7 Crazy-Thrilling Zip Lines We Dare You to Ride
Zip lines channel that same sensation as a roller-coaster—all while zooming past Mother Nature’s finest. But today’s rides are pushing the limits, getting faster, steeper, and longer as more destinations add zip lines as a way to explore. Here are seven options around the United States that could give even the most extreme adrenaline junkie a fix.
1. Royal Gorge Cloudscraper: Cañon City, Colorado
Built in 1929, the Royal Gorge Bridge ranks as the highest suspension bridge in the U.S., clocking in at 955 feet high and 1,260 feet long. Many visitors are content to view the canyon from the overpass, but for a different—and even higher—canyon view, the hands-free zip line gives visitors the chance to hurtle from one side of the gorge to the other. The single-ride line extends 2,350 feet at a height of about 1,200 feet and can reach speeds as high as 40 miles per hour. (Open seasonally; royalgorgebridge.com)
2. Mammoth Mega Zip: Mammoth Mountain, California
Beginning in the summer of 2019, the Mammoth Mega Zip will catapult riders down the steepest zip line in the country, courtesy of a 2,100-foot vertical drop. Zip line riders take the resort’s mountainside gondola up to the launching pad, which is sits 11,053 feet in the air. Once there, riders choose between going down the zip line seated or Superman-style. (Translation: on their stomach). The zip line’s design, with side-by-side cables, lets riders race a friend at speeds that can top 60 miles per hour. (Open seasonally; mammothmountain.com)
3. MEGA ZIPS: Louisville, Kentucky
Ranging from about 100 to 165 feet below Louisville, one of the largest caverns in the U.S. and a former limestone quarry has been transformed into the only fully underground zip line course in the world. The Louisville Mega Cavern includes the MEGA ZIPS, where riders don mining helmets, fully equipped with lights, to trek through the two-and-a-half-hour tour, which includes six zip lines and two bridges. Ceiling heights within the cave reach anywhere from 70 to 90 feet, including one stretch where you can race the person next to you on a dual line. (Open year-round; louisvillemegacavern.com)
4. X-Tour + SuperZip: Hocking Hills, Ohio
Hocking Hills sits in the uppermost corner of the Ohio Appalachia, dotted with state parks. The Hocking Hills Canopy Tours makes the most of this idyllic location, offering various types of zip lines. For the most heart-pounding experience, combine the X-Tour with the SuperZip. The X-Tour plunges from one tree platform to the next (11 in all), with one zip halfway through the tour that goes right through a waterfall and ends in a recessed cave. After the tour, wind your way up the 85-foot tower to take the one-line SuperZip down the hillside. Expert riders can reach speeds up to 45 to 50 miles per hour. (Open seasonally; hockinghillscanopytours.com)
5. Stowe ZipTour: Stowe Mountain, Vermont
Glide down a mountainside on this three-line zip course, starting near the summit of Vermont’s highest peak, Mount Mansfield. Riders start at the top of the Stowe Mountain Ski Resort, first hooking into the ominously named Nosedive Zip, the third-longest continuous line in the country with a 4,462-foot span. The course's two other lines are equally impressive, with lengths measuring 2,247 and 3,484 feet. (Open seasonally; stowe.com)
6. Icy Strait Point ZipRider: Hoonah, Alaska
Beyond the thrill of soaring along one of the world’s longest zip lines, extending two miles down an Alaskan mountain, riders can also watch for area wildlife like grizzly bears, eagles, deer, or even whales in the distance. Most riders make their way to Hoonah via the cruise ships that dock here, not far from Glacier Bay National Park. The zip line, which starts at a point higher than the Empire State Building, is the only one in the world to include six side-by-side cables, so riders can go down in groups. (Open year-round; icystraitpoint.com)
7. HeliZippin’ Volcano: Hilo or Kona, Hawaii
Speeding over a tropical jungle is just part of the fun at the HeliZippin’ experience at KapohoKine Adventures on the Big Island. First, guests board a helicopter to get an aerial view of the Kilauea Volcano before whizzing through the landscape on the 8-line zip course. Riders pass over multiple waterfalls on course, the longest of which spans 2,400 feet. From the zip line, visitors then hike with a ranger-trained guide through Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. (Open year-round; kapohokine.com)