of 178 cm, and in general, my physical condition is far from ideal. Therefore, I was a bit wary of showing off acrobatic miracles, and I decided to first assess how hard the trails were and which ones I shouldn't bother with. However, it later turned out that no one asked me about that — my friends automatically assumed I'd come running after them like an athlete. So I ran, where else could I go. But anyway, first things first. In "The Forest Cat" park, I was grateful for my tiny camera for the very first time — you simply couldn't take any other kind up there. I did have to whip it out and hide it at machine-gun speed, but those are acceptable costs. What really bummed me out, though, was the quality of the photos. Not for the first time, however.
A toy obstacle
The first trail is the green one, even a 7-year-old kid could pass it, that's how simple everything is there. Anyway, look at the photos. You feel like you're taking a stroll on it, plus you're full of energy at the start.
Alexey is more ready than ever to tackle the hardships
Walking like it's paved asphalt
Toy obstacles behind us, the real ones ahead
The second trail — blue — is a lot more interesting, but I went on it with no hesitation, since the green one was way too easy.
A funny little bridge, but you can't cross it without your hands
Ooh, it's not so low down there
First-person view
Basketball players can do it without hands
This is the Cat's Hill where the park is located
Ooh, there's an abyss ahead
Conquerors of the blue trail. Alexey's determination has strengthened even more.
After the blue trail, you feel a slight tinge of tension and a bit of a thrill from the height. Yet without a shred of doubt or hesitation, we made a dash for the red trail. But we got shut down quickly because it was totally packed and there was a line for about 20 minutes. Anyway, it was for the best — a break before the red trail was actually quite handy, since it features a couple of genuinely strenuous attractions, at least for yours truly
This is how the safety lanyard is tied to the carabiner. What knot it is — I won't say for now.
Valerych is always gallant with the ladies — a true knight
Sent a lady flying — and is happy about it
Oh, crap!
In Natasha's eyes — all-consuming perseverance
Delicately testing the waters
Descending by rolling down the cable is a sheer pleasure
Especially when you get a push
And there's absolutely nothing to be afraid of here
One of the toughest obstacles on the red trail
A man standing on a tightrope, relaxing. At a height of 10 meters.
After finishing the red trail, you don't really want to go anywhere or do anything. However, the black trail is still ahead — its color evokes an association that accurately reflects its purpose. That maniac Lyokha dragged me up there anyway, for which I owe him a big thank you, because now I can almost honestly write that I've been on all four. Yet on the black trail, I exceeded the limits of my capabilities, and ended up falling so badly I couldn't climb back up. Thanks to my friends, they helped me out. There are almost no photos from the black trail — I had other things to worry about.
The black trail is for SWAT. It shows. And here I was rolling along the safety cable.
I tackled the remaining obstacles using a clever method invented by Natasha — you attach the pulley block to the safety cable and roll across it like on a zipline.
Have you signed up for DOSAAF?
So thrilling that he even stuck his tongue out
The splits
The last of the serious challenges on the black trail
15 meters high, whichever way you look at it
At the end of the black trail at a terrifying height is a super long cable for a pulley descent. In fact, even that feels like a pleasant and easy ride after some of the black trail's particularly twisted obstacles. I mean, you just hook on and ride, you'll land in a soft net and on a foam mattress anyway. After finishing the black trail, you find yourself at the very bottom of "Kaķu kalns", that is, the Cat's Hill, on which all this madness is situated. At its foot flows the famous Gauja River, but you're in no mood for nature's beauties — you have to climb back up the hill. After all the bravely endured trials, they tell you: don't relax, rookie, you still have to trudge all the way back up the stairs. After three hours of solid physical exertion, this feels rather ironic and pretty much like the toughest challenge of all. And we even managed to go have a picnic on the grass near the Sigulda caves. Then we explored the caves themselves, covered in "Vasya was here" carvings dating back a century. Truly, there are no limits to the stamina of bored office workers unleashed upon the great outdoors. Having stocked up on Sigulda souvenirs, we headed home. Shurik later confessed that for the last 50 km, he was driving on autopilot, barely grasping what was happening around him.
A few more photos and larger sizes on foto.izvne.com"