This story first appeared in the June 19, 2013 edition of WW .

The park rangers must have been lying in wait. Out of the corner of my eye, I see them approaching. The man is tall with a shaved head and small spectacles. With him is a dark-haired woman. They know what we’re about to do, and it’s their job to stop it.

It’s an otherwise serene Sunday afternoon at Laurelhurst Park. Joggers bound along the paths, sunbathers sprawl on the grass and a group practices tai chi by the lake. I am wobbling on a 2-inch piece of webbing strung between two trees. My other arm fl ails above my head as I teeter, but I remain upright. Then I spot two sage green button-down shirts. Busted.

Slacklining, technically, is illegal in Portland parks. City code bans parkgoers from attaching ropes (or wires, ch

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