kings canyon - thought this might make a good suicide
holiday destination,
until i was there in person.
note: in australia, apostrophes to denote
ownership do not seem to be used in place names.
i had read in the lonely planet australia guide that at kings canyon the walls of the canyon are over 100m high in places. i didn't like it there much, but i think that had more to do with the circumstances under which i visited, than with the place itself. it's out in the middle of nowhere, and most people get there by bus. it would have been better to take a hire car, and go at off-peak hours, because the place was crawling with tourists. also, it was close to 40C on the day we went. the tour group moved at a pace so quick it was hard to look around. in addition, i was very much freaked out by all the video cameras, and could not relax. i like wandering off by myself, taking my time, etc. it can't be stressed enough that this was not a pleasant excursion for me. when we got near the potential places to jump, it seemed to me there was an awful lot of shrubbery in the way that might cushion the fall somewhat and make it less likely you'd die and more likely you'd live with horrible injuries. the angling of the sides of the canyon also gave the impression that one would just roll and roll if one jumped from certain places. way too many people around for my comfort. i could just imagine them sending in helicopters if i jumped, or some of the very fit guides scaling down the sides of the canyon to play the hero.
