The Parc de Cervantes is where you want to go if you're a fan of roses, and it's one of my favourites for jogging with friends. One day when we were at the end of an exhausting run... bam! A zip line! Seeing the pulley-and-tire system waiting for us to jump on was the best push to end the day's workout, even though our shouts of joy scared more than a few dogs out for a walk with their people.
If you head out of Les Corts toward Plaça Espanya, you've got to make a pit stop in the park some call l'Escorxador (which means 'slaughterhouse' in Catalan because of what used to stand here), but most know as the Joan Miró park, and over which the artist's 'Woman and Bird' statue presides. You'll see it right away. Wait your turn and get on with a friend or on your own. Just put the 'seat' between your legs, jump off the platform with a push and away you go! Be sure to give yourself or have a friend give you a little push or you might not make it to the other side, finding yourself stopped somewhere in the middle.
These days zip lines aren't just found in campgrounds or on pricey guided nature adventures. In fact, right in some of Barcelona's public city parks there are a handful where you can take hold and take off. Sure, you're not soaring over a canyon or flying long distances, but you can get a mini rush just the same. And if you've got the kids in tow, they'll have a blast.
