Twin Falls local Sean Chuma BASE jumping off the Perrine Bridge. Chuma is one of the world’s preeminent BASE jumpers and runs a school called Inter-Demented BASE Jumping, as well as a tandem-jumping program. He warns that BASE jumping is extremely dangerous and says he practices precision and responsible behavior when he is teaching and jumping. “It’s dangerous, but we try not to glorify that whole part about it. Here’s the picture: We’re very responsible people doing something that looks absolutely crazy,” he said. Here Chuma is practicing an “unpacked back-flip” (where the parachute isn’t packed into a container). He’s the first person in the world to ever successfully complete that jump.

Watching people hurl themselves safely off a bridge all in the name of sport isn’t something you can do every day–mostly because BASE jumping, where daredevils parachute off buildings, bridges, and natural landmarks, is illegal almost everywhere in the world. But there’s one spot where you can witness this kind of intrepid behavior every day: Twin Falls, Idaho. Each year a few thousand BASE jumpers descend upon this quaint agricultural town to legally parachute off the 486-foot Perrine Bridge. And with the weather slowly starting to warm up now, the high season for Twin Falls is rapidly approaching, so if you have any interest in watching–or trying–a BASE jump, book your tickets soon. Check out my gallery of my recent visit to Twin Falls that included some time with world-renowned BASE jumpers Sean Chuma and Miles Daisher.

Perrine Bridge is a relatively safe place from which to BASE jump as it has a large landing area beneath it and the water serves as a sort of “out” as well.

Daisher and Chuma lowered me from the bridge’s railing so I could get a unique angle from which to shoot them. They equipped me with a parachute just in case something happened. It was a cool experience but definitely pretty frightening. I was happy with my shots, though, so it all worked out in the end.

BASE jumpers like Daisher above often describe the experience as spiritual and almost meditative, as the white noise is swept from their minds during the jump as they concentrate solely on what they’re doing at that moment. They say it’s more of a peaceful experience than an adrenaline rush.