Offering different attitudes of 9,000, 13,000, and 16,500 feet, I settled on the medium elevation because it seemed like a good middle ground.
Flying Kiwi dropped us off in Motueka and we waited for our Skydive Abel Tasman pick-up at the town’s info centre called i-Site. It was a short shuttle ride to the main headquarters for Skydive Abel Tasman.
The main reception area of the skydiving operation is a welcoming space with a huge circular table where the friendly staff greeted us and got us checked in.
Behind the waiting area is the staging area, and when our names were called up, we stepped through the double doors and got ready to suit up and harness up.
The propeller roared on, and before we knew it, we were in the air. It was during this 20-minute scenic flight, spiraling higher and higher, that I started to get a little nervous.
Scruffy asked me to rotate around, and together we crossed over to the other bench and shimmied into our spot along the edge of the plane. Free fall lasted 45 seconds, and I knew I had to make the most of it.
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