Our amazing guide Cheynne has reached an impressive milestone at Rotorua Canopy Tours - she has joined the exclusive 1000 club. The 1000 club is made up of super experienced guides who funnily enough have done over 1000 tours – and she’s the second female to join the club! Who would have thought someone scared of heights would guide so many people ziplining through a native New Zealand forest?

Photo: Cheynne celebrating her 1000th tour by sharing a bit of bubbly with our guests

With a passion for the outdoors and a love of nature, Cheynne joined the Rotorua Canopy Tours team in September 2017, almost three years ago.

Guiding over 1000 tours has created a lot of great memories for Cheynne over the past three years, including flipping upside down on the zipline for the first time.

“It’s a huge milestone! Reaching the 1000 club is a big reflection day, reflecting on all that I have learnt and the person I’ve molded myself into. Working at Canopy Tours has helped me become who I am and given me heaps of confidence,” says Cheynne.

Photo: Cheynne is the second female to join our 1000 club and has a lot of memorable moments over her 1000 tours

One of the things she loves about working at Rotorua Canopy Tours is all the people. From all the thousands of guests she’s guided through the forest to the team at Rotorua Canopy Tours, some who have become lifelong friends and who have taught her a lot.

Some of Cheynne's most memorable moments include taking someone that was 100% blind on the Ultimate Canopy Tour. She’s also shared this incredible experience with multiple people who have terminal illnesses with only have a few months left to live. She loves being able to guide less fortunate people on tour and at-risk youth who wouldn’t necessarily be able to afford a tour, but we’ve been able to make that happen for them.

Photo: Our guides Jess (left) and Cheynne (right) with guests from her 1000th tour

But being a guide hasn’t been without its challenges. “I’m actually afraid of heights. Every day I’m out of my comfort zone but I’ve learnt to trust the gear. Every time I go out into the middle of the line I have to reassure myself that the gear has got me. I can definitely put myself in the shoes of customers who are nervous about the heights. But life’s too short to be avoiding all your fears, so you might as well face them." says Cheynne.

Photo: Cheynne loves working out in nature and being paid to ensure people are having fun

One of her most nervous moments was just before we opened our Ultimate Canopy Tour is 2018. All our amazing kiwi guides tested out the Ultimate Canopy Tour before we opened it up to guests. Cheynne remembers flying down our 400m zipline – the longest zipline she has ever been on – and wondering if the breaks at the end were going to work – which of course they did! Safety is the  number one priority at Rotorua Canopy Tours after all.

Cheynne absolutely loves being out in nature, hanging out with the birds and being in the forest all day, every day. “Working in the outdoors, being in nature and getting paid to make sure people have fun is a pretty cool job requirement. My favourite thing about being a guide is having the ability to make people forget about life for a little while and come into my world, forget about their worries and problems, and just get out and have fun.”

Photo: Cheynne all smiles at the Rotorua Canopy Tours base