Things you did when you where younger?

[captain nemo1701]

Summer of '76, group of us kids (c8-13 years old) would take bits of old cardboard to the nearby A45 dual carriageway on the NW edge of Coventry (towards Brum) at a very busy roundabout junction (A45 ran above the roundabout).

We would stand right next to the dual carriageway (traffic doing 60mph, and the rest!) and use the cardboard sheets as pseudo sledges to zoom down the steep dried out grass embankment, making sure we stopped before flying out onto the slip road below.

Never thought it strange or dangerous (no one got injured, and nobody ever told us off).

Different times I suppose.

1970's, used to swim, picnic with the family along with lots of others here, especially the roasting summer of 1976:

Obviously, not when its in flood ! (Broken Scar, Darlington). we used to slide down the main channel into the rapids as its slimey, covered in slippery weeds. Not exactly the safest thing to do....But every summer in the 70's. Then a couple of years ago I read of a kid drowning in Darlington River Tees...here .

Also have done the sliding down grassy slopes on cardboard....different times eh?. Plus climbing 60-70ft high trees to the top...went on the canopy walkway recently at Kew and nearly s**t myself.

 

[presta]

Not exactly the safest thing to do....But every summer in the 70's. Then a couple of years ago I read of a kid drowning in Darlington River Tees...here

The stoppers at the bottom of a weir can be very dangerous, often the most benign looking ones. In the canoe club we sometimes had someone on the bank with a throw line before shooting big weirs.

 

[Toshiba Boy]

1970's, used to swim, picnic with the family along with lots of others here, especially the roasting summer of 1976:
View attachment 725092

Obviously, not when its in flood ! (Broken Scar, Darlington). we used to slide down the main channel into the rapids as its slimey, covered in slippery weeds. Not exactly the safest thing to do....But every summer in the 70's. Then a couple of years ago I read of a kid drowning in Darlington River Tees...here .

Also have done the sliding down grassy slopes on cardboard....different times eh?. Plus climbing 60-70ft high trees to the top...went on the canopy walkway recently at Kew and nearly s**t myself.

My laugh "like" was obviously re your adult reaction at Kew, so true!

Very sad about the kid in River Tees.

 

[presta]

went on the canopy walkway recently at Kew and nearly s**t myself

Have you been up the rigging on SS Great Britain? I did it a few years ago and even though I was in a climber's harness it surprised me how nervous I'd become in the 18 years since my fellwalking days when I'd last negotiated any heights. I watched the button boy climbing the mast at HMS Ganges when I was a kid, b*gger that for a lark.