For some people, vacation means relaxing by the pool and going to fancy restaurants. For others, it’s white water rafting and ziplining. But even adrenaline junkies have their limits, as proven in this viral TikTok where a vacation adventure gone wrong leads to being suspended over a lake of alligators.
Andrew Ponton shared a video from a ziplining excursion. Unfortunately halfway through the line, the zipliner got stuck as gators swam around them. What’s worse, is the boat full of people at the end of the line who just had to sit there and watch as gators swarmed.
People were both concerned and delighted by the adventurers’ misfortune, many commenters made jokes about the alligators, saying that they looked like they were lining up at Chick-fil-A. Others questioned why a ziplining business was even allowed to operate over an alligator-infested swamp.
Several viewers pointed out that this whole setup was especially dangerous, seeing as alligators are actually quite the jumpers. One person even said that there are gator farms where they dangle meat about the gators to see how high they can jump. “Crazy how they are all coming towards something dangling in the air … maybe it’s cause they’re fully capable of jumping that high.”
In case you can’t envision it, several people have posted viral videos of alligators’ ability to dance above the water and it appears they can jump their full body length. It is clear to see that a gator could easily jump up and grab a bird, dangled meat, or maybe a ziplining ankle.
According to Animal Research, some gators can even jump up to heights of six feet, which is impressive seeing as they weigh anywhere from two hundred to a thousand pounds. Though they don’t often make jump attacks, the reptiles, which measure up to about eleven feet, have been responsible for nearly 400 attacks from 1948 to 2004, according to A-Z Animals. While the yearly ratio isn’t crazy, it’s important to be aware of where gators may be and try to avoid invading their space, especially via zipline.
Next time you’re seeking adrenaline or wanting to try something new, there are plenty of options to choose from. Skydiving, parasailing, or rock climbing are all nice, alligator-free activities. And if you do decide that you absolutely must zip line to scratch that itch, maybe pick somewhere without gators. Preferably outside the state of Florida.
