Freaking Out at Geierlay Suspension Bridge and Facing the Fear of Heights

Facing a Fear of Heights

Sensation-seekers throughout the world experience euphoria as they participate in cliff jumping, sky diving, surfing, paragliding, kayaking, snowmobiling, and a whole plethora of other activities. I have to say, most of those activities allure me, but there is one adrenaline-inducing experience I tend to elude at any cost.

I do NOT like heights.

(or spiders… or small spaces…)

But especially heights.

So, naturally, my husband takes me to do things for my birthday that terrify me because he loves me right?

Last year he drove me to the Haunted Forest at midnight and said, “SURPRISE!!!” And I responded back, “THE SURPRISE ON YOU! I am NOT going in there…” (the Haunted Forest is a scary corn maze in Utah, where paid creepers can jump out of corn fields, grab you, scare you, carry you off... I have still yet to go into the Haunted Forest and I am completely content to keep that experience OFF of my bucket list.)

Did you know a fear of heights can actually be a genetic thing? I recently completed a 23andme kit and found out I'm more likely than average to be afraid of heights. A fear of heights can come from a person's greater reliance on their eyesight to maintain balance. When objects are too are away for our brain to use them to maintain our balance and posture, we can feel off kilter and unstable. Interesting, huh?

I also learned some other fun things like it's a genetic thing that I prefer vanilla over chocolate, I don't sneeze when exposed to bright light (I always wondered why that whole "look at the sun thing" never worked for me), I'm likely to have a unibrow (yay me), and that I prefer salty over sweet snacks.

The Longest Suspension Bridge in Germany

This year Ryan decided to take me and Gracie on an adventure to the longest suspension bridge in Germany called Geierlay. The bridge opened in 2015 and is 100 meters high and 360 meters long (roughly 328 feet tall and 1,182 feet long).

Geierlay is located in the town of Mörsdorf (which I thought was Mordor at first glance and then was thoroughly disappointed when I realized it wasn’t…).

There is a visitor center where you can stop in and use the bathrooms, snag a key-chain or mug, and get a bite to eat at the restaurant. Important: These are the only bathrooms before the bridge, so make sure you use them if needed before you head out to the site!

There are also stamps on the ground throughout the town that will point you towards the path that leads to the Geierlay suspension bridge.

There are a few parking lots around the visitor center and it’s a few euros to park depending on how long you want to be out. 3-4 hours is probably a good time frame, maybe a little more if you want to eat at the restaurant.

It’s about a 2km walk to get to the bridge. The road is a paved walking trail. You cannot drive on it. There are fun chickens to pass along the way and a beautiful countryside to take in as you stroll.

I thought for certain we were going to need to coax Gracie across the bridge… but she had no issues! She absolutely loved it. (I guess her genes are fine?)

Geierlay Visitor Center

Kastellaun Straße 23

56290 Mörsdorf

The drive to Geierlay is approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes west of Wiesbaden, 1 hour and 30 minutes northwest of Kaiserslautern and just under three hours northwest of Stuttgart.

Like it? Save it!