Chapter 2: Starting OverTaking steady breaths, I try to control my trembling but I’m so scared, I feel physically sick. I’ve only descended a few feet and while my feet are still in contact with the thick limestone blocks, an eighty-foot drop between the central arches of the Victorian railway viaduct is fast approaching. I’ll be dangling freely and that petrifies me. Panicked, my hands feel rubbery, my palms damp.
I stop, taking a moment to calm myself. It’s certainly beautiful here; Anika picked an idyllic spot. The colossal viaduct spans a steep river valley, the path of the disused railway cutting through spectacularly rugged, wooded landscape—one of Britain’s most picturesque national parks. Below, the river glistens as it tumbles and foams beneath the viaduct, swollen by yesterday’s
