Ride the Rapids
We know you think of the Hudson as being serene, but up by Lake George, it’s a thrill ride. Grab six of your friends and get out on the water with the 17-mile Hudson River Gorge Rafting Trip ($70 child; $78 teen; $88 adult) from the Wild Waters Outdoor Center. The tour includes all necessary equipment, a riverside lunch, a post-trip dinner, and—most important—a New York State-licensed whitewater rafting guide. If you don’t have all day or want to bring your family, you can opt for the 7-Mile Middle Hudson Trip, which is appropriate for children ages 8 and older. • Wild Waters Outdoor Center Warrensburg, NY (518) 4994-4984; www.wildwaters.net. Distance from White Plains: 3 hours.
Race Down a Zipline
Nothing gets the heart pumping like soaring among the treetops, suspended by a cable, at speeds of up to 50 miles per hour. Hunter Mountain’s New York Zipline Adventure Tours lets you choose how much of an adrenaline rush you can handle. The faint of heart can try the Mid-Mountain Tour ($89), which intersperses shorter zipline stretches with rope and swinging bridges. The daring should opt instead for the SkyRider Tour ($119 weekdays; $129 weekends), which they claim is the fastest, longest, and highest zipline canopy tour in North America, speeding down cables that are suspended 600 feet in the air. • Hunter Mountain, Hunter, NY (518) 263-4388; www.ziplinenewyork.com. Distance from White Plains: 2 hours.
Let It Drop
Ever felt like hurtling yourself towards the earth at 90 miles per hour? The terrifyingly named Zumanjaro: Drop of Doom, debuting this year at Six Flags Great Adventure ($40-$67 for admission), will indulge you. The ride is simple: You speed up 415 feet in the air (in just 30 seconds, mind you), pause to take in the scenery, and then plummet back down at 90 mph. Then, if you’re like us, you’ll kiss the solid ground afterward. Zumanjaro is in good company; it’s built into the face of the fearsome roller coaster Kingda Ka, which, standing 456 feet tall, is the tallest roller coaster in the world. • Six Flags Great Adventure, Jackson, NJ (732) 928-2000; www.sixflags.com/greatadventure. Distance from White Plains: 1 hour, 45 minutes.
