Count this off in one-second intervals: 1-2-3-4-5. That’s all the time it takes, give or take, to leap off the Perrine Bridge in Twin Falls, Idaho, before plunging into the Snake River 486 feet below. It’s a long way down in a very short time. BASE jumpers pull off this death-defying feat several times a day, extending their hang time by deploying their canopy 2-3 seconds into the fall. This gives them an extra 20-30 seconds to enjoy the ride down through the jagged, steep-walled Snake River Canyon. In July 2018, I spent a windy afternoon watching as people from around the country were BASE Jumping at Perrine Bridge, time and again.

Neophyte BASE jumper Alex Armstrong of Cardon, Ohio jump off the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018 in Twin Falls, Idaho. Armstrong has only three days of BASE jumping experience under his belt. Armstrong did 20 jumps while in the Army and 250 ski diving attempts, but with only a two second freefall as a BASE jumper, Armstong said, "I may reture after this." Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
Neophyte BASE jumper Alex Armstrong of Cardon, Ohio jumps off the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018, in Twin Falls, Idaho. Armstrong has only three days of BASE jumping experience under his belt. Armstrong did 20 jumps while in the Army and 250 ski diving attempts, but with only a two-second freefall as a BASE jumper, Armstong said, “I may retire after this.” Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
BASE jumpers prepare their canopies near Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018 in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
With the help of a friend, Andrew Goodfellow of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, prepares his canopy for another jump off the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018, in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
A BASE jumper goes airborne 486 feet above the Snake River at the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018 in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
BASE jumping instructor Brandon Clemons with Bad Seed Base of Boulder City, Nev., steps off the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018 in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
A BASE jumper deploys his canopy shortly after stepping off the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018, in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
Andrew Goodfellow of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, deploys his chute after jumping off the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018 in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
A BASE jumper floats past the shadow of the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018, in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
A BASE jumper lands near the park in the Snake River gorge 486 feet below the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018, in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
at Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018, in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
Kayakers approach a BASE jumper who landed in the Snake River below the Perrine Bridge on Saturday, July 28, 2018, in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon

BASE is an acronym for building, antennas, spans (the Perrine bridge for instance) and earth. Four types of objects jumpers can leap from. Carl Boenish coined the term and is regarded as the “father” of the sport. With friends, he successfully jumped off of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park in 1978, filming their descent.

The record for most consecutive jumps off the Perrine Bridge goes to Oregon National Guard Captain Dan Schilling, who in 2006 jumped 201 times in 21 hours to raise money for the charity Operation Warrior. Jumpers must trek up a narrow canyon trail to get back to the top. Schilling had it easy in this regard. He was hoisted back to the top each time by a crane.

Without a doubt, BASE jumping is more dangerous than skydiving. Altitude, or the lack thereof, factors foremost into the equation. Pull the cord too quickly and you risk tangling it. Pull it too late and the answer is obvious. Skydiving at greater heights allows a parachutist to gain airspeed, aiding in a controlled descent. That’s not going to happen in five seconds. The sport has seen its share of deaths. Because of this, many countries have outlawed the sport. In Twin Falls, however, BASE jumpers can defy the law of nature without defying the authorities. The adrenaline rush is legal 365 days a year.

Further Reading

  • If you’re a James Bond fan, you’ll instantly recognize this BASE jump in the opening scene of The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). Filmed in 1976, Rick Sylvester can be seen kicking off his skis during a fall from Mount Asgard in Auyuittuq National Park, Baffin Island, Canada.
  • Want to BASE jump yourself? You should be a competent skydiver first. Then look into courses offered by the Snake River BASE Academy

Take Me There

View Beneath the Bridge

A view beneath the Perrine Bridge on Friday, July 27, 2018, in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon
A view from beneath the Perrine Bridge on Friday, July 27, 2018, in Twin Falls, Idaho. Photo by Richard Alan Hannon