Should outdoor adventure, rock climbing and shots of adrenalin be your thing but you’re not quite experienced enough to jump straight onto the Hajjar Mountains or Ras Al Khaimah’s Stairway to Heaven, Adventure HQ is a great place to start.
First up, there’s the 9.14-metre Climbing Pinnacle, which looks simple enough. And when your instructor — who has been rock climbing in India since he was old enough to strap a zip line to a harness – scales the wall with Spider-Man-like prowess, you think it couldn’t be more straightforward.
Sweaty palms
I’ll be honest: I don’t consider rock climbing my forte. But there’s very little I won’t attempt in the name of a sporting pursuit. I’m familiar with the pull up and my legs are strong enough to squat double my body weight. So how hard can scaling a 9-metre wall be?
Well, when your palms are as wet as if they’ve just been immersed in a bowl of olive oil and your heart is threatening to palpitate itself into cardiac arrest as you cling with your fingertips to a plastic protrusion smaller than your fist, it’s quite tricky. And that’s just the first step.
The fact that you’re strapped to a body-weight-responsive harness that’s smarter than most humans doesn’t register. What does register is the fact that you’ve signed a waiver, so any death you may encounter is entirely your fault. But this doesn’t deter the hardened outdoor dwellers, so you push on to the summit.
When you make it to the top, you feel a mixture of relief and shame: you are not that high at all. And, what’s more, this was the easiest route. For the more daring, there are routes much more difficult. In some areas the wall juts out beyond the perpendicular, making you climb almost upside down at times — a real test for the back and forearm muscles.
Exhilarating experience
The assault course is also a good test of the nerves. I was fortunate enough to have aroused a small crowd from the coffee shop balcony that shoulders the ceiling apparatus, as I stepped, jumped and pulled my way across swinging tyres and wobbling planks thinner than the width of your feet.
The whole indoor Adventure HQ experience is an exhilarating one. And you glimpse a modicum of the adrenalin-fuelled emotions that come from true outdoor pursuits — just enough to make you aware of what could be out there.
To cool off, a “chill chamber” that goes down to -25°C awaits you. Step inside for two minutes and you emerge cool and refreshed, albeit feeling like a walking ice cream.
