| was - there was a danger I wouldn't clear the face of the waterfall and
| there were too many rocks right below. But when I stepped back into
j the stream, I plunged in up to my waist.
| 5 Moments before it had been knee-deep and the pull had been gentle
i - now I felt myself being dragged to the lip of the waterfall. Leaning
| forward, I grabbed for rocks, trying to gain stability as I edged towards
| the bank. But the water just kept rising. I found another big rock and
i latched on to it like a limpet, blinded by panic but clinging on even
| as the water rose up to my shoulders, then chin. As it covered my
| face, the pull became irrésistible and I was ripped off the rock into the
| brown-black surge. I remember feeling in freefall, and a jolting impact
| as my heel bounced off something hard. Then I was fully submerged,
i spinning and cartwheeling. My training as a diver was no use here -
| Td experienced nothing like this in the océan.
i 6 I tried to strike for the surface but had no idea which way I was
| pointing. I wondered if I was being drawn towards a larger waterfall
i a hundred yards downstream, but when my head broke the surface,
| I saw the current had spat me out by the beach; the force had been so
i great that Td cleared the cliff face and the rocks completely, with only
i my foot clipping the ledge as I fell. The others had already scrambled
j on to the beach to escape the flood, but as the water continued to rise,
| we realised we were standing on a fast-shrinking island. There was
| no way back, but we managed to reach the opposite bank, wading
i in water up to our chests, or using vines and overhanging branches
i to haul ourselves across. Looking back, we saw the island we'd been
| standing on had completely disappeared.
i 7 I learned later that until I appeared on the beach, everyone had
i assumed Td drowned. I got to see how close a call Td had, too; Renee
i managed to retrieve her drone and seeing the footage underlined how
| lucky we'd been to escape with our lives. Other than my throbbing
| foot, we were completely unharmed.
i 8 As we climbed, we ran into another stranded hiker who called 911.
| there were too many rocks right below. But when I stepped back into
j the stream, I plunged in up to my waist.
| 5 Moments before it had been knee-deep and the pull had been gentle
i - now I felt myself being dragged to the lip of the waterfall. Leaning
| forward, I grabbed for rocks, trying to gain stability as I edged towards
| the bank. But the water just kept rising. I found another big rock and
i latched on to it like a limpet, blinded by panic but clinging on even
| as the water rose up to my shoulders, then chin. As it covered my
| face, the pull became irrésistible and I was ripped off the rock into the
| brown-black surge. I remember feeling in freefall, and a jolting impact
| as my heel bounced off something hard. Then I was fully submerged,
i spinning and cartwheeling. My training as a diver was no use here -
| Td experienced nothing like this in the océan.
i 6 I tried to strike for the surface but had no idea which way I was
| pointing. I wondered if I was being drawn towards a larger waterfall
i a hundred yards downstream, but when my head broke the surface,
| I saw the current had spat me out by the beach; the force had been so
i great that Td cleared the cliff face and the rocks completely, with only
i my foot clipping the ledge as I fell. The others had already scrambled
j on to the beach to escape the flood, but as the water continued to rise,
| we realised we were standing on a fast-shrinking island. There was
| no way back, but we managed to reach the opposite bank, wading
i in water up to our chests, or using vines and overhanging branches
i to haul ourselves across. Looking back, we saw the island we'd been
| standing on had completely disappeared.
i 7 I learned later that until I appeared on the beach, everyone had
i assumed Td drowned. I got to see how close a call Td had, too; Renee
i managed to retrieve her drone and seeing the footage underlined how
| lucky we'd been to escape with our lives. Other than my throbbing
| foot, we were completely unharmed.
i 8 As we climbed, we ran into another stranded hiker who called 911.