Acrophobia is an extreme fear of heights. Sadly, I have it. I used to think it was a southern hemisphere thing but I have had several experiences that proved otherwise.
One of these was when I ascended the Monument to the Great Fire of London. It’s not the tallest structure in the world, though it was when it was finished in 1677, soon after the Great Fire of 1666. It’s only 62m high with 311 steps but by the time I reached the top my legs had turned to Pudding Lane. I desperately clung to the door of the viewing platform, much to the amusement of the other visitors.
Then there was Paris. One can walk up to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower and I thought this thrilling prospect could help me overcome my fear. I started the climb, striding bravely up and then — sacré bleu — the city began swaying below. I only reached the first landing ... just.
The Tower of Pisa in Italy? Ditto. This tower is actually leaning over — it wasn’t my imagination.
Being on home soil certainly doesn’t diminish the affliction. Zip-lining in KwaZulu-Natal’s Karkloof Valley was a nightmare. Another time, my son persuaded me to climb Table Mountain. “It’s like climbing stairs,” he said. “We can catch the cable car down.”
We headed off early one carefree Cape Town morning but, within an hour, thick mist rolled in and we were confused. The only way up was a sheer cliff face with embedded chains. I froze from the phobia. I persevered using “mind control”, and eventually saw a clearing and a sign reading: “India Venster: This path must only be attempted by EXPERIENCED climbers.”
On reaching the summit we discovered that everything was closed, including the cable car. All we saw was one very miserable, pouting pigeon. So we headed down Platteklip Gorge to beautiful weather at the base of this iconic mountain. Walking up and down Table Mountain in a day had not been the plan.
At Cape Agulhas lighthouse, all was under control until I reached the top — and went into loopy mode.
Flying over Victoria Falls in a helicopter? No problem. Zooming over the Drakensberg in a chopper? Easy. But when there is no solid structure surrounding me, it’s a disaster.
'It’s all in the mind!' they say. Tell that to my wobbly legs and churning gut
My son is the total opposite. He will teeter with a smile on the edge of the Oribi Gorge overhang or dangle from the Moses Mabhida swing fearlessly.
“Overcome this fear by facing the challenge!” they say. Yet, the more I do these things the more jelly-legged I become.
“It’s all in the mind!” Tell that to my wobbly legs and churning gut.
“Age will solve it, you’ll see!” I am nearly in my 70s and I am more petrified now than when I climbed Mostert’s Mill in Cape Town in 1963. So much so that I imagine if I were caught in a fire in a high-rise building and had to use the fire escape, I'd rather become toast than venture out clinging to flimsy railings.
Even my horrid fear of heights is outweighed by the fear we have experienced globally over the past months of the pandemic. Covid-19 is an unseen enemy, the fear of which has proved far more limiting for travellers than my acrophobia.
When this terrible pandemic passes, I hope to take on those glorious heights around the world once again. I will take on awe-inspiring sights and my fear will pale into insignificance when compared to the Covid-19 curse that has torn the world apart. And maybe — just maybe — in doing so, it has ironically drawn Earth’s fragile fragments together. When we overcome it at last, maybe then I will be phobia free.
• Do you have a funny story about your travels? Send 600 words to travelmag@sundaytimes.co.za and include a recent photo of yourself.
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