Sliding Through the Canopy

April 07, 2006

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Provided by: Michael Bruno
Summary authors & editors: Kirsten Whitley; Michael Bruno

The photo above shows an arboreal adventurer sliding down a zip-line in Costa Rica, exploring the canopy of the lush rain forest. More than 1,500 tree species thrive in Costa Rica's tropical climate. A zip-line is a steel cable strung between platforms erected on trees that flank the regions volcanic mountain ranges. Individuals are secured to a harness that attaches to the zip-line cable via a pulley wheel. The wheel rides on top of the cable while the rider is suspended below. This arrangement allows individuals to "fly" from one tree platform to the next as they traverse a series of zip-lines down the mountain side.

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