Branching Out Adventures - jugglingonrollerskates

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Branching Out Adventures is a tree top activity centre set in the beautiful woodland surrounding Bentley Wildfowl and Motor Museum in Halland near Lewes, Sussex. They offer a range of high adrenaline activities in a safe and professional environment. We were invited to try a few of their activities last weekend and absolutely loved every minute. From the moment we arrived we were greeted by friendly staff, made to feel like the day could be tailored to suit us and felt reassured that staff were knowledgeable and thorough in their safety techniques. Activities are generally suitable for children aged 6 and up…although there is also a cafe and play area on site so even our toddler was happy to totter about. If you visit on a dry day it’s a great place to sit and watch the action in the trees as you enjoy a coffee in the sunshine…and for those who want a bit more excitement…well there’s plenty in store! Our party consisted of myself, Leon (age 10) and Daisy (age 7)…. Daddy and Logan were also on site but didn’t take part in any of the tree top activities. This was Daisy’s second visit to Branching Out and on both occasions she has just come short of being tall enough to take part in the High Ropes course. For this reason all three of us took part in the Low Ropes course and the Giant Swing…Daisy and Leon also tackled the Climbing Wall. Before taking part in any of the activities staff will assist you with your equipment and talk through safety procedures. Branching Out uses a click it safety system which allows visitors to be continuously connected to a lifeline cable from start to finish of the course. This means there is no possibility of climbers becoming unlocked and able to fall at any point. Once kitted up a member of staff took us over to the safety briefing area where we were all talked through the process of clicking on and off the life line. This does take some getting used to and we felt staff were particularly patient in helping our party feel confident in this skill before moving onto the Low Ropes course. Low Ropes Age 6 upwards and a minimum of 1.2 m Children under 12 are required to be accompanied by an adult The course takes between 45-60 minutes to complete £12 Child £14 Adult The first thing you need to understand about the Low Ropes course is that it’s actually quite high! The rope trail elevates up to 4 metres in some parts of the course..which especially when you’re 6 or 7 years old is pretty high! The course is a great introduction to the High Ropes course or a challenge in itself for younger climbers or climbing novices. You ascend the course from ground level up a through a large netted area. The course is made up from a number of suspended wooded walkways which each present their own challenges…wobbling zig zag walkways, swinging platforms, rope walks will all have you holding on and asking yourself how do I do this then? There are also 2 small zip wires within the course as well as a long zip wire at the end. Both Daisy and Leon were able to navigate this course without too much assistance…Daisy needed some support clipping on and off the click it system to begin with but soon picked up the knack. As for me… I actually found this course reasonably challenging. It IS quite high and the strides you need to take to reach some of the platforms had me giving myself a little a few words of encouragement (right Zoe, on the count of 3) but it wouldn’t be rewarding if it wasn’t a little bit out of our comfort zone would it!!? Giant Swing Age 8 years and a minimum of 1.3 m Adult supervision but not participation required Total time about 15 minutes £5 Child £6 Adult The Giant Swing is SO MUCH FUN!! I was able to go on the swing with both Daisy and Leon on either side of me as a special Mother’s Day treat. Indeed there’s nothing that says I love you Mum quite like being utterly terrified on a giant swing in the middle of a forest! We were secured into place on the swing by our harnesses and winched up to a ridiculous height. Then the worst bit… it was my job to pull the release the pulley to bring us back down. Once at that height your tummy is in knots. I went with the theory of lets just get this over and done with and yanked the chord. The initial swing takes your breathe away…I don’t think we could even get out a scream to begin with. After that it’s utter relief and manic hysteria. My tummy was doing somersaults but it was such a giggle…a great activity to share with the kids. TheClimbing Wall Age 6 and a minimum Adult supervision but not participation required Activity takes about 30 minutes £5 Child £6 Adult Daisy and Leon tackled the climbing wall without me (it was my turn to watch the toddler!) Despite watching them from a distance I could see that their instructor was giving them clear instructions and supporting them when they needed help which I found really reassuring. Daisy was an absolute natural! She climbed both sides of the wall showing no fear. Leon did really well too…he froze at one point but was guided down to a point where he felt confident enough to abseil down. The ropes work on a great system which means even if the climber were to let go they are lowered down gradually rather than free falling. Once the children became used to this system you could see their confidence and trust in the equipment grow. In addition to the activities we were able to try on our visit to Branching Out there’s also the […]