Looking for an exciting outdoor experience to take your family or group of friends? How about a zip-lining course through a Japanese forest?

If you are located on NAF Atsugi or any other base in the Kanto Plain and are looking for something wild, challenging and extraordinary, Tree Cross Adventure Atsugi Nanasawa may be just what you seek.

Situated in a hilly terrain of Nanasawa, Atsugi City, the 270,000-square-foot attraction is less than an hour drive away from center of Tokyo, about 40-minutes from NAF Atsugi and within a couple of hours from any other military installation in the Kanto Plain.

Recently, I visited the park with my wife to enjoy the 2-hour adventure made up of zip line, Tarzan swing and other activities in the fresh air of the forest.

When we arrived, we saw visitors enjoying the zip lining along the steel lines that connected the tall ce-dar tree. We were a bit nervous as a couple in our 50s, but were calmed by one of the park’s co-owners, Jesper Mortensen.

Mortensen fitted us with a harness and safety gear, before giving us a 15-minute briefing about safety and how to zip line. Once we were able to demonstrate that we’d could perform as needed, we were off to enjoy the six adventure courses and 42 activities independently.

According to Mortensen, the park was built in compliance with European safety standards with the so-called “self-belay system.” The systems allows you to enjoy your adventure at your own pace, without help of instructors and others, as long as you use the fitted safety equipment properly.

“It is one of our most attractive features, as it puts you in charge, and it means the experience is serious as well as fun,” Mortensen said.

The course itself is laid out nicely, as it starts with an easy activity and gradually gets tougher as you pro-ceeded. With each activity to finish, you become more and more comfortable with the gear, which helps in the tougher sections.

After we finished a couple of courses, we found ourselves free from fear and just excited to challenge the various obstacles high in the trees. One of the platforms was nearly 50-feet above the ground, or the equivalent to a five-story building.

The variety of courses include activities, such as zip line, Tarzan swing, bouldering and more.

The bouldering wall situated 40-feet above the ground, was the toughest obstacle for me, while my wife had no problem with it. Swinging on the Tarzan swing was really thrilling, too. I couldn’t help but scream while dropping into the deep valley, as if I were the King of the Jungle.

The highlight of the adventure is a 570-foot long zip line over 100 feet above the ground. After complet-ing all the various other activities, this giant zip line felt rewarding. The 20-second long zip line that runs about 24 miles per hour, felt as if we were truly flying through the woods, and gave us a great view of Nanasawa Town.

“It is a good escape from the busy city life,” Mortensen said. “Many of our visitors get a real stress relief after the workout.”

He was right - at the end of it, there was a sense of accomplishment. We had completed the exciting course and our sore mid-50s bodies was a reminder.

Mortensen and his partner, Yoichi Miyoshi, opened the park in December after finding the spacious for-est with hilly terrain and lots of tall trees near the center of Tokyo.

Nanasawa, where the park is located is an attractive town in itself, and is home to seven natural hot springs and various tasty restaurants.

“After a fun workout in our park there is no better way than to finish the day with a dip in the hot springs,” Mortensen said.

While the main activities allow for ages 10 and above, young ones can enjoy the park with various facili-ties just for kids, including a swing, 82-foot zip line and trampoline. Park staff is on hand to help look af-ter them.

With Mortensen and other English-speaking instructors, the park is English-friendly.

Reservation is recommended to avoid waiting, as they accept only 15 visitors every 30 minutes.

Get Zippin’

Zip Line Adventure in Madarao Kogen 13 courses are set in the beautiful Madarao Kogen in Nagano Prefecture. The place is in the ski resort and open for zip lining from April to the beginning of November. Location: Madarao Kogen, Iiyamashi, Nagano Admission: 3,800 yen ($36) URL: www.madarao.jp/zip/ Tel: 0269-64-3211 (Reservation needed)

Tarzania Tarzania in Chiba has the longest zip line course in the country, taking about 2 hours with 6 zip lines. Location: 521-4 Ueno, Nagara machi, Chouseigun, Chiba (It is located in Seimei no Mori Resort which has tennis court, pool and restaurant facilities. It is located about 90 minutes-drive from To-kyo.) Admission: Adventure Course: Aged 10 Or Older: 5,000 Yen URL: www.tarzania.jp/index.html (On-line reservation needed) Tel: 0474-35-00871

Forest Adventure Itoshima This place includes 38 obstacle courses in five sites. Location: 312-390 Nijyoikisan, Itoshima-shi, Fukuoka (2-hour drive from Sasebo Naval Base) Admission: aged 10 or older: 3,600 yen URL: fa-itoshima.foret-aventure.jp/eng/ (On-line reservation needed) Tel: 080-5548-2070

Zip Line Adventure Osorakan It is open from end of April to Nov. 3. You can enjoy 6 zip line courses (takes about 90 minutes) in the beautiful forest. The place is attached to Osorakan Ecology Campsite. So let’s camp out and zip line! Location: 740-1 Oaza Yokokawa, Aki otacho, Yamagatagun, Hiroshima (2-hour drive from MCAS Iwakuni) Admission: 3,500 yen ($33) for adults; 2,300 yen ($22) for 10-17. URL: www.osorakan.co.jp/summer/zipline.html (On-line reservation needed) Tel: 0826-28-7270

Spring Valley Izumi Kogen Since it is set in a ski resort, it is available only from May to early November. There are 7 zip line courses, which take about 90 minutes. Location: 14-2 Aza Dakeyama, Fukuoka, Izumiku, Sendai-shi, Miyagi (4-hour drives from Misa-wa AB) Admission: 3,100 yen ($28) URL: www.springvalley.co.jp/topics/5300/ (On-line reservation needed) Tel: 022-379-3755

Tree Cross Adventure Atsugi Nanasawa

Location: 1826 Nanasawa, Atsugi City, Kanagawa Prefecture (20-minute drive from Atsugi IC on Tomei highway) Hours: Mon. - Fri.: 10 a.m. - sunset; Sat., Sun. and holidays: 9 a.m. – sunset (close Wed. for Dec – Feb) Schedule may change due to weather conditions. Admission: 18 or older: 3,600 yen; 10-17: 2,600 yen; One-Year Pass: 10,000 yen Conditions for participation: Minimum height of 4-foot-6 (or over 10 years old) and max weight of 286 lbs. Anybody below the age of 18 must be accompanied by a participating adult. 1 adult can go with 2 kids. URL: treecross-advtr.com E-mail: info@treecross-advtr.com TEL: 080-3306-7738 (reservation)