If you follow me on Instagram, you might have noticed that I recently skydived. I’m still in a state of disbelief! I never truly envisaged doing it. EVER!! So how did I end up doing one of the strangest things I’ve ever done?
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Why I went Skydiving
At a family memorial gathering last year, I chatted with a younger cousin, who was 20 years old at the time. We were talking about her turning 21 when I asked her what she planned to do to celebrate. She asked if I would go skydiving with her because no one else would and she wanted to go skydiving. I hesitated for a long time before responding with a positive yes.
I agreed because, in my 40s, I wanted to conquer fear and venture entirely outside of my comfort zone, and what a terrific way to begin! (Keep in mind that this is after a few brandies).
Oh no, what did I commit to? I thought as I woke up the next morning……I still had a few months to wrap my mind around it, despite me feeling like this. However, boy, did those months fly by so quickly. Before I knew it, it was August 2022, and the day had finally arrived for me to skydive.
On the day of my skydive
Surprisingly, neither of us was anxious, and we had laughed and talked the entire one and a half-hour ride journey to the centre.
We waited around for a few hours for the weather to improve, but even then, neither of us felt nervous. I thought for sure the nerves would start to kick in once we arrived, but nope, not at all.
Preparations for our skydive
We were the first two students summoned that morning to jump. We had already decided that I would be the first to take the leap, with special instructions from my young cousin that I wasn’t allowed to scream in case it deterred her from participating lol.
Our instructors first met us and took us to a building where we put on our jumpsuits and received instruction on our exit and landing positions.
I was somewhat familiar with it because we had already viewed a quick training video on it at the centre earlier that morning.
My instructor was a really nice, friendly guy. although I am going to call him P for privacy purposes. I was happy that my wish had come true because I had read many positive reviews about him and hoped that he would be my instructor. I was also quite happy to find that he had been a skydiver for 35 years. This was certainly great to hear, seeing as he was in charge of pulling the parachute.
After meeting my instructor, I was introduced to my photographer for the day, another nice and friendly gentleman. Again, I won’t use his name for privacy purposes. Following a brief interview, the filming and photographs began. It was like a “lights, camera, action” moment.
The moment of the big jump
There it was.There was nothing left to do but board the aircraft and prepare to exit. And to be honest, I was still astonished by how composed we both were. At this moment, neither of us felt anxious, but that was about to change- at least for me.
As we reach 11000ft P helps me put my goggles on whilst giving me some final suggestions and advice, and then shuffles us towards the door so that my legs are dangling out of the plane. I’m now a little nervous at this point, and I’m not sure if I want to do it now.
The photographer jumps, and as I watch him fall through the clouds, I find myself falling through the air with a deep stomach drop, gasping for air, panicked and nearly losing exit position. This is not fun.
P then gives me a comforting pat, releases my hands from the harness, and extends my arms so they are in the flying position. At first, I was a little hesitant, but after a few seconds, I stretched my hands out and believed in P; I felt like I was flying, and it was such a lovely experience, and then the parachute opened.
The journey with the parachute was extremely enjoyable, however I did experience some motion nausea. As a matter of fact, I felt queasy for at least two hours afterwards. Oh, and as I descended on the parachute, I had the worst ear pain I’ve ever had. I occasionally have ear discomfort, generally when I’m on a descending aeroplane, but never as bad as this.
Verdict: would I do it again?
I would absolutely do it again despite loathing the first few seconds of it, feeling queasy, and getting ear pain.
The best and most liberating thing I’ve ever done!!
The only thing I would change is the height; I would go for the 15000ft rather than the 11000ft because you get a 60 second free fall instead of just a 38 second free fall. I think I would have benefited more from this since I only started to really enjoy the last few seconds of the free fall.
Would you ever do a skydive or have you ever done one?
If you want to skydive in the UK I highly recommend Black Knights Parachute Centre . I also recommend booking a photographer, they capture every moment of my experience. I received a hundreds of amazing photos and three videos. (This is not a paid advertisement, I just highly recommend this company)
Hope you enjoyed my blog today
Thanks for reading
Stay blessed 🙏🏾
Natalie ❤️
NattyTravels 
How exciting!! Great photos too! 🙂
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So exciting! Thank you so much!
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You are welcome! 🙂
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Wow that’s awesome! I want to go hang gliding in Switzerland for my 30th birthday and my husband thinks I’m crazy ha!
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Oh how awesome Lyssy! I’d actually love to try that.
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How exciting! Congrats on overcoming the fear and going for it. It’s something I’ve always wanted to try and I have a feeling I’m going to be terrified as well.
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Thank you so much. Ah, I hope you get to experience it one day. It’s quite a scary thing to think about doing, but it is such a beautiful experience and so liberating. The thing that really helped me feel comfortable and less scared was learning that if for some reason there was a problem with the first parachute, a second would automatically open. I felt so much better knowing that.
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Oh that’s definitely good to know. I wouldn’t want to skydive without a backup plan.
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That’s so exciting and such a huge thing to do!
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Thank you! I’m so glad I did it know. Its so nice to look back and have those amazing memories.
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Wow… What a thrilling experience!!
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Thank you! I’m so glad I did it now it was definitely worth it ha.
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My sisters have both been skydiving but not me. Some how I’m okay to dive with sharks but not free fall from the sky.
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Wow you dived with sharks! That sounds more terrifying😯 🤣
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I have not done an actual shark dive but I’ve been close to sharks on normal dives.
I like them, I’ve never felt to be in danger. I stayed away from them and them from me.
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Firstly, you are a,axing! Secondly, who took the fantastic photos?
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Thank you Chrissie! The photographer I booked at the centre took the photos. I have videos too! Thank you for following my blog, so happy to connect with you again 🙌🏾❤️
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You too hon 💙
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Wow, you definitely conquered your fear of skydiving! What an incredible experience…now it seems you’re on-board with doing it again, and perhaps this’ll be a fun addiction to have with future sky-diving experiences! 🙂
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Thank you so much Rebecca! Yes, I definitely think if I did another one I’d be more at ease from the get go, and this experience will be hilarious to look back on. 😁
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Wow, well done. I wouldn’t dare!
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Thank you! I once said I wouldn’t dare do it. 🤣
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Excuse my language Natty but lordy lordy you have some balls ha ha! Skydiving is something I’ve often considered but ultimately never quite had the drive or motivation to do. The shots of you floating over the beautifully green English countryside are ultimate keepers, well done.
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Haha….Thank you so much! Like you, I’ve always quite liked the idea of it, but it was never a priority to throw myself out of a plane. I still can’t believe I did it. I appreciate your comment. Thank you.
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OMG you did what!!!! How did I miss this blog, awesome. Good for you Natalie. At one time this was on my bucket list but not so much anymore, too many fluke accidents going around 🤣. Glad you did it and enjoyed the experience.
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Thank you so much…..I know! I still can’t believe I did it.🤣 Ahh I understand what you mean, it’s an extremely scary thing to do. 💕
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Good for you, keep fulfilling your dreams of traveling and doing new things girl 👍.
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Oh wow! I’m in awe, I’d be terrified! Some great shots there for the memories- although I’m certain you won’t forget the experience! I don’t think skydiving would be my thing but I’d love to do a fire walk.
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Thank you so much, Helen. I had such a fun time, and yes, for sure, I will always treasure the memories. Wow! A fire walk! Now that would take some strength and courage. 😯
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How I wish to sky dive but I am so afraid and terrified of heights😂😂. I am glad you had a great time🔥🔥🔥🔥
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Haha, it is a bit of a frightening thing to do, so I understand that completely. I felt much better about it all when I learned that a second parachute would automatically open if anything went wrong with the first one. 🤣🤣
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