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FlyBC "Site of the Day November 2016 Archive"
Mexico Road Trip
for there you have been and there you will long to return." - Leonardo Da Vinci
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| 11-30-16 |
 Lake Chapala, Jalisco, Mexico Partly cloudy. High near 25C. Winds SW at 10 to 15 km/h. 3000 metres We arrived at the Gulley to find very light winds so continued to the top launch. Just as light there, but there is more runway so Derek and Norm got ready. Derek went first, followed by locals Fabio & Casper. Derek caught a climb to the North, so everyone followed him out there. They all climbed out to 2800 metres fast, as Norm launched. I drove down to the Gulley to watch their progress hearing complaints about the rough air, as Casper flew out to the lake bed a few times but always climbed out there too. I saw Norm head south towards Magic Hill where he got some good climbs and he eventually got up enough to head to El Chante. Derek landed in the tall grass field near Pemex #2. I drove down to get the guys and we went for pizzas at Rueben's next to Casa de Marina. 11-29-16
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| Lake Chapala, Jalisco, Mexico Plenty of sunshine. High 26C. Winds W at 15 to 25 km/h. 3000 metres I was elected wind dummy and we decided to test the Gulley. It was cycling in but there were many lulls between the pulses, I could have a nice inflation but no pressure in the Zeno when I turned to launch. I did launch after a few test inflations and got a few bumps to the North but not much to turn in. As I was sinking to the North I went back to the Gulley but got nada, so I went further upwind to the South and found a small thermal near the powerlines but it fizzled and I was headed to a field close to a store that has New Mix. After I packed up, Norm launched and headed North as well and he was rewarded with a climb. Thirty minutes made all the difference. We lost sight of Norm and of course he never uses his radio for position reports, but he did call on the cell after he landed . . . back in san Juan Cosala. We heard Casper and Fabio were meeting at Kordich Airstrip so we went there and waited . . . and waited. Casper showed up at 2 pm, and finally Fabio at 4 pm but I did get to test my new DJI Drone in the airstrip. We drove up leading Fabio to the Gulley Launch but it was crossing from the West so we drove home. 11-28-16
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| Lake Chapala, Jalisco, Mexico Plenty of sunshine. High 26C. Winds W at 10 to 15 km/h. 3500 metres Now that Derek & Norm pimped up the lower launch formerly known as "Los Banos", now referred to as "The Gulley", we don't have to drive up to the Upper Launch as the road is quite rough. Norm and I seeded pasture grass here in 2015 and it took nicely after the rainy season, but it still took two days to cut the grass and weeds back as they grew to 2 metres over the summer.  "The Gulley" works if the winds are southerly, which they were today. Norm launched first and climbed up to 2000 metres quite fast.  Derek was up next and he too climbed nicely with the vultures.  As you can see in the pictures, there are no CUs here, just horsefeather clouds. I watched them head south along the Saddle and further towards the Magic Hill which tops out at 3000 metres. I drove down to front to get a better view of their progress and waited and lost sight of Derek as Norm led out south first. Norm got "Leading Out Points" but unfortunately he only "lead to the ground" as the lift was replaced with sink. Derek decided to extend his flight time and was headed back to the north as this happened on Magic Hill where it went light northerly using the sink. Back to the north the bowl was working and Derek climbed to 2700 metres and flew to Joco. I drove down to get Norm and then Derek in Joco. We drove back up at 4 pm but the winds had gone to "lame state" so off to Ajijic for some shopping where the boys scored a sweet BBQ chicken deal for dinner (under $10 CDN for 2 chickens and roast potatoes). Tomorrow looks strong, so I am sure they are gonna make me fly! 11-27-16
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| Lake Chapala, Jalisco, Mexico Sun and clouds mixed. High 25C. Winds light and variable. 3200 metres Lift was forecast by IBIS to be good to 3250 metres with light winds. I launched first at Tapalpa followed by Derek and we were joined by El Juevo on a tandem in front of Cero Gravidad Despegue. Light climb at first and then I hooked a good one to 500 metres over launch. As the lift stopped there, I headed north towards Tepec. Sinky glide to Tepec with 45 kph ground speed, so it was south in the air. I found a nice futball field for an LZ in case I bombed out just north of the bullring in Tepec. I also found a climb from 1750 metres ASL back to 2200 metres (launch height), which fizzled out so I headed towards the ridge to the west. Derek was just behin me but closer to the ridge and kicking trees. Unfortunately there was a plateau between me and the ridge and my shadow was getting pretty close, so i baled back to the Tepec thermal but it was not there so I just circled in zeros hoping and waiting as my bombout LZ was getting closer. I noted this LZ was bordered by boulders, and snaggy trees but it had a nice green grassy surface for packing up. I came in low over the north end and did one last turn over the northeast end before final and then I got bubbled up to 30 metres off the grass. I anticipated this event so my setup allowed me a tight 360 spiral dive into a flare. As I packed up Mr. Patient was scratching to the west of my LZ and he got climb to 2500 metres and safety. This is Derek's kind of day, light lift and no turbulence!  I walked back into Tepec to the store by the highway as Norm drove through Tepec looking for me. A can of New Mix Paloma awaited me at the store for rehydration after an hour of fun flying. We headed north stopping along the way to see how Derek was doing but he wa hard to see. He reported in at 3100 metres over the Cross, then 2900 over Cocobut Corner but we still could not see him. We finally saw him over the towers mid-crossing to the San Marcos Range at 2300 metres in a climb. We drove over to the Cuota and Three Bird Road to wait in the shade with Magic Hil in our view awaiting Mr. Patient's arrival.  Derek reported in a few times at 2900 metres on his way so he was looking good. We saw Derek dive onto the Magic Hill and he got nothing but sink. The winds here were North, which kills all ridge lift an makes big sinky lee air. We waited and watched all Derek's hard work fizzle in a few minutes, but he had a great flight!  After packing up in a thorny cornfield, Derek was back in the truck and we headed up to San Marcos to meet up with Camilo & Bob doing some tandems. Derek launched before the tandems were set up, spicy themals in front of launch but not much lift except one thermal to the north that Derek got up and away in.  As Derek flew overhead the winds on launch started to drop down and even blew over the back a few times, but the tandems got off as we drove down. Derek disappeared to the south but did call finally tos ay he flew over the back with about 20 metres over the ridgeline and he landed near the eastern Pemex Station, where I picked him up. Off to dinner at Gerard's new Italian Restaurant in Ajijic west just at sunset.  11-26-16
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| Agassiz BC Sun and clouds mixed. High 28C. Winds light and variable. 2700 metres The Suburban was still in storage but very dirty despite being under a roof all winter, and it would not start as the batterry was dead. New battery and full tank of fuel and I was driving to Chapala to meet up with Derek & Normando. The Bronco is finally primed and ready for paint and Yougi assures me it will be ready to drive home on December 10. There was a huge CU over the ridge driving to Colima so I was sure someone would be going XC there, See flight report below.  Colima XC Report - Benjamin flew from La Cumbre to Tecoman for a new south distance record over some nasty terrain. It is only 46 kms but it is ll ino seabreeze. He made it in 1:48!  11-25-16
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| Agassiz BC Sun and clouds mixed. High 8C. Winds light and variable. 700 metres 11-24-16
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|  Agassiz BC Rain. Amount 10 to 15 mm. Temperature steady near 7. 700 metres I am heading to Mexico tomorrow to get some of this action. Taken 7 years ago by Gerry LaMarsh at San Marcos near Chapala where Norm & Derek are wintering this year. Paraglide Holiday in Mexico from Gerry LaMarsh on Vimeo. 11-23-16
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| Agassiz BC Considerable clouds this morning. Some decrease in clouds later in the day. High 8C. Winds light and variable. 700 metres Martin launched first and got high to the North.  He was then followed by Claudia and they soared together.  Linda tried a few inflations but it was pretty strong so she wisely packed up. Dennie got "hoovered off" and disappeared into a cloud. Claudia stayed out of the clouds out front.  It was drizzling on my Zeno so I put it away as Claudia and Dennie went in to Riverside. Martin headed to Harvest Market where he was picked up by Kevin after hitting 1100 metres. Tapalpa Report - while we are wet and cold up here, Norm had his first valley crossing yesterday making it to San Marcos meeting the boys theee to drive them up for a glass-off flight. 11-22-16
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| Agassiz BC Cloudy. 30 percent chance of showers this morning. Rain beginning late this morning. Amount 5 to 10 mm. High 6. 700 metres 11-21-16
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| Agassiz BC Rain showers this morning with some sunshine during the afternoon hours. High near 10C. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%. 1200 metres Denis flew off first followed by Alex R and they soared the South Knoll near cloudbase but we could not see them. Claudia caught Alex kiting in the fog in this picture.  Dennie, Paddy and Claudia also flew with little luck finding lift. Kevin, Bev & I drove down after Kevin took this great photo of the "tractor beam" over Chilliwack . . . not motivated to get the gear wet before Mexico.  11-20-16
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| Agassiz BC Rain showers early becoming more intermittent for the afternoon. High near 10C. Winds NNE at 10 to 15 km/h. Chance of rain 60%. 700 metres 11-19-16
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| Agassiz BC A mix of clouds and sun early followed by cloudy skies this afternoon. High near 10C. Winds NE at 15 to 25 km/h. 700 metres Folks are telling me that there has been 45 rainy days out of the past 47 days, so I guess we did not miss much flying when we were in Australia. 11-18-16
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| Agassiz BC A mix of clouds and sun early followed by cloudy skies this afternoon. High near 10C. Winds NE at 15 to 25 km/h. 700 metres 11-17-16
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| Agassiz BC Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. High 8C. Winds light and variable. 1000 metres IBIS and CanadaRASP were conflicted with IBIS saying soarable winds and CanadaRASP saying light & variable . . . and it turned out CanadaRASP was correct with light to tailwinds. Add to that a ceiling that dropped down to 300 metres at times and it was a no go, with only Hunter showing up.  Martin N arrived later but I was heading in to the WCSC AGM by then. Claudia, Kevin, Alex flew Elk after the clouds cleared there. Claudia said it was "Super smooth and floaty sled ride from Elk to Kevin's school. Thought it was snowing but it was the snow on the boots blowing in my face.".  WCSC has a semi-new Board of Directors with most people staying on in one capacity or another. WCSC 2017 Board Members Please welcome our new President - Tyler Everyone else remains: Treasurer - Kirstie Web - Pedro Sites - Paddy Pemberton - Guy Memberships - Peter Great work by our pals at Revelstoke Paragliding, taking Rick Mercer for a flight this fall. 11-15-16
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| Sydney NSW Mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High 27C. Winds light. Chance of rain 100%. 1000 metres Our Australia 2016 Album is now up on Google Photos, much less user friendly than PicasaWeb Albums but you can click here to access them. 11-14-16
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| Sydney NSW Sun & Clouds during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High 27C. Moderate NW winds. Chance of rain 100%. 1900 metres It was gusty at noon so we went for lunch in the Village. NOAA said 2 pm it would lighten up to 15 knots, so we were back on launch to try again. The sky was pretty foreboding with black bottomed clouds and pretty gusty conditions so I did not even lay out the Zeno. Also no birds or local pilots after 4 days of rain & winds made me nervous to launch or even kite as the launch is rather tight.  11-13-16
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| Sydney NSW Sunny this morning, then mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High 27C. Winds NNE at 25 to 35 km/h. Chance of rain 100%. 1400 metres The walking trails are amazing with lookouts over sheer drops for 400 metres. We hiked the Cliff Trail for some time and then descended down into the rain forest to the Katoomba Falls. By this time my knees were crying in pain! We made it to the Vertical Railway, claimed to be the steepest in the world but it reminded me of St. Hilaire's old railway. We saw the Three Sisters rock formation from below the base, and from many other angles as we hiked the rim of the canyon.  Meanwhile it as blowing over 60 kph when we weren't in the lee. 11-12-16
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| Sydney NSW Scattered thunderstorms this morning, then mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High 27C. Winds NNE at 15 to 25 km/h. Chance of rain 100%. 1000 metres I picked out a Historic Guest House on BOOKING.COM and it was not cheap, but it was nice for relaxing. Built in 1902, it is pretty well maintained in the original glory . . . just with big screen TVs and wifi in the rooms. 11-11-16
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| Sydney NSW Sunny this morning, then mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High 27C. Winds SSE at 15 to 25 km/h. Chance of rain 100%. 1000 metres But the old saying is "Red sky at night . . . sailors delight. Red sky in morning . . . sailors take warning." And of course we had a red sunrise.  We did a morning hike down the beach and then drove to the south to a launch we found on Paragliding Map. These launch spots are pretty small slots in the bush usually just above the beach but offer up good soaring . . . if the winds are right. Today we expected SSE at 15 knots but we waited and waited and got nothing. It was launchable but it would be a quick ride to the beach and sand in the wings so we just watched the whales out front.  By the time we got back to the hotel it was thunderstorming and hailing with lots of lightning, what a show! 11-10-16
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| Sydney NSW Scattered thunderstorms this morning, then mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High 27C. Winds NNE at 15 to 25 km/h. Chance of rain 100%. 1000 metres 11-9-16
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| Sydney NSW Scattered thunderstorms this morning, then mainly cloudy during the afternoon with thunderstorms likely. High 27C. Winds NNE at 15 to 25 km/h. Chance of rain 100%. 1000 metres 11-8-16
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| Sydney NSW Thunderstorms expected. High near 31C. Winds NW at 15 to 30 km/h. 2800 metres The B&B owner here in Manila is a PG pilot and he said you can launch in these winds but it is never nice. I dropped in to FlyManila but no one was heading up and there was little action. Most pilots were either stuck in their campers or had gone into town for supplies. Colleen was on a conference call so I stayed out of the B&B for a few hours, and it was getting windier as the day went on. I know pilots have had good flights out of here, just not lately! But I am on vacation and we have done enough cloud chasing this trip so we are heading back towards the coast and then on to Sydney. 11-7-16
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| Sydney NSW Plentiful sunshine. High near 25C. Winds W at 15 to 30 km/h. 2800 metres The club has two tow planes and a huge grass runway and many nice hangars to store their gliders.  But today I watched them tow up and then return quickly as there was spotty lift to 7000 feet, like one thermal and no CUs.  I was feeling bad that the flying has been so poor for us but we are not the only ones, the OZ Leonardo has a few good flights in late October but none since then. At least it is warm and we are vacationing. 11-6-16
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| Sydney NSW Plentiful sunshine. High near 25C. Winds W at 15 to 30 km/h. 2800 metres 11-5-16
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| Sydney NSW Sunny skies for the afternoon. High 29C. Winds SSW at 40 to 60 km/h. 2800 metres We slept in late and had a late breakfast and the winds were howling all day long. I went shopping and Colleen was working in the motel so she can go flying as soon as the weather improves. I did find the world famous Golden Guitar, as this is a big venue for Country Music here in Tamworth.  We saw a big billboard advertising a show with the Beach Boys & the Temptations coming in Feb 2017! Tamworth is also famous for their Agricultural Shows and Horse Ranches, and I found one of the big supply shops and thought of Bev & Robin McC.  11-4-16
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| Sydney NSW Some clouds this morning will give way to generally sunny skies for the afternoon. High 29C. Winds NW at 10 to 15 km/h. 1100 metres We checked into a motel in Tamworth and I was being lazy but Colleen forced me to get in the car to drive to FlyManila Ranch to check out the scene and maybe get a flight. It was already 4 pm but I agreed and we headed off towards Manila with the Google Maps working most of the way there. Manila is the site of many regional and PWC Comps and is well setup for visiting pilots. Cabins for rent, outdoor swimming pool, and a large LZ . . . if you get high enough to fly back there. Also available is a ride service in one of the Borah Bashers, well worn Toyota Land Cruisers with 8 pilot seating and a trailer for gear. Well worn in every way interior, exterior and engine components as it wheezed up the dirt road to Launch with 8 of us in it.Manila is the site of many regional and PWC Comps and is wel setup for visiting pilots. Cabins for rent, outdoor swimming pool, and a large LZ . . . if you get high enough to fly back there. Local pilots gave us a site briefing on the way up pointing out bailout LZs. We arrived to launch to find two pilots in the air and doing okay, but not really high above launch. Strong cycles at launch but straight in as some pilots launched okay and others got dragged around. Fortunately launch is pretty huge so there was no drama or damage as they got dragged. Colleen had a nice lull and brought up her Swift 4 XS in a nice cycle but with a cravatte that cleared it self as she turned to launch. I was behind a fairly inexperienced pilot and waited for him to launch which took some time, but it was perfecct as 4 kangaroos arrived to watch us launch. Two adults and two Joeys and they were quite interested in the human flying beings. Not the least bit afraid.  I launched after the beginner pilot finally got off, and started climbing. Mostly ridge lift but there were some thermals mixed in. One of the plocals that gave us the briefing in the Basher had a Zeno that he had just received and I followed him around a bit but it looked more productive on the ridge. I found the lack of ridge rules a bit odd, pilots were more predictable at Stanwell Park than here but maybe they are very junior?  Colleen stayed pretty high further back on the ridge. We watched a few pilots top-land on launch, perhaps our driver Arnaud.  But as time went on we started to get lower and some pilots headed out front to the bailout LZ quite low. I wanted none of that on my Zeno! I headed east to the saddle and got some thermals there where I topped up a bit and then headed downwind toward Manila Ranch, fully expecting some rotor but mostly I just got some thermal bumps. It was a good test for stability on the Zeno and I had a few ratty spots but the Zeno stayed solid overhead. There is one cone shaped bump partway to the Ranch, that I went straight towards and it yielded some nice lift on the windward side but even better thermals on the leeside where I climbed an additional 200 metres and had a great vantage point of Colleen coming over the back too as she came underneath me. It was ratty and thermic over the LZ but kind of normal for us that have landed at Eagle Ranch mid-day. It also reminded me of going over the saddle at San Marcos in Jalisco Mexico. Colleen landed ahead of me, and I swooped in right beside her as other pilots came in behind us as we packed up.  One guy on a UP glider was one of the original pilots in the air and he said he got to 8500 feet a few times but it was a struggle. We were happy with our first flights here and we "did not suck" as we got enough height to come back to our car without paying for a retrieve. International Pilots - more info .. please read this : If you are coming for the XC camp, and indeed any XC flying in Australia now and in the future, you will need to have a VHF Airband radio endorsement to allow you to fly through some new areas called CAR166 airport zones. Of course you can fly through the areas as before, but if you dont have the endorsement AND you upload the flight to a online contest etc (or are in a comp) you will get penalised as there are pilots watching who have nothing better to do and just love to send the xc flight file to the authorities. These are small airports with almost no traffic, but the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) decided in its (un)wisdom to force all users to make calls on airband radios (VHF AM 118-136mHz) to improve safety and avoid mid-air collisions. Previously there was no need for this as everyone just looked out for each other typical for Class G airspace around the world. There has been no increase in air traffic nor any evidence of mid-air collisions or close calls. Almost nowhere else in the world has such requirements for such small airports. Yes its stupid (Bureaucrats are not known for their practical thinking ability !) Either way we are stuck with this situation almost uniquely in the world. It has recently effected the HG World Champs (in Forbes) as well for example. Most XC areas in Aus now have some of the zones which are a circle 10nm / 18kms radius around the tiny country airports/airstrips. We have some in NSW, and there are close ones to Bright, Corryong and others. In order to help out visiting pilots to Manilla I have a link to the study guide and can do the exams with you once here. We can then send in the the form which gets endorsed to your HGFA Visiting Pilot Membership. This doesnt cost anything except your time to study a little - (maybe on the flight over!) and do the exam (about 30mins). You will learn how to make proper radio calls to other aircraft just like a Cessna or Airbus pilot. Once you have the VHF Airband Radio Operators Endorsement you will have it for life..and wont need to do it again. Then you are Ok to fly in the zones here and in other countries where it is needed (of course you need a VHF AM airband radio as well). If you would like the study guide link pls email me : godfrey at flymanilla dot com Of course there are ways around the issue.. like uploading xc flights with a pseudonym, or dont upload at all...its the upload that is the issue as this provides official evidence that you were in the zones. In the Manilla XC region there are some zones like this approx 60-150kms out from take off in a few directions. You can easily fly around them if you plan ahead, but on a cracking XC day with great wind drift its a shame to waste time to fly around them. ALL visiting international pilots MUST have a HGFA Visiting Pilot Membership (VPM) to fly in Australia. Please also dont forget to do your HGFA Visiting Pilot m/ship online before you leave home.. www.hgfa.asn.au and click on the top menu bar "overseas pilots" .- Godfrey 11-3-16
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| Sydney NSW Plentiful sunshine. High around 25C. NW winds shifting to ENE at 15 to 30 km/h. 1100 metres We stopped at Shelly Beach partway to Newcastle for fuel and food and the sign by the ocean said the air temp was 27C and the water temp 20C and there were lots of surfers and swimmers out in the ocean. There is also a Launch spot near here called Crackneck Lookout so we had to go see it.  The winds were too light to soar and you have to do a mini-XC to the Beach area north as there are rocks and crashing surf below the launch. We continued on to Newcastle and when we arrived at the Hotel there was a paraglider soaring the beach near us! I didn't even know there was a site here in downtown Newcastle. We unloaded our suitcases and checked in and afterwards we went to the launch spot, right in the park in town.  The pilot we saw was back in the park where he toplanded and he gave us a site briefing before relaunching to show us where the lift was.  Brad (the local pilot) took off again and offered to show us the lift band, but quickly top-landed to say it had gone east and he was heading to another site.  But not before helping Colleen off with a helpful shove to endure she cleared the fence (which she didn't need as she popped off quickly into the lift).  I laid out my Zeno and despite this being a rotory cliff launch area, it came up fast and straight into the wind first try and I was stabilized and lifting off with no fear of touching the fence. I headed North to where Colleen had got highest (120 metres). Apparently it got stronger as we were flying as Colleen was only getting 3 kph on her Flytec Element but up to 18 kph on bar (Swift 4 XS). I had no penetration issues on the Zeno as I am heavily loaded.  We boated back and forth til we got bored and Colleen top-landed first between the statue and the trees. I had to go out over the surf to get down and through the lift band, before coming to land (the Zeno really floats although I only got to 100 metres today). Meanwhile . . . back in BC I saw Rod F and a few others from Squamish were flying Hedley to get out of the coastal rains. Looked nice there!  Woodrat Report - Derek & Normando are headed south to Mexico and they made a stop at Woodrat. Sunny and thermic as they flew to Longsword Winery.  I suspect there will be more reports coming in as they go through California. 11-2-16
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| Sydney NSW Sunny. High 23C. W winds shifting to NNE at 25 to 40 km/h. 1100 metres I arrived just before noon to see smoke in the distance leaning over with a SW drift, but there were gliders in the air . . . about 20 of mixed HG & PG all doing well and going far north.  With not much prodding I was soon in the air and soaring and thermalling northward too. It was more North wind than East but no problem penentrating on the Zeno. I got up to the top of the peaks and stayed above the locals and it got pretty crowded at times as some were ridge soaring and some were thermalling making the turns pretty close to each other. I felt a few bumps but overall it was quite smooth. There were tandems landing on the beach to the south, solo PGers were top-landing on or near launch and the odd HGers were also landing on the beach. I flew over the South Launch to check out the Hgers setting up and did a top-landing near there to avoid the rotor near launch that is mentioned on the HGFA Site Guide.. It was turning more Northerly but pilots kept launching in the rotor and doing fine once in the air, but their top-landings got a bit messy as they hit sink and rotor out front. No trees like Bridal or Woodside so it was still safe. After flying I got some fish & chips at the new restaurant right near launch and talked to some locals and they were all exclaiming how rough it was today in the air?? It was like a glassoff Woodside flight for me! They also mentioned the schools of whales out in the ocean that I completely missed. Maybe tomorrow I will see them when we return. 11-1-16
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| Sydney NSW Sunny. High 23C. W winds shifting to NNE at 25 to 40 km/h. 1100 metres But I had a nice tour of the city and a sereral hour nap to recharge before dinner with everyone at a Malaysian Joint. 10-31-16
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| Melbourne VIC Sunny. High 16C. Winds WNW at 15 to 30 km/h. 1800 metres We drove to a ridge site called Spring Hill which can be found on the local sites guide of the HGFA . Spring Hill is a NW facing ridge with a 4x4 road up to the launch areas. We were going to hike up but when we arrived the winds were as reported NW 30 gusting to 45 kph. Even the birds were having trouble getting upwind as it was very gusty. The site looks very nice though on a less windy day.  We arrived in Sydney around noon and got settled into the nice Adina Apartment Hotel as Colleen's next conference starts tonight. John and I went to Sydney Harbour for dinner and drinks by the Harbour Bridge, where one can go on a tour of the top of the bridge. John says they are hooked in with harnesses and ropes, but it looks quite daring.  Tomorrow looks windy from the west, and they only launch for west wind is in the Blue Mountains about 2 hours away so I will wait for East winds and Stanwell Park. 10-30-16
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| Bright VIC Rain. High 18C. Winds NNW at 25 to 45 km/h. 1800 metres 10-29-16
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| Bright VIC Plentiful sunshine. High 18C. Winds NW at 15 to 30 km/h. 1800 metres We found the LZ and saw about 20 gliders in the air, some at cloudbase around 2000 metres. Others just sledding out to the LZ.  Colleen talked to some of the pilots and they were done for the day as it looked like it would get strong and they were newbies. They advised just driving up was fastest as the shuttles were done for the day. The road up is not too bad, gravel and narrow in places but doable in the rental car. We arrived on top to see a few beginners in the air out front doing not too bad, but by the time Colleen got laid out and ready to fly they were all in the LZ.  A few other pilots were on launch and the PGers took off leaving Colleen and one lone lady HGer left on launch. Strong cycles rolled thru and then nothing, so it was not meteo wind rather just thermic cycles that were far apart. Colleen took off and got in a few turns but mostly it was a sledride out to the LZ. Odd that it was so good early on and then it shut down?  I drove down to the LZ and Colleen talked me into flying too, hoping it would get better. We saw several HG trucks head up too, so why not!  Apparently the Lady HGer that had taken off after Colleen had hit sink and "got flushed into the trees" (her version), and she was on the ground and okay walking out to the road. I suspect she was scratchig too close for the conditions and miscalculated the sink cycles (or was 360-ing instead of figure-8-ing. It was again strong cycles in the trees and then big lulls as I laid out the Zeno.  A HGer took off ahead of me and he was on the way to the LZ pretty fast. I had a nice inflation on the Zeno, but as I turned the Zeno shot forward pretty fast which I caught with a bit of skill and hard braking and forward momentum and I got sucked off launch. I caught some climbs out to the right of launch and got above launch for maybe 10 minutes as another HGer took off on a red Moyes glider. He was trying to thermal in some weird places as I stayed out front hoping the thermals would stay solid but the north winds were kicking in, not enough to ridge soar but enough to blow the thermals apart. After 15 minutes I headed out and it took forever to ge tdown as it was thermic over the LZ and about 30 kph of N wind. The red HGer was seting up over the bigger LZ where his buddy had landed earlier so I landed in the Active Tandem LZ where someone was kiting. As I came in on final a black & white bird did an angry pass at me, clearly not happy with my presence. Colleen was down just as I packed up so we went for lunch at a local brew Pub and then Colleen soaked her feet in the river. We headed back to our cozy motel but stopped at a winery for a tasting tour. Nice vacation so far! Later we went for dinner about a 2 km walk from the motel, where they have a limo service to take clients back home after wining & dining. The limo is a 1990 Lincoln stretch limo in really good shape.  Cross Country Mag had a nice article on Bright in 2014 10-28-16
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| Melbourne VIC Plentiful sunshine. High 18C. Winds SSW at 15 to 25 km/h. 1800 metres It was too south and too light but it was a nice place to soak up the sun and watch the surf. After a nap I headed back to pick up Colleen as her Conference ended at 5 pm and we were driving to Bright for the evening.  10-27-16
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| Melbourne VIC Plentiful Sunshine. High 18C. Winds SW 15 to 25 kph. 2000 metres I visited a few sites I found in the Paragliding Map App, but none seemed that good for layout or wind direction. I did find a nice lighthouse at Cape Schank where there is supposed to be a site.  At another site further east I met Luke and Alexis packing out a speed wing it was too cross and he was heading to Flinders Golf Course so I followed him.  When we arrived there were a few gliders in the air, and as we closer they were Speedwings, so it was strong. As it got lighter the speedwings sunk out and the pilots reappeared on their big wings, here is one on his Swift 4 after landing his Litespeed.  I watched a few more gliders take off and it got lighter so I laid out the Zeno on this small launch pad, kind of had to lay it cross wise to fit ala Cobra Launch style and I took off first try and started climbing above the lone HGer and about 5 other PGers. Odd that the aussies drive on the wrong side of the road, but they have the same ridge rule as us!  I flew for 30 minutes and then landed down on the beach as the rules state: No top landings or golf course landings. Oddly my new Spot Tracker only recorded the takeoff and landing, I have to check the settings. 10-23-16 to 10-26-16
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| Melbourrne VIC Woodside: Rain & occasional showers during the afternoon. High 10C. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%. 800 metres Colleen was smart and on a tight timeframe so she flew in a jet while I drove 8 hours. Nice fast highways but the kangaroo carcasses (over 50 in 600 kms) hows you that you should not drive at night! I got to Melbourne and our 5 Star hotel by dusk thankfully. The past few day here was spent shopping and orienting to the time zone and climate, with a few rainshowers. Colleen is busy at the conference so we just get to go out for dinners. 10-22-16
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| Agassiz BC Mostly sunny skies this morning will give way to occasional showers during the afternoon. High 13C. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%. 800 metres Claudia led a group of pilots up Elk on Saturday & Sunday and were rewarded with nice flights both days. 10-21-16
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| Agassiz BC Mostly sunny skies this morning will give way to occasional showers during the afternoon. High 13C. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%. 800 metres Kevin, Brad & Dave from Oregon flew Elk and had amazing flights with some +5 m/s thermals and cold conditions at 'base.  Kevin top-landed to warm up and then relaunched and they all flew to Brad's farm in Rosedale.  10-20-16
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| Agassiz BC Slight chance of a rain shower. High around 15C. Winds light and variable. 300 metres I did have some time to edit some footage from yesterday. 10-19-16
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| Agassiz BC Partly cloudy this morning, then becoming cloudy during the afternoon. Slight chance of a rain shower. High around 15C. Winds light and variable. 300 metres Linda tested the air for the boys launching first and she had some thermalling. Dennie & Kevin caught some lift too, but Kevin was flying my cheater wing - "Zeno" and stayed aloft for 45 minutes disapearing into the soup a few times.  The plan was for all of us to fly but Kevin's Alpina2 MS might not have kept my large frame in the air for that long so I drove down to save the retrieve time. |