tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90626509192167740612024-03-05T00:29:03.723-08:00Cu's and Schmoo Adventures flying paragliders around BC, Canada, and the world.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger648125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-50396203028249270012023-10-28T20:00:00.002-07:002023-11-03T16:45:54.202-07:00Woodside October 28-29, 2023<p> What a fantastic weekend for the end of October! It was lightly thermic for ~4-5 hours both days, and given that it was a weekend, lots of pilots were out. We had 25-30 on Saturday and 10-15 on Sunday, and most had 1-2 hour flights!</p><p><br /></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKbLQafQ1t7qA-ZOarE0CpHB1jOLzgQAQfr5Zif8TdTjBkS_VCUmz34WZfdy6hZp5hnWJzs_6b5Wi0tU2rXLRK1T2ZO02ZxgkmF7_r5QoKP4xszOCTAVYQFrMpemrUMJeFf9R8V2TDmA5V9MaWk2iHtxiu-2p1fJ7H_zAcz7zq3ddCwKZGCj2Qhd1dodmA/s4096/IMG20231028114120.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKbLQafQ1t7qA-ZOarE0CpHB1jOLzgQAQfr5Zif8TdTjBkS_VCUmz34WZfdy6hZp5hnWJzs_6b5Wi0tU2rXLRK1T2ZO02ZxgkmF7_r5QoKP4xszOCTAVYQFrMpemrUMJeFf9R8V2TDmA5V9MaWk2iHtxiu-2p1fJ7H_zAcz7zq3ddCwKZGCj2Qhd1dodmA/w640-h480/IMG20231028114120.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Relocating the Bridal LZ weather station to Woodside launch.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>All the bald eagles were out in force this weekend with most of them hanging out on the SE corner of the south knob. The prevailing winds were light east so it made sense, and that's also where most of the pilots found the best/most lift. The conditions on the Saturday were too east for top-landing, and on the Sunday it was difficult to get back to launch height in the first place.</p><p><br /></p><p>Thanks to Bev, Norm. and Ascent FV Guides for the shuttle service this weekend!</p><p><br /></p><p>And thanks to Tom Gregg for installing the not-being-used Bridal weather station at Woodside instead, to tide us over until we get newer weather stations sorted out. Now the Zak-o-meter is working again!</p><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-53703899060790520232023-10-26T21:00:00.003-07:002023-11-03T16:55:54.332-07:00Blanchard October 26, 2023<p> The forecast was calling for unstable conditions, but too much north for the Fraser Valley, but Blanchard was looking like a possibility as the north wind wasn't forecast to kick in there until the following day. So a group of 5 Canadians made the trek across the US border.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3jowIA7xn-u-hiAG4J89M2Fjh1ejgec5kWVDzuK8LrNIJ0U1illQd2NB8c8tOPUgFCG1g9C-3FB2uS9hsQUgO7Kfcivbw0A__fKgr7FD3usSWBQ_HmZuebEQOGvWJPGgXjZjCndCJy3Oe6ExaHLDOPI7vCliKiIY6laieY0wxhYsHEqowCIIpE364dW0-/s1766/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%204.52.02%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1766" height="556" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3jowIA7xn-u-hiAG4J89M2Fjh1ejgec5kWVDzuK8LrNIJ0U1illQd2NB8c8tOPUgFCG1g9C-3FB2uS9hsQUgO7Kfcivbw0A__fKgr7FD3usSWBQ_HmZuebEQOGvWJPGgXjZjCndCJy3Oe6ExaHLDOPI7vCliKiIY6laieY0wxhYsHEqowCIIpE364dW0-/w640-h556/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%204.52.02%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The RASP for Blanchard showed light north, OK when it's otherwise unstable, with stronger N wind the following day. So today was going to be the day, if at all!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p><p>Oodles of pilots out, 19 in total, and the north wind was in evidence but very light, so it was flyable on the west side. Hard to get high, launch is at 390m or so, and the highest I was able to get was 580m. So lots of traffic and had to keep your head on a swivel in order to avoid other pilots.</p><p><br /></p><p>Fortunately lots of birds around the NW side to help us out, but I don't think anybody got to cloud base. Eventually landed after 1.5 hours as my hands were getting cold!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF9ja80uaIuFHCximLAEKFbwXFk1x-N7PaBbIBSfrffu6JVKF000_9TzagdYNhDjuN7JdYD0tWqufoqDy5MnIR6mYLPT3ycWRZHzpsLl0mvAutidcSZ6QNMFPmmtL_Qq3-XTJWGyodLlsnZRxEGx643VgrsKwYanJQnHQz4OGyeSWJeGbepIJ7GUPEFmDA/s3757/IMG20231026145238.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2818" data-original-width="3757" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF9ja80uaIuFHCximLAEKFbwXFk1x-N7PaBbIBSfrffu6JVKF000_9TzagdYNhDjuN7JdYD0tWqufoqDy5MnIR6mYLPT3ycWRZHzpsLl0mvAutidcSZ6QNMFPmmtL_Qq3-XTJWGyodLlsnZRxEGx643VgrsKwYanJQnHQz4OGyeSWJeGbepIJ7GUPEFmDA/w640-h480/IMG20231026145238.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Light WNW on the water on the way to the LZ.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqmqkfn7vR3wNOm3GeUZkqGrET-8CYfDU6_BypThPUivZE__reWuu9T2PrPZpXdlF6tONbic2pIN9S5MNq_gn8nl13fEFyQoroAng-ULgu2YKNFL4Dv-N9Q29l9q2ijSAvS6HmHDONp72f-U2tBasbsvYvIau097u6-xKRiAJ_hwOS630EF1fhz81SXpQJ/s3757/IMG20231026145238.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-36297245728895513502023-09-30T18:00:00.001-07:002023-11-03T17:46:22.136-07:00Mt. St. Benedict September 30, 2023<p>The forest fire at Mt. St. Benedict was (finally) out so lots of pilots out today to enjoy one of the last warm summer days. North wind up high so the clouds were forming over the back and then spreading out in front of launch, creating lots of shade. But if you could get up, you could get high and then fly the shade/sun interface all along the Mt. St. Benedict-Dewdney range! And cloud base was somewhere in airspace, but it was cold enough you didn't want to get that high anyways! </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4oWoHUbif6LQZZQyS5expNycgfC3Fln7kO0HsbGYWzOomusQwe0h6Z4vNyeJcDxBjrYeDlbs9DJySFySle8AEUueImndGWNF8Grse_I4IxEWD73Albmoq3bB2mIp7B128rWnMXgAm4VxPVa3OTSabMW6uypX5RyJm_HgArIOzEj_Xqh3szvgaMAuUTLpG/s1758/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%205.41.27%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1524" data-original-width="1758" height="554" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4oWoHUbif6LQZZQyS5expNycgfC3Fln7kO0HsbGYWzOomusQwe0h6Z4vNyeJcDxBjrYeDlbs9DJySFySle8AEUueImndGWNF8Grse_I4IxEWD73Albmoq3bB2mIp7B128rWnMXgAm4VxPVa3OTSabMW6uypX5RyJm_HgArIOzEj_Xqh3szvgaMAuUTLpG/w640-h554/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%205.41.27%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">RASP for Mt. St. Benedict September 30, 2023. North wind up high.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The LZ had Danny Virtue's stunt horses inside, so they were not bothered by us landing at all, but there were lots of "horse presents" to avoid when packing up :) And it was very warm and peaceful in the LZ!</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSS15o08sO73pGjSN6dYnr5pH7rWIoxMmuJxsAiWYxxSLDBM7ZLNcJH_MAbG18uRctzgMcBUh1lzntABGWPl7alUTbkVKuM6YQ3wiJyPQPKDLTeKXMQ0Qi7TiQywoVEKnQLF3gRH6eHcCE6Cw5jnuC7V6tFzjurqzPirhZqpLwQP1kQwhfw3TNB3g7548/s4032/PXL_20230930_220347653.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSS15o08sO73pGjSN6dYnr5pH7rWIoxMmuJxsAiWYxxSLDBM7ZLNcJH_MAbG18uRctzgMcBUh1lzntABGWPl7alUTbkVKuM6YQ3wiJyPQPKDLTeKXMQ0Qi7TiQywoVEKnQLF3gRH6eHcCE6Cw5jnuC7V6tFzjurqzPirhZqpLwQP1kQwhfw3TNB3g7548/w640-h480/PXL_20230930_220347653.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lots of lift despite the cloud cover and north wind. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-1803820222019338262023-09-09T21:30:00.001-07:002023-11-08T12:56:05.478-08:00South Okanagan September 8-9, 2023<p> Headed to the South Okanagan for some late-summer flying as the fires had (finally) died down in the area. However after arriving on Upper Ripley, we discovered a new fire just behind launch and helicopter traffic. In the end I decided not to fly.</p><p><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaoWAkS8kPcxPnsTrlUG40L1n9Z_FngFlWXi3_jjxwdvVWcg_Y5xdFP03tetrknv3E5QbtnuQ0xdJVZnNwwj9GF2dXnh7oFAEmOyZcnqp8XNWW-lJ0zP-uD3sPFwsHr2wGIXDUumFI0WptFGzdWoB4KKCwALeqCv8QaCJOdlPftcJmvInByZCQTTmaIznu/s4096/IMG20230908114956.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaoWAkS8kPcxPnsTrlUG40L1n9Z_FngFlWXi3_jjxwdvVWcg_Y5xdFP03tetrknv3E5QbtnuQ0xdJVZnNwwj9GF2dXnh7oFAEmOyZcnqp8XNWW-lJ0zP-uD3sPFwsHr2wGIXDUumFI0WptFGzdWoB4KKCwALeqCv8QaCJOdlPftcJmvInByZCQTTmaIznu/w640-h480/IMG20230908114956.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upper Ripley, with a new fire starting up just the takeoff. I decided not to launch.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p>The following day the local pilots and myself decided to head to Anarchist instead as that was outside the restricted flying zone of the Upper Ripley fire. Note there is no official LZ for Anarchist at the moment...the golf course apparently does not want us landing next to the clubhouse. However there are several other nearby options (just not as convenient/nice grass!) or you can always go XC. Which is exactly what we did :). It was difficult to get higher than 1900m (launch is at 1100m) but that was enough to head north to Inkaneep valley and then fly over the Oliver racetrack.</p><p><br /></p><p>The original plan had been to land at the Oliver airport, so long as we arrived after 2:30pm. Rob had talked to the folks there and learned that at 2pm there was going to be a flyby of small military aircraft to honour a local airman. However unbeknownst to us they were running late...</p><p><br /></p><p>It was coming up to 3pm, Rob had just landed in a fallow field just short of the airport, and I was on glide for the airport, thinking of going for their nicer grass to pack up on, when I noticed a formation of planes taking off. Guess I'm not landing at the airport after all! So I had a front-row seat to the formation flyby below me (their first pass) and then above me (their second pass) as I quickly landed next to Rob to clear the skies for them. One of the highlights of that road trip for sure!</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/9.9.2023/20:17#fd=landing" target="_blank">20km flight from Osoyoos to Oliver. </a></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-63715473393985918612023-09-05T21:00:00.002-07:002023-11-03T17:11:59.145-07:00Woodside September 4-5<p> A mostly-cloudy day but rather unstable, a good day to fly, top-land, and directly compare gliders as I was further-test-flying a Lynx2.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitG3nVebiIItQH1NbwdxGnfz19dVtYbtb9S6HcBwpQR5EnSfXMbfheOVvk-5GOjKXI0MyyBvL3LDzekHnG6ODHmdBXHK5lulhQJAlfBvKz8sq6Pqzfe5ZGpurHbfFhoiaplVi0iiFweGEGslAcIWW8nC9a8H4sNcSLFopLb0gBvZWbHGgemLK7e2GS7RqL/s1766/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%204.52.02%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1766" height="556" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitG3nVebiIItQH1NbwdxGnfz19dVtYbtb9S6HcBwpQR5EnSfXMbfheOVvk-5GOjKXI0MyyBvL3LDzekHnG6ODHmdBXHK5lulhQJAlfBvKz8sq6Pqzfe5ZGpurHbfFhoiaplVi0iiFweGEGslAcIWW8nC9a8H4sNcSLFopLb0gBvZWbHGgemLK7e2GS7RqL/w640-h556/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%204.52.02%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Woodside RASP showing the overcast but concurrent instability.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p>Ultimately decided against the L2 as I didn't find it that different, performance-wise, from my current Swift6. So at this point better to stick with my current glider and keep looking.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHccpSMLs_mT03V-fykAO-zg75ycn2hxKJFY5hawH6vanRZzDQGSc6aUq1pbHz8evQQd4cQGW1opi56xAawxbwlh6HqCz8ZSkq2E8imVaBU7JypeZX7XL6Hbr2Ul7UNW4CmCY9lcN8eKnnyG3ndcz3K3U3aqpVa0Nd84ku1nvnvrbXrj6IQk_qAbsEiCod/s4032/PXL_20230904_230413897.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHccpSMLs_mT03V-fykAO-zg75ycn2hxKJFY5hawH6vanRZzDQGSc6aUq1pbHz8evQQd4cQGW1opi56xAawxbwlh6HqCz8ZSkq2E8imVaBU7JypeZX7XL6Hbr2Ul7UNW4CmCY9lcN8eKnnyG3ndcz3K3U3aqpVa0Nd84ku1nvnvrbXrj6IQk_qAbsEiCod/w640-h480/PXL_20230904_230413897.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kevin and myself flying under the overcast skies. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>The next day was a clearing one, forecast to blow out by early afternoon, and with the winds, looked like a possible "glass off" at the end of the day. First flight of the day, Martin N and I got off the hill early and flew to Agassiz via Cemetery Hill which was quite turbulent, most other pilots stood down as it got too windy on launch. For the second flight at the end of the day it was indeed glassing-off. Lots of happy pilots in the LZ!</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOK1IE3OEo2dKeN5u5UhM8mkD4AhsxzKl2nYwqSGTw6s9dh8dWLjHV19ZLQ22PFkv8y29KqIIdaIOlLG1yO2hgJ_n7HRXN9a6zmbLIU0y9war25hzGICWu47ZpmzH_5FdflEJAO-wfGOPWh0Wu3c0bbZb5bTzdut0_0r9s0p2PO2ABvjskKBD9JXoh9Tkd/s1754/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%205.04.20%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1524" data-original-width="1754" height="556" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOK1IE3OEo2dKeN5u5UhM8mkD4AhsxzKl2nYwqSGTw6s9dh8dWLjHV19ZLQ22PFkv8y29KqIIdaIOlLG1yO2hgJ_n7HRXN9a6zmbLIU0y9war25hzGICWu47ZpmzH_5FdflEJAO-wfGOPWh0Wu3c0bbZb5bTzdut0_0r9s0p2PO2ABvjskKBD9JXoh9Tkd/w640-h556/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%205.04.20%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Woodside RASP for September 5 showing the possible glass-off.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNrv67tNM5RnGy_iDsFGnfSHLH0cfDa58fnTdd8BVuF0htadhqbAy8nG7zfn89C1Mg0Rxeg07Kv-Tyk8uc35386FbpGXzjunGByxWpR-R0q5KZ7CXRxFsEyhzM2CJCvj_sVC4ZxpQ4pz4li7A0hv6HZKYkOc5cvxov6-79X6HxpcrUKmzV1sU-uAnkkNn/s4096/original_a5b05190-5f34-4248-a34e-d61160369f34_IMG20230905183525.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNrv67tNM5RnGy_iDsFGnfSHLH0cfDa58fnTdd8BVuF0htadhqbAy8nG7zfn89C1Mg0Rxeg07Kv-Tyk8uc35386FbpGXzjunGByxWpR-R0q5KZ7CXRxFsEyhzM2CJCvj_sVC4ZxpQ4pz4li7A0hv6HZKYkOc5cvxov6-79X6HxpcrUKmzV1sU-uAnkkNn/w640-h480/original_a5b05190-5f34-4248-a34e-d61160369f34_IMG20230905183525.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Enjoying the smooth lift as the sun was setting.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-83085406930770855442023-09-02T19:12:00.007-07:002023-11-08T13:03:32.940-08:00Bridal Falls September 2<p> A very stable day and hard to get away from launch. Climbed out to 1000m at one point, who-hoo! A good day to work on stable scratching skills...a group went to Cheam and had better flights.</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-28967544441716016302023-08-19T22:30:00.001-07:002023-11-08T13:26:27.839-08:00Bridal Falls August 19 <p>The day started out fine at Bridal with some light smoke and north wind. Usually Bridal north wind = possibly Cheam altitudes so we had a big crew out, and we were indeed starting to get high, but the north wind also brought in the smoke from the inland fires, which started to impact thermic strength. Those of us at the Butterfly had to be patient to get high enough to make it back. The lower we got, the thicker the smoke got and the less thermal strength, if we could stay high we were OK.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKNio_UN0MWwjZDsUTaXWFTBx8QEhHSd9RHYSHEqF_PBxbB-08scKFampddob-Oe2KJFcRcpIwxpkwJADU0U84Li3rzwqaddN4AvQGQ4XLfSIm9fh5A2cTsB7fTu1HBlW3o73kWmRyWaCmvnAA59jPL5A8Jvib_JOyBY-qfASjTEtZIw-Vv01obw9BtIkp/s1768/Screenshot%202023-11-08%20at%201.06.10%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1530" data-original-width="1768" height="554" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKNio_UN0MWwjZDsUTaXWFTBx8QEhHSd9RHYSHEqF_PBxbB-08scKFampddob-Oe2KJFcRcpIwxpkwJADU0U84Li3rzwqaddN4AvQGQ4XLfSIm9fh5A2cTsB7fTu1HBlW3o73kWmRyWaCmvnAA59jPL5A8Jvib_JOyBY-qfASjTEtZIw-Vv01obw9BtIkp/w640-h554/Screenshot%202023-11-08%20at%201.06.10%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Unstable at Bridal with north wind forecast</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>A really interesting day of observing how the arriving smoke impacted thermic strength. </p><p> <a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/19.8.2023/23:00" target="_blank">Smokey day at Bridal</a>.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3R9f4OMhleTGBRHX4BAAdWNsQNjzZKaeltn-duq7_106uAHpzdCV_vI0Iz9Q_G5-8k9vOY_A4owD08Tp_tLVEa16gKYK965DFFkxKOCpqy-TiB93DOD56bnJV4BUI-clrdAFL68_717yxJZXoTPc9GKKwjBqatLmJxqaCfuTzqtwLxEXU72M_cU4uYeMa/s4096/IMG20230819182326.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3R9f4OMhleTGBRHX4BAAdWNsQNjzZKaeltn-duq7_106uAHpzdCV_vI0Iz9Q_G5-8k9vOY_A4owD08Tp_tLVEa16gKYK965DFFkxKOCpqy-TiB93DOD56bnJV4BUI-clrdAFL68_717yxJZXoTPc9GKKwjBqatLmJxqaCfuTzqtwLxEXU72M_cU4uYeMa/w640-h480/IMG20230819182326.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Smoke is worsening, time to land!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-6261724078930567832023-08-04T19:11:00.095-07:002023-11-25T19:32:18.464-08:00Pemberton McKenzie to Copper Mound overnight Vol-bivy August 3-4<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Alex and I embarked on a short road trip and with the RASP showing light SW winds and it being the height of summer (so less snow up high) we decided to do a Copper Mound overnight vol-bivy.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">But it's a short flight to the vol-bivy site, so you don't actually want to fly there too early. Earlier in the day it'll still be nuking and very difficult to top-land. So instead a bunch of us decided to head towards Whistler. However the south wind was a bit stronger that anticipated, getting up on Signal Hill was slow with the climbs hard to find, and once up at cloudbase around 2950m, flying south over Rutherford River was also slow.</span></p><p></p><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbgmZCjH95j-IBo6ar_8KbHdq2MSmGSjHU5yUiEUjs3F1B-Cbe4lZxFASCm89wBuBGXSNTyUkW2Cm3k6H8xfOQ6pdbzcDvOJpV-WDplN9T61p1llS1oIT2h7QPvqwm8sXIa5tcbjCMSLhXRDodm8s6JJK9CQJZ5iQONvGF0ascpjB-vqIzDc1AQP2qIIFB/s1764/Screenshot%202023-11-25%20at%207.09.46%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1526" data-original-width="1764" height="554" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbgmZCjH95j-IBo6ar_8KbHdq2MSmGSjHU5yUiEUjs3F1B-Cbe4lZxFASCm89wBuBGXSNTyUkW2Cm3k6H8xfOQ6pdbzcDvOJpV-WDplN9T61p1llS1oIT2h7QPvqwm8sXIa5tcbjCMSLhXRDodm8s6JJK9CQJZ5iQONvGF0ascpjB-vqIzDc1AQP2qIIFB/w640-h554/Screenshot%202023-11-25%20at%207.09.46%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">MacKenzie RASP for Aug 3. Unstable and high!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Those ahead of me reported strong south winds so were turning back, so I did so as well, enjoying the snowfields on top of Ipsoot and flying the Miller side to Camel Hump, where I jumped the valley over to the MacKenzie side and climbed up to Copper.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">It was still pumping there and Paddy had managed to topland but I opted to land in the amphitheatre down below. Even getting down there was a struggle and was definitely advanced-level active piloting, as it was strong enough to be ridge-soarable on the small ridge leading to the lake, and if you allowed yourself to get blown back, you would be in the rotor and dragged into the sharp rocks and water...and to actually get down required lots of wingovers and keeping the glider open as the gusts came through.</span></p><p></p><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoWC2YKbIMynC1NslpUyAdxgE5TOBEKKId-DpjZMXNKYd59XbluuZrVfyQIGZKodh0ydUZgFuGk3aXhCDjjlKMpPiBQP7_TTFYNh07Gm7NibqeVqGlKHLs-AFBryDW7x-tyjwBEPU8h_hsa3VZ5GalVHN4-L_YmdKNdc_FICOzx136AYCY9OPy7PJiE9KW/s4032/PXL_20230803_220921644.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoWC2YKbIMynC1NslpUyAdxgE5TOBEKKId-DpjZMXNKYd59XbluuZrVfyQIGZKodh0ydUZgFuGk3aXhCDjjlKMpPiBQP7_TTFYNh07Gm7NibqeVqGlKHLs-AFBryDW7x-tyjwBEPU8h_hsa3VZ5GalVHN4-L_YmdKNdc_FICOzx136AYCY9OPy7PJiE9KW/w565-h424/PXL_20230803_220921644.jpg" width="565" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">At the Rutherford valley looking west. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Eventually though I got down followed by a handful of other pilots who were also planning to vol-bivy. And once up at the camping spot (where Paddy had landed) it was indeed too strong to safely land, it was only 4:45pm and we were expecting things to stay strong until at least 6 or 7pm.</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Zm3Fq-jAZOsNl3HJwMBWw4iGaNCKDW0OQI3jjZ9yhzHjDNrvZlvHCB-1mfSoa7hInfuP0b1DP9NYMARWe39Aws1-c5c80S5MZMeQ1a-jZF1dQeED7AMTXEXhZX_t6NbPS4nrIEC51s0eQfzeFMGB9lG1YVbqrjNsZ911t71UwUWchXOnvYljEN4Aud__/s4032/PXL_20230803_234346999.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Zm3Fq-jAZOsNl3HJwMBWw4iGaNCKDW0OQI3jjZ9yhzHjDNrvZlvHCB-1mfSoa7hInfuP0b1DP9NYMARWe39Aws1-c5c80S5MZMeQ1a-jZF1dQeED7AMTXEXhZX_t6NbPS4nrIEC51s0eQfzeFMGB9lG1YVbqrjNsZ911t71UwUWchXOnvYljEN4Aud__/w640-h480/PXL_20230803_234346999.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Flapping it in to the amphitheatre below the vol bivy site at Copper Mound. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.<br /></span> </td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/3.8.2023/19:31" target="_blank">Flight From Pemberton to Rutherford valley and then to Copper Mound</a>.</span><br /><br /><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It was a beautiful sunset (as usual!) and the mosquitos were actually not that bad for early August. Had an awesome sleep in the alpine and discovered grizzly bear tracks the following morning at the amphitheatre lake, fortunately they don't usually appear at the vol bivy site and prefer to stay lower down in the subalpine where there is more greenery.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5pXEyXE97W4wzGQ2OUoTVka0d8BUDWnsQ1FB86eDU4PVFqUmo4JgXpJHXwaaNeR8jg0nx28Rs79bkDm2D989Gx5abpAHsm_eqQjShkGZ7LAcy-9vGyPNBg956ozbq7tMlHzNpN5PWiSW2a7r0FVTn_-NUOO0Utre1yGbE3XS_iu6mFNmhgM7r7x2ChqAY/s4032/PXL_20230804_034116255.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="437" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5pXEyXE97W4wzGQ2OUoTVka0d8BUDWnsQ1FB86eDU4PVFqUmo4JgXpJHXwaaNeR8jg0nx28Rs79bkDm2D989Gx5abpAHsm_eqQjShkGZ7LAcy-9vGyPNBg956ozbq7tMlHzNpN5PWiSW2a7r0FVTn_-NUOO0Utre1yGbE3XS_iu6mFNmhgM7r7x2ChqAY/w583-h437/PXL_20230804_034116255.jpg" width="583" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Sunset at Copper Mound, closing in on 9pm!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />It was a slow start to the day as the SW wind was taking its time arriving, and we didn't launch until just after 12pm (usually we would launch anytime after 9am)! But once in the air we were able to stay up on the south sides of the various ridges, and leapfrog our way to Mt. Barbour and cloudbase at 3100m.</span></p></div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQT1ImFx7hxNwx3CQIzvAiDNZyDS-zLs4MUN7tqeDn647jgE6hZN4CYkJwDo_GuG1jV6rgYTU6Ck_jnPHUUMo2ZKAJSXxyK2l3_X5yxTZ6x-saY8FDuHt4iCFjU7EXDNcyRBBx_wRmfv_8S91b8H65qoAAVo33igiVJwydXzDEgTy-OzAbZw6xlkm2psf-/s1758/Screenshot%202023-11-25%20at%207.11.04%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1530" data-original-width="1758" height="556" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQT1ImFx7hxNwx3CQIzvAiDNZyDS-zLs4MUN7tqeDn647jgE6hZN4CYkJwDo_GuG1jV6rgYTU6Ck_jnPHUUMo2ZKAJSXxyK2l3_X5yxTZ6x-saY8FDuHt4iCFjU7EXDNcyRBBx_wRmfv_8S91b8H65qoAAVo33igiVJwydXzDEgTy-OzAbZw6xlkm2psf-/w640-h556/Screenshot%202023-11-25%20at%207.11.04%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Hurley Pass RASP (closest to Copper) for August 4. Another light wind day!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Alex was ahead of me and had crossed to the Miller side, and was reporting that is was not working very well over there; I was partway across myself when I heard, so decided to turn around and continue on the MacKenzie side. That early in the day, the only spot really working would be around Owl Peak, and after searching for a few passes I was able to get up high enough to make the glider to the LZ and the car.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Other pilots who came after me did get up on the Miller side and continued to Whistler, so it turned into quite a good day for them. I wasn't really bummed however as I was quite hungry after spending the morning on Copper, so was happy to go for a swim, eat, repack my vol-bivy gear, and relax in the shade in the LZ. A nice chill way to end an alpine sky-camping adventure!</span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtKNNLn0ZtKbC_D2kmzRd8gAHegGiw1KSMjvPbTz1JQTWVqptri0xodT09JKVAPx3zv6N3bX-Ioa36RI9a501piLQtO64-jc1x87HfmYze9vyd8cZSY65m1W11L0QG44NfT3sFe82KMVrA74jb9hj2uhhwNsOfDJHL_6CLdn6lxKBrxIP-0pk4HnCLlqeA/s4032/PXL_20230804_031128786.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="433" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtKNNLn0ZtKbC_D2kmzRd8gAHegGiw1KSMjvPbTz1JQTWVqptri0xodT09JKVAPx3zv6N3bX-Ioa36RI9a501piLQtO64-jc1x87HfmYze9vyd8cZSY65m1W11L0QG44NfT3sFe82KMVrA74jb9hj2uhhwNsOfDJHL_6CLdn6lxKBrxIP-0pk4HnCLlqeA/w577-h433/PXL_20230804_031128786.jpg" width="577" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Evening soaring session at Copper Mound and the vol bivy site.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/4.8.2023/19:13" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: medium;">Flight from Copper to Pemberton.</span></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-8738104752431169982023-07-27T19:10:00.006-07:002023-11-03T18:02:53.704-07:00Bridal Falls July 27<p> A stable day at Bridal as there was more cloud shading the sun than we expected. But after 30 minutes I was able to get high enough to topland and save Rob S from having to retrieve his truck.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8i8GDJgNXBDWhw5E8rCkmlIHqF0_XB40PiQx5P5ATX1hhqugMOORn_I9clA-TivtbmbE-1yowb3oDptM8mSQWHz5tT2xp2geprcRZDq8Sqgb9RrkQ08uWPIIGdLe7twIkLtCjRo6P9suefjnA-Z_sQcqGFbZPrmzMj6FeJGN3uMStbyhqr1MXX-tLkCe7/s4032/PXL_20230728_013233102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8i8GDJgNXBDWhw5E8rCkmlIHqF0_XB40PiQx5P5ATX1hhqugMOORn_I9clA-TivtbmbE-1yowb3oDptM8mSQWHz5tT2xp2geprcRZDq8Sqgb9RrkQ08uWPIIGdLe7twIkLtCjRo6P9suefjnA-Z_sQcqGFbZPrmzMj6FeJGN3uMStbyhqr1MXX-tLkCe7/w640-h480/PXL_20230728_013233102.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After I top landed, it actually got a bit better so Tom was also able to topland and retrieve the other truck that showed up with a second load of pilots.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-78395032461933600602023-07-16T15:00:00.167-07:002023-10-21T19:10:11.628-07:00Macedonia July 11-16, 2023<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">After a week of flying in Drama, it was time for us to relocate to Krushevo in North Macedonia for a week of unstructured self-guided flying. </span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibzgeePCCU2cxCUK9s9bas_mybkHfWk7k7HXFLAtsPjcpzlN7H7Q8q4y5HUKxNBpngFXr5qoyLFDhFuAH-2_pknq6w0yJiTwXSRFy46TfgNmKj8bIW9JYSUWLv7D_o88Zh_hEYGJwHq2wdbW915cKNKHQ4JMSGTziQtF6TagyPaoncoXCYtsu8B3icx728/s4032/PXL_20230711_104809408.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibzgeePCCU2cxCUK9s9bas_mybkHfWk7k7HXFLAtsPjcpzlN7H7Q8q4y5HUKxNBpngFXr5qoyLFDhFuAH-2_pknq6w0yJiTwXSRFy46TfgNmKj8bIW9JYSUWLv7D_o88Zh_hEYGJwHq2wdbW915cKNKHQ4JMSGTziQtF6TagyPaoncoXCYtsu8B3icx728/w640-h480/PXL_20230711_104809408.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Krushevo is the highest town in North Macedonia, and one of the highest in the Balkans.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div style="text-align: left;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Now, it’s difficult to get from Drama to Krushevo via public transit…there used to be trains and a bus, but since Covid those have gone away, or involve an all-day ordeal of bus transfers and missing connections. A</span><span style="font-family: arial;">nd since North Macedonia is not in the EU (whereas Greece is), most car rental companies will not allow you to drive between the two countries. </span><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial;">So you either have to fly from Thessaloniki to Skopje and then backtrack via bus/taxi anyways, or hire a driver to take you directly.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc8VU-yYK0EDFjtqjAA_TGYp2RJWFQZFfuMSzumAe5opdvEZoFRNg5T9b10R1JvQMb9IqyRoc4Vo-YHueYwlUMf_7nHYziYrK45G96nT_hKUPVUTKLOYa48veOzdW5qlXCj1eP6FZ3RnmbaJsLwr6pKMvK-4bboXbVmg9bKpEqOqUAfpDmkRU1R7VDeocV/s4032/PXL_20230711_124737028.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc8VU-yYK0EDFjtqjAA_TGYp2RJWFQZFfuMSzumAe5opdvEZoFRNg5T9b10R1JvQMb9IqyRoc4Vo-YHueYwlUMf_7nHYziYrK45G96nT_hKUPVUTKLOYa48veOzdW5qlXCj1eP6FZ3RnmbaJsLwr6pKMvK-4bboXbVmg9bKpEqOqUAfpDmkRU1R7VDeocV/w640-h480/PXL_20230711_124737028.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Flying the flats north of Krushevo. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p></div><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">I contacted the local school in Krushevo, “<a href="https://paraglidingmacedonia.com" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Paragliding Macedonia</span></a>”, and got the contact for a local driver, who drove to Thessaloniki airport to pick us up, and drove us back across the border to North Macedonia and onwards to Krushevo. For this service (up to 3 pilots in the car) it was a total of 150 Euro. It was a great decision as our driver spoke the local language and was able to get us through the land border with minimal fuss (although there was a lot of gesticulating and animated language between our driver and the border guards…not quite sure why!).</span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Ih8Y5oN9wzOCSGe8uPWufEGl50_1pETeEuzcH742d_ZehQ7l72k0owXN4vC1T0Tfg38TlqyOHsMEFXIyb9Tb1H1tBBKo-ktMzWMC7Gf75aSWKNQjY-4vS3aFLG9npms4wKIxgEWi4hAP9AxDQGZgkhakp5tCXXsWQWRBjToUJJC-3-dtQ11Cxh66x_Zg/s4032/PXL_20230715_105341733.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Ih8Y5oN9wzOCSGe8uPWufEGl50_1pETeEuzcH742d_ZehQ7l72k0owXN4vC1T0Tfg38TlqyOHsMEFXIyb9Tb1H1tBBKo-ktMzWMC7Gf75aSWKNQjY-4vS3aFLG9npms4wKIxgEWi4hAP9AxDQGZgkhakp5tCXXsWQWRBjToUJJC-3-dtQ11Cxh66x_Zg/w640-h480/PXL_20230715_105341733.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If you show up at Krushevo in the summer, chances are you'll run into a comp! <br />Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</span><br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Krushevo itself is situated up high above the Pelagonia valley at 1350m ASL, which means you can be a bit cooler, temperature-wise; as well you are already at launch altitude and it’s a short 10 minute drive to the main takeoff. Many pilots stay at the <a href="http://www.montanapalace.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Montana Palace Hotel</span></a>, but this is situated outside the main part of Krushevo so you’ll be walking for any restaurants/food/groceries/ATM, so I think it’s better to stay closer to the town centre. Most pilots will eat at the “Skar” restaurant (which does breakfast as well as lunch and dinner), located in the town centre next to the church.</span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9VLYN9O0TVypc3d-5LTXAMAC1LiSy__FlrliJ6cd17PW9e83L8F88fDDxwY-snIQExybqXDXnJBQsbwaxKyyZZT-4RxQy5QBw2LTdMbbQuL82Qi3OMCAqXz3lG6PNVHwU2gfpuiUbV3OCkncetOh2o2sQc7B1EB1efZnsEjrYOOrFoQ4tyAVI9dXMR8s/s4096/IMG20230716154151.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9VLYN9O0TVypc3d-5LTXAMAC1LiSy__FlrliJ6cd17PW9e83L8F88fDDxwY-snIQExybqXDXnJBQsbwaxKyyZZT-4RxQy5QBw2LTdMbbQuL82Qi3OMCAqXz3lG6PNVHwU2gfpuiUbV3OCkncetOh2o2sQc7B1EB1efZnsEjrYOOrFoQ4tyAVI9dXMR8s/w640-h480/IMG20230716154151.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Arriving back at Krushevo after a triangle, to topland in the fields behind town.</span><br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">There are 2 takeoffs just outside Krushevo, and any taxi can take you there. You can usually find a taxi near the “Roma” pizza restaurant, or inquire at the local paragliding info centre to see if they have any shuttles. It’ll cost around 300 MKD / 5 Euro. The <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/E6J2ypSEVL347bLX7" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">main takeoff faces east</span></a> and is the main comp/XC launch, with space for ~10 pilots to launch simultaneously, shade and benches to hang out under, and often a vendor selling water/snacks. There is also a bathroom and water spigot which is unlocked for comps (and chances are, if it’s summer, there will be a comp going on!). If, for some reason, it’s blowing over the back, or you want to fly later in the day, you may need to visit the other side of the ridge, facing west, where the <span style="color: #0b4cb4;"><a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/udaJCCVgxZ5hz9G96" target="_blank">smaller alternate takeoff is located</a>.</span></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe47bSXUuD3uZ6W5_AyudqpEaLo24v26oe0z63HjmQ4hoh4_1RWwNrt7Sitft1Eq-qaQwz3HX5iqLh4KzxnwX9cAMabrQsC7ecdFuDkXa1_B_ZC7T3F7tfZmRAdGoRyqwG2ckrtiKzSX6APYz5PoLXvVrVJR8dNyxhRm3yjM2FbFHbhchuSCy4lhvw2v9O/s4032/PXL_20230715_122357398.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe47bSXUuD3uZ6W5_AyudqpEaLo24v26oe0z63HjmQ4hoh4_1RWwNrt7Sitft1Eq-qaQwz3HX5iqLh4KzxnwX9cAMabrQsC7ecdFuDkXa1_B_ZC7T3F7tfZmRAdGoRyqwG2ckrtiKzSX6APYz5PoLXvVrVJR8dNyxhRm3yjM2FbFHbhchuSCy4lhvw2v9O/w640-h480/PXL_20230715_122357398.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Lots of clouds and pilots to mark the thermals on the flats! <br />Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</span><br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">As Krushevo is mainly an XC/comp flying site, most pilots fly out-and-returns to the south or north, or big triangles to the other side of the valley near Prilep. There is also a flying site just below the <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/BRAwJM7J5WmzuDoB8" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Treskavec Monastery</span></a> above Prilep for afternoon/west wind.</span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicNdMVy4Kqy6u_XEEShAZTuuZnRruB402EqeyU2SNxNJqE-MQDc1dNpKbDjvteR291EEvOscL4TgCWmRlOD3-RbHQABU_KNaTsAtG432y_GFuXj6V_k0ME0eVHIPVhIf_WsA1N6r-V3M0f2H5FsJhOJOHS5OK2TEWIQBxTe4hsaSrqw4O0GFcqgxfkJ6xp/s4032/PXL_20230714_095716197.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicNdMVy4Kqy6u_XEEShAZTuuZnRruB402EqeyU2SNxNJqE-MQDc1dNpKbDjvteR291EEvOscL4TgCWmRlOD3-RbHQABU_KNaTsAtG432y_GFuXj6V_k0ME0eVHIPVhIf_WsA1N6r-V3M0f2H5FsJhOJOHS5OK2TEWIQBxTe4hsaSrqw4O0GFcqgxfkJ6xp/w640-h480/PXL_20230714_095716197.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Lake Ohrid swimming. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.<br /></span><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">You have the choice of either mountain or flatland flying, or both, depending on stability and cloudbase. Most pilots opt to fly the mountains first, and then when the first Qs start popping out on the flats, head out there, before returning to <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/yGVdbS3q9LSx58C97" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">land at one of the LZs at the base of the road</span></a> leading back up to Krushevo. While we were there (late June) the flatland lift was plentiful even if there were no clouds to make things obvious. You can fly quite far north until you hit the mountain range bordering Skopje, at which point you can commit to going deep (maybe for vol-bivy) or follow the curve of mountains around to the east.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/16.7.2023/10:04" target="_blank">Typical triangle flight from Krushevo.</a><br /></span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMdP9bbN-X96uVPqTxVz6ZUUwnvvJsUyTdCyyxtSwllasP9pKoItK3Ea8xGETemvFQRZC1cN3pz9qyzwDt0ZQD4Wurar_F-bRXyDeRgyMTCI0-2fWmM9wF8wsZcaFqnKJK5rDtBLhMVlCjf5wh0rRq3ghsclrNjS9xErqQ3SpJ7xMO0juiDFaZ4zkfyoX/s4096/IMG20230714143128.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMdP9bbN-X96uVPqTxVz6ZUUwnvvJsUyTdCyyxtSwllasP9pKoItK3Ea8xGETemvFQRZC1cN3pz9qyzwDt0ZQD4Wurar_F-bRXyDeRgyMTCI0-2fWmM9wF8wsZcaFqnKJK5rDtBLhMVlCjf5wh0rRq3ghsclrNjS9xErqQ3SpJ7xMO0juiDFaZ4zkfyoX/w640-h480/IMG20230714143128.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Lake Ohrid launch in Galicica National Park.<br /></span><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">If you want a change of scenery, you can always head to Lake Ohrid for some freshwater beaches or the resort town (we hired a local driver); there are actually flying sites there too! The one we went to is in Galicica National Park; there is a small kiosk at the bottom of the road up and a person charging entry (I think it was 100 MKD per pilot). Stop at the St. George chapel on the side of the road, and <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/wj1qvTXw4JesC7hL9" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">launch will be anywhere in the meadow below the hairpin turn</span></a>.</span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEH9GPE3u8ETVvbyiJGYyhh7v8IAlHyhg_3nkG-fA42Pm6lR1Sa0OxXkPtrEHEzXhe-xI3MFiGnKSURYHPl6lp0HMsGIjfM4rY22hsXlhv0XFD0SH9srAZrrr7QMFT4debNPsUAGluiN6jchESPCBsVYfcmAUdJyIEe5G_qZqzNXYU2zMjNWGHY8NKIKU6/s4096/IMG20230714161101.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEH9GPE3u8ETVvbyiJGYyhh7v8IAlHyhg_3nkG-fA42Pm6lR1Sa0OxXkPtrEHEzXhe-xI3MFiGnKSURYHPl6lp0HMsGIjfM4rY22hsXlhv0XFD0SH9srAZrrr7QMFT4debNPsUAGluiN6jchESPCBsVYfcmAUdJyIEe5G_qZqzNXYU2zMjNWGHY8NKIKU6/w640-h480/IMG20230714161101.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Lake Ohrid: the border with Albania just ahead of me.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Be aware there are powerlines to the north of launch and if you get up and behind launch and then low, you may need to topland back there. Not a big deal, you can just relaunch from there, but it is in a bit of a venturi, so if it’s forecast to be windy, it’ll be windier here. Plan accordingly! There is an <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/bNzoxj93tvAwJ6d19" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">official LZ</span></a> in one of the few fields between the mountain range and the Lake, or there are 3 beaches at the south end of the Lake. According to the local tandem pilots, don’t land at the closest beach. Choose the farthest-from-launch, and be prepared to avoid sunbathers, cars, bushes, etc. But it’s very nice to land and be able to just jump in the water to cool off!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/14.7.2023/12:53" target="_blank">Lake Ohrid flight.</a><br /></span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwjVO1IzdG6Oc2zT3tlv3NwjbWu9t7_GE3xmNS4ddStis58Qv5fgPtCq5qLD2ala5UuJrXo4ZhZCnKpgFGwYIp6j5mQ4fzkjqegL_asGSyf76QH25wte9Tl4YA-L9XJESgMBGQJMqjX4KqTstBMPHi6HCaVrMKDedy1MT83eGe7b21ysyCi5cYQ3WfmXhF/s4096/IMG20230714161128.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwjVO1IzdG6Oc2zT3tlv3NwjbWu9t7_GE3xmNS4ddStis58Qv5fgPtCq5qLD2ala5UuJrXo4ZhZCnKpgFGwYIp6j5mQ4fzkjqegL_asGSyf76QH25wte9Tl4YA-L9XJESgMBGQJMqjX4KqTstBMPHi6HCaVrMKDedy1MT83eGe7b21ysyCi5cYQ3WfmXhF/w640-h480/IMG20230714161128.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The beach landings at the south end of Lake Ohrid.<br /></span><br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1oUeqLcOnqlpKV3E3_Iac01l1i3S2SOGRcOX5zZH_xXHLB0EKnc0gftxCvpJeehajqL4Yx7gUGz9cpIsFqramVztXWD5saHp4FgTocRhNmo8Awju4CA92AN1TG7FpdPOJv6vujkUeEU4f26fRGvRCgnhnUayNbolyLvRdgUH5WRdUkm5KlqXSEtBeFy0U/s3869/PXL_20230714_155703154.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2849" data-original-width="3869" height="472" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1oUeqLcOnqlpKV3E3_Iac01l1i3S2SOGRcOX5zZH_xXHLB0EKnc0gftxCvpJeehajqL4Yx7gUGz9cpIsFqramVztXWD5saHp4FgTocRhNmo8Awju4CA92AN1TG7FpdPOJv6vujkUeEU4f26fRGvRCgnhnUayNbolyLvRdgUH5WRdUkm5KlqXSEtBeFy0U/w640-h472/PXL_20230714_155703154.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Watching the lenticulars form at the end of the day.<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />If you are looking for a place with reliable and varied flying, and want some infrastructure in place (other pilots to fly with, cheap busses/taxis, moderate climate), you should consider Krushevo. Given that there are usually several weeks of comps in the summer months (I think for 2023 there was something like 6-in-a-row!), it's gotta be one of the more reliable spots for XC flying.</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-38951759228668306602023-07-10T10:23:00.242-07:002023-10-21T17:27:47.464-07:00Drama Greece tour July 3-10, 2023 with Skygods Paragliding<p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">It’s been a while since I did a paragliding trip in Europe, but this time I wanted to try eastern Europe. I decided it would be fun to go paragliding in Greece and North Macedonia, as we had a family wedding to attend in Czechia already later in July.</span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNXX7Z1fUP-5-IuZGrlGaUQSpDQqezEIMltPSie5BUVWAtaQ_W8hoivO_aJXEjHsveBHxkWR2I62d-oHQJwc_1tCLbjEr9IGtxhPgDkvBhoZcqJ3Zv6PdbjLhPA1BIHJz2wq7noKKXjcSZelUUsJknoqxTMnYP84QkBTRX-9zg-O8FxV2owu_iz4HN-rDy/s4032/PXL_20230707_093602006.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNXX7Z1fUP-5-IuZGrlGaUQSpDQqezEIMltPSie5BUVWAtaQ_W8hoivO_aJXEjHsveBHxkWR2I62d-oHQJwc_1tCLbjEr9IGtxhPgDkvBhoZcqJ3Zv6PdbjLhPA1BIHJz2wq7noKKXjcSZelUUsJknoqxTMnYP84QkBTRX-9zg-O8FxV2owu_iz4HN-rDy/w640-h480/PXL_20230707_093602006.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">One of the major industries in the Drama valley is marble, with numerous quarries in the surrounding mountains. <br />Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont</span>.<br /><p><br /></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">There are many flying sites in Greece, many of them in the southern Islands and around Athens, but since it was coming up to high tourist season (July and August) I wanted to go someplace less busy, so opted for the Drama area. This is in northern Greece, close to the border with Bulgaria and North Macedonia, and is the site of a previous World Cup. There are multiple drive-up sites within 1-2 hours of Drama, with the main XC site being “<a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/1xeReiUVbvKtcZiD6" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Pyrgi</span></a>”, situated atop the mountain overlooking the small town of Petroussa, about 15 minutes west of Drama. There is also an afternoon soaring site located directly above Drama called “Korylovos”, accessible via paved road, with both a South (<a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/1VsQTvwQKo7XE9cw8" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">carpeted</span></a>) and East (<a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/FVHEknEvc8tF71Y17" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">natural grass</span></a>) launch to take advantage of the afternoon seabreeze originating from Kavala and the Aegean Sea to the SE.</span></p><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoETXfrtD5zOVnthMpr1zdXdcDdcW-J3Jgkaj4nVWEzMthdlECx2WBqxCIj3Y55yi0T5PXG3Z2l4PciYe-fJ_o31cQV20SzwKXX0-KhTjKHSOxQRMoRr2xjS-fqG51bVMAgp-2DJ8ec4ch_Xg7TJ7qUkyCV-Euee819P74KJ9zpkI7auOsxrVzFyS3Xqcf/s4032/PXL_20230706_123250457.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoETXfrtD5zOVnthMpr1zdXdcDdcW-J3Jgkaj4nVWEzMthdlECx2WBqxCIj3Y55yi0T5PXG3Z2l4PciYe-fJ_o31cQV20SzwKXX0-KhTjKHSOxQRMoRr2xjS-fqG51bVMAgp-2DJ8ec4ch_Xg7TJ7qUkyCV-Euee819P74KJ9zpkI7auOsxrVzFyS3Xqcf/w640-h480/PXL_20230706_123250457.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Flying in the Drama area involves both mountain and flatland flying. <br />Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont</span>.</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The local club has a few members, but they rarely visit the Pyrgi site, preferring to fly Drama instead. So if you want a day’s worth of XC, you’ll likely want to hook up with a tour group. We chose “<a href="https://www.skygods.co.uk/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Skygods Paragliding</span></a>”, run by a UK pilot named Owen Thompson. He’s been doing tours to the Drama area for several years and has multiple excellent reviews from previous clients, so we joined him for one of his 1-week tours in the first week of June.</span></p><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3WQkjaG8oJ63AsHF2V66Ju_72eNqHmsW_qoNEIkRHFCwYmMCoFlmwp7kL7z6kSACeX0MWO_jOhCEyc4b3yYu4zY_X-GP32TX-_Yvf387Uefsu4ulNmatDm9EyhN93y5pwJUBK-KL8-IXppJZDAAvPNrJNpjijAKtEUj6ZJJ3aVcp-VUJTTYvhuNvEXsn6/s4096/IMG20230705120636.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3WQkjaG8oJ63AsHF2V66Ju_72eNqHmsW_qoNEIkRHFCwYmMCoFlmwp7kL7z6kSACeX0MWO_jOhCEyc4b3yYu4zY_X-GP32TX-_Yvf387Uefsu4ulNmatDm9EyhN93y5pwJUBK-KL8-IXppJZDAAvPNrJNpjijAKtEUj6ZJJ3aVcp-VUJTTYvhuNvEXsn6/w640-h480/IMG20230705120636.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Crossing the gap from Myteros, the highest local peak, to the western flank of mountains leading to the Serres valley. </span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">As part of the tour package, Owen will pick you up (and drop you off) from Thessaloniki airport and drive you to Drama, about a 2-hour drive. He can also get you set up with sim card, although if you have a newer phone you can simply download a Greek e-sim (<a href="https://www.airalo.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Airalo</span></a> or <a href="https://cellulardata.ubigi.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Ubigi</span></a> are both good options) and skip the need for a physical sim card (just remember to turn off your home country sim card so you don’t get hit with roaming charges!).</span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4HzCKly7uhpvG0l8BHnttAgNj-o4x1ZcHepGhyphenhyphen8JA1GD6ro_I9oCWk0oHyP1XWF_39igHr1kDyhcIvfF_MbKzf5Z20in3t3xCBXC8ryCNiW2FtYuX7Om4sRHskzHkKGZBn-wnbR7jeDjdrdZr7CWacRi7M082DKjDQEyOCeo4ySHaLoOoJbM-hISJhf5D/s4032/PXL_20230705_075344498.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4HzCKly7uhpvG0l8BHnttAgNj-o4x1ZcHepGhyphenhyphen8JA1GD6ro_I9oCWk0oHyP1XWF_39igHr1kDyhcIvfF_MbKzf5Z20in3t3xCBXC8ryCNiW2FtYuX7Om4sRHskzHkKGZBn-wnbR7jeDjdrdZr7CWacRi7M082DKjDQEyOCeo4ySHaLoOoJbM-hISJhf5D/w640-h480/PXL_20230705_075344498.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Pyrgi launch has room for 5-6 gliders easily, more if you are willing to lay out on the rocky bits. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Drama in June is hot, so bring clothing appropriate for hot-weather flying. As part of the tour, Owen arranges with a local bed-n-breakfast operator in Petroussa, “<a href="https://www.facebook.com/pension.katerina/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Pension Katarina</span></a>”, for everyone to stay. It includes your own room with private bathroom, a large backyard, and daily breakfast. And breakfast is fantastic! The hosts, Deiter and Katarina, will put on a huge spread of various options to accommodate (most) dietary types.</span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTnpPpuKrNhLRmBggwGJAqIGM8t84IN77ELddTvugn3bmd72zoo5fpcPCpWYIXGSwQt97W3Fiw6PCB4JmmZTe4Dl8MHwEOleQSVFiVfLbkuc6wNS3IK8u0nXJxYxPOJPWkh3jsm1wd3fiqvhOdY4eJXrJ0hDGrdLO399zO17Pt-WSzu3CSSG9FWZ9B9sUv/s4032/PXL_20230704_125213704.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTnpPpuKrNhLRmBggwGJAqIGM8t84IN77ELddTvugn3bmd72zoo5fpcPCpWYIXGSwQt97W3Fiw6PCB4JmmZTe4Dl8MHwEOleQSVFiVfLbkuc6wNS3IK8u0nXJxYxPOJPWkh3jsm1wd3fiqvhOdY4eJXrJ0hDGrdLO399zO17Pt-WSzu3CSSG9FWZ9B9sUv/w640-h480/PXL_20230704_125213704.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The flatlands of the Drama valley. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/1xeReiUVbvKtcZiD6" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">actual takeoff at Pyrgi</span></a> is a grassy meadow with a few rocks, room for multiple pilots to lay out at once. Keep an eye out for the goats as they may wander over to take a look. It’s a SE morning site so you’ll want to take off by 11am. House thermal is usually to the east (left), along the ridge leading to Petroussa.</span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><br /></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR5JVqTT-50d-K8HS62mRWZD6drnig-Ak7QOOskQhwB1yZGUfnV7Zow_4Yu0mIdnzD95Ws-Sobtv2EZHctySN6bi1alUrM3NUWY9bsj9W1vebgRJyeTO8prNLMxyMXrgD9ZLk_9Xjp8Ak_0ZBUQFp6ttpaegpFR7YjjRrOrT9pzbJk54-W9oLXYWIejk9U/s4096/IMG20230709133047.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR5JVqTT-50d-K8HS62mRWZD6drnig-Ak7QOOskQhwB1yZGUfnV7Zow_4Yu0mIdnzD95Ws-Sobtv2EZHctySN6bi1alUrM3NUWY9bsj9W1vebgRJyeTO8prNLMxyMXrgD9ZLk_9Xjp8Ak_0ZBUQFp6ttpaegpFR7YjjRrOrT9pzbJk54-W9oLXYWIejk9U/w640-h480/IMG20230709133047.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Flying back to Drama over the flats after tagging Skopia. All those white spots in the mountains are marble quarries.<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">For XC options, the general route is to the west and around the curve of mountains, past <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/jPbmHmmS4emaxMzW9" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Mytero</span></a> towards Skopia, unless you choose to jump over the back to the <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/eRKHGDg4r4xHmEDY6" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Lise/Kato valley</span></a>. If you choose to do that, make sure you land before the border with Bulgaria, as landing past the border can be an issue as Bulgaria is not part of the Schengen free-travel area.</span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/4.7.2023/08:15" target="_blank">Typical out-n-return flight from Pyrgi to Myteros.</a></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/5.7.2023/08:13" target="_blank">Typical triangle flight from Pyrgi.</a></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXSxCVuXhwncYfVNuydwm1nH6oZJ5YiD2eYOtBcewy73lzT0ThJhHlaeoWEvcAAy61tlSDKtZiB5lfsTWHxYYwNM-qmU5aswY648E64ShNRXm8A-r1bzzzxEEDAiRZ8n6Sjlp4lZPE0mf_DTMJr1Q0bMbAhNozwoRp8_cZ0djjn6topwHN1VGS8MI-y9Yv/s4096/IMG20230709151120.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXSxCVuXhwncYfVNuydwm1nH6oZJ5YiD2eYOtBcewy73lzT0ThJhHlaeoWEvcAAy61tlSDKtZiB5lfsTWHxYYwNM-qmU5aswY648E64ShNRXm8A-r1bzzzxEEDAiRZ8n6Sjlp4lZPE0mf_DTMJr1Q0bMbAhNozwoRp8_cZ0djjn6topwHN1VGS8MI-y9Yv/w640-h480/IMG20230709151120.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The "windmill ridge" to the NE of Korylovos. The valley beyond tends to be a bit windy so plan your route accordingly!<br /></span><p><br /></p></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">At some point you’ll hit the west wind coming over the mountains at Skopia, and you’ll have to decide if you are going to do an out-and-return, fly south to <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/sxgANNcaUXSZr1tE8" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Paggaio</span></a>, or flatland fly…it’ll likely depend on the clouds/wind/overdevelopment. Generally there will be a west wind coming over the mountains from the Serres valley, plus the middle of the Serres valley can get quite stable, so plan accordingly.</span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicuB87aJQfKo3cnNgEXBZEQZVXneU2OFp0RMbIzXwqdHXVT-osgezs-h2BLonOAApQqCf52aG8OvCdmKSM_YO-dRQSbOxkTYqNnricddziihBzaVIPPEuPlEDApr9f2UqQKW3GBDcygQMo7U6-cstjaFzZ2LH_3q3Hu0NAMpq3l5WlTvAYvdlxUwsO0QN7/s4032/PXL_20230709_093833969.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicuB87aJQfKo3cnNgEXBZEQZVXneU2OFp0RMbIzXwqdHXVT-osgezs-h2BLonOAApQqCf52aG8OvCdmKSM_YO-dRQSbOxkTYqNnricddziihBzaVIPPEuPlEDApr9f2UqQKW3GBDcygQMo7U6-cstjaFzZ2LH_3q3Hu0NAMpq3l5WlTvAYvdlxUwsO0QN7/w640-h480/PXL_20230709_093833969.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Flying from Chionochori to Paranesti, approximately 90km flight. </span><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</span></span><br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">There is also a takeoff just east of Serres called “<a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/S9aFEJoamhtrbSi38" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Chionochori</span></a>”, and Owen took us there on the last day of our tour. This allows you to start from further west if you are wanting to maximize your open distance, and I believe the Greek distance record has been set from one of the launches around here. Common destinations include <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/iASKWLzpEfUCFe3HA" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Paranesti</span></a> or <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/pCosiLf2553E8L4Z8" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Xanthi</span></a>. Paranesti will be a downwind flight (past the windmill ridge is generally considered the point-of-no-return if you are trying to fly back), but a few km’s past this town and within the Lekani mountain range, you’ll likely hit the seabreeze coming from Xanthi, making the final push to Xanthi an upwind battle.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/9.7.2023/08:49" target="_blank">Flight from Chionochori to Paranesti.</a></span></p><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8lwd_uiEqq3HlPkZYfrfO3slycDRrRYJP4jUwWlb-hcluqybNBQaOph_F78OO2NKJIrraIS7HG41fhFmrfwVWPnw_BibrocQc53tStcq1tTWmksiVUItGu8WSlhpKTRfVDcGsNxUZ-HxOMrM-gF89BhYOsRXGK9VBg3G45GGjCQxLOEM7yKo13mKbkvz7/s4096/IMG20230706133901.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8lwd_uiEqq3HlPkZYfrfO3slycDRrRYJP4jUwWlb-hcluqybNBQaOph_F78OO2NKJIrraIS7HG41fhFmrfwVWPnw_BibrocQc53tStcq1tTWmksiVUItGu8WSlhpKTRfVDcGsNxUZ-HxOMrM-gF89BhYOsRXGK9VBg3G45GGjCQxLOEM7yKo13mKbkvz7/w640-h480/IMG20230706133901.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Surfing the clouds near Mytero.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">There is also a flying site at Paggaio, suitable for days when the bigger mountains are overdeveloping or you want a shorter flight to the Aegean Sea. There will a ridge between the takeoff and the ocean, so make sure you are high enough to clear it before the final glide to the beaches, as there are limited landings if you land short. But once at the beach, you can shuck your glider and jump right into the bathtub-temperature water! And it’s super-salty, so you’ll be very buoyant as well.</span></p><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPqtwjw2LUY9WDS2aQxXDbS5h2oX6NGkVmWZoxZxbu3et9O10SgkX2lMkqQRWdoFl1HeNmlhYaPtzleXf0xxBVR0LUqrNJnUZ62BkU_bwheja5ma7Ozi_H9eq_w7WnRCcG3I4SUYwoNIz9FcfFhxHbc_AvTaqvinGp5BP7bSwnEeXP94nLTghRZoXD0E9c/s4096/IMG20230703165536.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPqtwjw2LUY9WDS2aQxXDbS5h2oX6NGkVmWZoxZxbu3et9O10SgkX2lMkqQRWdoFl1HeNmlhYaPtzleXf0xxBVR0LUqrNJnUZ62BkU_bwheja5ma7Ozi_H9eq_w7WnRCcG3I4SUYwoNIz9FcfFhxHbc_AvTaqvinGp5BP7bSwnEeXP94nLTghRZoXD0E9c/w640-h480/IMG20230703165536.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The south launch at Korylovos is carpeted!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If you are not feeling like a big XC day, you can simply land in Petroussa (there is a </span><a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/7qLqZhQ4N2Ggv4NR8" style="font-family: arial;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">designated LZ</span></a><span style="font-family: arial;"> with a shade hut across the road, about a 20 minute walk from Pension Katarina), fly over to Drama to land at the </span><a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/huvjS7qs69NjPAzG7" style="font-family: arial;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">local club’s LZ</span></a><span style="font-family: arial;"> at the base of the Korylovos south launch, or the </span><a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/wZTSKBafSm7DAqW98" style="font-family: arial;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">alternate LZ</span></a><span style="font-family: arial;"> across from the east launch, or topland the south or east side to chill and relaunch when the seabreeze kicks in. If it’s soarable (usually every afternoon starting around 4pm) then there will likely be local pilots or tandems about. Check in with the local club to find out where the no-landing spots are (there is some military land nearby) or have Owen point them out. </span><a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/eGyw6uQxorL9GRM47" style="font-family: arial;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">Here</span></a><span style="font-family: arial;"> and </span><a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/hU7VpBjfARt2Xujo7" style="font-family: arial;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0b4cb4;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: arial;"> are two of the military zones near Drama…do not land here!</span></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKep85u1bx4QcdratxUc2kcQFmeTwH9h6yzk4tl2XbS_2cRVDN5R3M_DjmiY8Qd5A1lae7OK5OQVAKBrq8P6JvWsOZ3ufCV4hwlx66BsMB8RbXM31G41ZslNvy5v_1T8cGQ1m1LAeQAA7IkW6LuJPtBBhwEfs4nGY6og4BCsGvGhQENP9PBWOf_VmsXa_O/s4000/IMG20230705145640.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKep85u1bx4QcdratxUc2kcQFmeTwH9h6yzk4tl2XbS_2cRVDN5R3M_DjmiY8Qd5A1lae7OK5OQVAKBrq8P6JvWsOZ3ufCV4hwlx66BsMB8RbXM31G41ZslNvy5v_1T8cGQ1m1LAeQAA7IkW6LuJPtBBhwEfs4nGY6og4BCsGvGhQENP9PBWOf_VmsXa_O/w480-h640/IMG20230705145640.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">The LZ in Petroussa as a gust front rolled through.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Outside the military zones and a small airport to the south towards Kavala, you can pretty much land anywhere. It’ll be hot, so choose a LZ with a tree for packing shade, and have lots of water. If you are on the tour, you’ll need Telegram or WhatsApp installed on your phone, and have a Spot or InReach so the driver can track you.</span></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZbAf9B2CSB-NBkhnF4bJmBOChCH0yX1Ji-38b_XkC9b5FCvOQQ7rRXNqiKee2oqE-IMmHteMH66T3AcxplsiZ2CQ2k4mRbfjGZU3QfeB6B5rKngF9RZ8V5QocXbcrrY4SK85CbvpeOSMj4MrZtm5xvSRpQUyjFjC-CF886SCgHYhZzHINLKxa015OWf11/s4032/PXL_20230709_135338764.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZbAf9B2CSB-NBkhnF4bJmBOChCH0yX1Ji-38b_XkC9b5FCvOQQ7rRXNqiKee2oqE-IMmHteMH66T3AcxplsiZ2CQ2k4mRbfjGZU3QfeB6B5rKngF9RZ8V5QocXbcrrY4SK85CbvpeOSMj4MrZtm5xvSRpQUyjFjC-CF886SCgHYhZzHINLKxa015OWf11/w640-h480/PXL_20230709_135338764.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Watch where you pack up! Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Owen’s tours also include visiting the various restaurants in the Drama and Serres valleys. It’s Greece, so everything tastes fantastic, and Owen knows where the good spots are! Prices are cheap (‘cause it’s Greece!) so your Euros will go far…a big meal will set you back maybe 15 Euro if you share multiple dishes with the rest of the group. At the end of the tour, Owen will take the group to a fancy restaurant in the hills for a big steak dinner so make sure to bring your appetite.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtF0CYpuungHNnPzJ8RI22oDNQb75EM9zKObgCOechusvC9HP45Nu8gA7bj79XZwkJZevUd-ai0_n65XPg6RUFLYkWc-Jhsc0b6FdYKdA2v3UQjtC3zSmLxOqUbiAvVgBsToULK7jtyiAIS5u9kexcc2n4jg7A3XJ0BDoXuWRMQZ2bw6Y6_TzFWWnQabQV/s4096/IMG20230708111723.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4096" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtF0CYpuungHNnPzJ8RI22oDNQb75EM9zKObgCOechusvC9HP45Nu8gA7bj79XZwkJZevUd-ai0_n65XPg6RUFLYkWc-Jhsc0b6FdYKdA2v3UQjtC3zSmLxOqUbiAvVgBsToULK7jtyiAIS5u9kexcc2n4jg7A3XJ0BDoXuWRMQZ2bw6Y6_TzFWWnQabQV/w640-h480/IMG20230708111723.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">We visited the <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1517/" target="_blank">Philippi archeological site</a> on our day off.<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">If it’s not flyable, Owen will give the group various options, including visiting some archaeological sites, mudbaths (note these are gender-segregated, so a mixed-gender group will get separated), going to a beach near Kavala, whitewater rafting, ziplining, go-karting, or hiking. While we were there, we flew 6 out of the 7 days, and the day off we likely could have flown the afternoon site, but we were kinda flown-out by that point!</span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqmJKtKClICV0Frxm0yPywea6bZIrQvmEBLaIGWCRCNUphkLEVDUYgwzUFBDgTRET-f3RqL-DsoBR0K8AZ_eulTLExZ_fVNBisxBKFIAynIy4lcq_VfQiir5XpyDNwHNN4Zsu9RTsmlWEYhwpuLv0sQ3g06asNSw8gbpL9fTtgCR9A8Yhw7bU1X0_fm1PF/s4032/PXL_20230708_081008743.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqmJKtKClICV0Frxm0yPywea6bZIrQvmEBLaIGWCRCNUphkLEVDUYgwzUFBDgTRET-f3RqL-DsoBR0K8AZ_eulTLExZ_fVNBisxBKFIAynIy4lcq_VfQiir5XpyDNwHNN4Zsu9RTsmlWEYhwpuLv0sQ3g06asNSw8gbpL9fTtgCR9A8Yhw7bU1X0_fm1PF/w640-h480/PXL_20230708_081008743.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">Despite being thousands of years old, the grounds are still in use for performances! <br />Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><div><br /></div>So, if you are thinking of flying in Greece, and want all the logistics to be taken care of, I would highly recommend Skygods Paragliding. Owen will take care of everything and you can focus on getting some fun flying in…maybe combine it with a south Islands beach vacation or Athens if you want to bring a non-flying SO.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzgjayCZ_2-1wJpW0HLCVtUXdz6iDdIQBi4OfbMbTwSzXFm5OeHN9vAW1QVRkqJwvKc8mqt7g5XKTJfV8_aNSkBI2KqI_BLNGwTPv0T-n5eCnlxxl6hCCt4uWu-YilX8qVZ38L0ef11nExR3baFAphjxqe3IEVcaSnJbL70RrQhupDrdlq9fxd5FPURzS2/s4032/PXL_20230708_153656179.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzgjayCZ_2-1wJpW0HLCVtUXdz6iDdIQBi4OfbMbTwSzXFm5OeHN9vAW1QVRkqJwvKc8mqt7g5XKTJfV8_aNSkBI2KqI_BLNGwTPv0T-n5eCnlxxl6hCCt4uWu-YilX8qVZ38L0ef11nExR3baFAphjxqe3IEVcaSnJbL70RrQhupDrdlq9fxd5FPURzS2/w640-h480/PXL_20230708_153656179.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">One of the many beaches along the Aegean Sea.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></span><p></p><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlrr0yZwUdUkGGWjghHMItGO662f_9cS1babshJW22JPOp-rNU89t_euqoVbcRQa3Gx9OwQ_YTWWnPzhudHDwUtqEt5sCpmVr4k7VAHzznp8M7mFcH6Q_kvh4MysO_AVKgpa5cbpreNASjXBmOjK8jRcbBZ55Bo7lOifZYIOy-9g_2JfqKi3_85bJ1RXxg/w640-h480/PXL_20230709_180707998.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;">On the final day of our tour, we visited a local steakhouse for an awesome meal! <br />Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.<br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 8px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><br /><br /></span></p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-5229192660568855572023-05-29T21:00:00.039-07:002023-11-03T18:14:56.791-07:00Okanagan road trip May 28-29, 2023<p>Went for a quick road trip to the Okanagan. Began at Coopers where it was forecast to blow over the back, so went up early and it was indeed rough and turbulent on the east side. So much so that I decided to head over to the Saddle where it was much smooth (it faces west) and was able to stay up indefinitely there. Eventually landed at the LAR Flight Park as it looked like it was overdeveloping (as the RASP was forecasting).</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfJmuS0wR3mfFo-OVV6mzSD17uFFAyReMQhnuFvFTFUcJPqsymXX7lNlipI0rK86eCvjkZ0zF1b5_JoqGe2CBouF2zBS0RazQI7mnBhViS9Lk-fWfMfTt4NurG8541euGlyp_cX5RI1r2443eIoZJTt0k-GcUxcLljpiRl03RD0ON1Rh4HfU0lJI-Zqs-r/s1754/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%206.06.36%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1538" data-original-width="1754" height="562" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfJmuS0wR3mfFo-OVV6mzSD17uFFAyReMQhnuFvFTFUcJPqsymXX7lNlipI0rK86eCvjkZ0zF1b5_JoqGe2CBouF2zBS0RazQI7mnBhViS9Lk-fWfMfTt4NurG8541euGlyp_cX5RI1r2443eIoZJTt0k-GcUxcLljpiRl03RD0ON1Rh4HfU0lJI-Zqs-r/w640-h562/Screenshot%202023-11-03%20at%206.06.36%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coopers RASP for May 28.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/28.5.2023/18:18" target="_blank">Coopers flight. </a></p><p><br /></p><p>After lunch went over to the King Eddy LZ where I met up with Lars and crew, got a ride up to Baldy and was able to enjoy the newly-laid carpet. So nice to launch and pack up on carpet (at both Coopers and KE!)</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMeZlj9PBjtYHdFLlJvpY_eP7888DdZMkOi59Kc-SkqLQ0h35q5_uSxk3M83dOZyfBMjqKoaJ2esROZqATrf-9Inar4STC3_CVqimqflB0pw8LND1QIuvdMz8mJnPxOROyaPpEFZ4Cp1inv-xKBLrqJZKOKxg-XSjopzwU70f7AMGtVeID-iCf53J1hgCQ/s1764/Screenshot%202023-08-07%20at%2010.50.38%20AM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1528" data-original-width="1764" height="554" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMeZlj9PBjtYHdFLlJvpY_eP7888DdZMkOi59Kc-SkqLQ0h35q5_uSxk3M83dOZyfBMjqKoaJ2esROZqATrf-9Inar4STC3_CVqimqflB0pw8LND1QIuvdMz8mJnPxOROyaPpEFZ4Cp1inv-xKBLrqJZKOKxg-XSjopzwU70f7AMGtVeID-iCf53J1hgCQ/w640-h554/Screenshot%202023-08-07%20at%2010.50.38%20AM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">King Eddy RASP for May 28</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/2023/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/29.5.2023/00:44" target="_blank">King Eddy/Baldy flight</a>.<p></p><div><br /></div><div>The following day it was forecast to be a bit blown-out in the North Okanagan but less-so in the South Okanagan, so I went to Ottos to fly with Peter, Rob, and Amir. But the flight was a bust as I sunk out (my first sink out at this site!) in a grand total of 4 minutes. One of my shortest flights ever!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-87937370554764422802023-05-16T22:00:00.045-07:002023-08-07T10:48:09.566-07:00Small road trip May 12-16, 2023<p> With Alex off to Europe and I had some time off, I decided to do a small road trip to the Okanagan, after first stopping at BJ for a possible around-Baker flight.</p><p><br /></p><p>The forecast for BJ (and Baker) was calling for high cloud base and light winds, but the actual reality was there was some SE wind up high, which made me decide not to pursue Baker but stay local. The air was a bit rough as well, not really to my liking. All the pilots who attempted the circumnavigation of Baker ended up landing out with long walks out and nighttime retrieves, so I was happy to be back at the LZ with daylight to spare.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpc2_Sdlk2I8-Q3zU1IUZtjHla3a0SFrAlLqR5bPrWnWfhbj0DaDJFcak3wOCH7h-HVrCUskoR_oolWezBqZz8kujyOgqZbassWJfaHztt-IQMgue5FkqXriZP3HJZLOf4NZAiT_f8XdcF7KcnQNOjsxRRUV79775t-YmRLOwp-GGeNjPu2eCahaSFRND2/s1764/Screenshot%202023-08-07%20at%2010.47.11%20AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1538" data-original-width="1764" height="558" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpc2_Sdlk2I8-Q3zU1IUZtjHla3a0SFrAlLqR5bPrWnWfhbj0DaDJFcak3wOCH7h-HVrCUskoR_oolWezBqZz8kujyOgqZbassWJfaHztt-IQMgue5FkqXriZP3HJZLOf4NZAiT_f8XdcF7KcnQNOjsxRRUV79775t-YmRLOwp-GGeNjPu2eCahaSFRND2/w640-h558/Screenshot%202023-08-07%20at%2010.47.11%20AM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">BJ RASP for May 12</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p>As the forecast for the following day was for more stable conditions and east wind, I opted to head inland to the North Okanagan to fly Coopers. Not ideal flying conditions as it was actually NE up high and a bit stable, so after an hour or so I landed at the Freedom Flight Park, which has a very nice setup for visiting pilots...camping, kitchen, shower, wifi, Astroturf to pack up on, etc. Very civilized!</p><p><br /></p><p>With the continued east wind and stability to the north, I then headed to Oliver to try my luck at Ottos. However we ended up going up to Upper Ripley instead, which was a nice change. You can launch from the SE to the NE and are starting from much higher (almost 1000m), which, for a stable day, makes things much easier! Had a nice flight with Peter and Rob et al before heading back to Coopers for another short flight as it was threatening to OD later on.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2S4yKQow8TL8Jd9kRNL7bZjTQapGd4JhQnv46i7nyRct9ku7i9oAgM6K8F6PbUdspOQ2Kl1sVwPWZrMm0hV1L-OSYbyB2ZYn2MPBJsDTdLkPNmvldTEWGSLHeyUPjoWjF6rAbM3bleqmmG4i3uk1b6u34dizLLaCVs2ZRYXo2hGcNxauF7CWzjpekB2h9/s4608/IMG_20230514_115955590.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2S4yKQow8TL8Jd9kRNL7bZjTQapGd4JhQnv46i7nyRct9ku7i9oAgM6K8F6PbUdspOQ2Kl1sVwPWZrMm0hV1L-OSYbyB2ZYn2MPBJsDTdLkPNmvldTEWGSLHeyUPjoWjF6rAbM3bleqmmG4i3uk1b6u34dizLLaCVs2ZRYXo2hGcNxauF7CWzjpekB2h9/w640-h480/IMG_20230514_115955590.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upper Ripley in Oliver with the springtime flowers.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p>Finished off the road trip with a flight in Pemberton, where I did the abbreviated milk run to Copper Dome and back. A bit of north wind up high which, as usual, made the flying a bit rough on the MacKenzie side. I expect the Miller side would have felt better in the air.</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-48706245635525033912023-04-29T14:34:00.001-07:002023-08-07T10:49:03.769-07:00Lower Bridal April 29<p>A beautiful spring day and did the classic Bridal run from Ludwig to Elk. Strong south wind up high but as usual, not a problem for flying Bridal!</p><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/29.4.2023/22:56" target="_blank"> Bridal 38km OR.</a></p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO-cI4bMHQBdzrw-HdxWTxXMimy7mDEQzR-pgq7NRufwgDEddogbKns6A93pUg8Y5w99fUkYvbwDG7Qm3vyGgpNzpPEzKe7ZTZ09P6jiWySA6v-Lw9JrZxRvH0VM2IdK-0dEshNY7hv1PaHtaQ12Yo1Qf2VQhflZlQHNdzOoLqbHAh0Jcp2ZaMZZWUQQ/s1158/Capture.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="916" data-original-width="1158" height="506" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO-cI4bMHQBdzrw-HdxWTxXMimy7mDEQzR-pgq7NRufwgDEddogbKns6A93pUg8Y5w99fUkYvbwDG7Qm3vyGgpNzpPEzKe7ZTZ09P6jiWySA6v-Lw9JrZxRvH0VM2IdK-0dEshNY7hv1PaHtaQ12Yo1Qf2VQhflZlQHNdzOoLqbHAh0Jcp2ZaMZZWUQQ/w640-h506/Capture.PNG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">RASP for April 29 @ Bridal</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-42999108592738119292023-04-14T23:00:00.003-07:002023-05-01T14:30:09.020-07:00Woodside triangle April 14<p><span style="font-size: medium;">After a very wet beginning to April we finally had a forecast that was looking pretty sweet, the kind of day you blow off work, if able!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3ZOp5dfmrSe_ummbLOBMXouBzWFXUzUVdwjrVFpKaZE1-laGA6z9Xs3ARdry-7PdrClpyzTZnEvPbpy-wGyxfJ0XTOF5OTrcQIvtkPeo_N1yEw8NcOceA-tbDvcxZ0ak09-meOIK8THp65jYKNJUH10SxD2QsrbEAJITpkZivSPPO3byGWKVB6LmuOw/s1197/Capture.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="924" data-original-width="1197" height="494" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3ZOp5dfmrSe_ummbLOBMXouBzWFXUzUVdwjrVFpKaZE1-laGA6z9Xs3ARdry-7PdrClpyzTZnEvPbpy-wGyxfJ0XTOF5OTrcQIvtkPeo_N1yEw8NcOceA-tbDvcxZ0ak09-meOIK8THp65jYKNJUH10SxD2QsrbEAJITpkZivSPPO3byGWKVB6LmuOw/w640-h494/Capture.PNG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Woodside windgram for April 14<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;">Not much inflow wind early in the day, and Harrison Bay was *very* low (it looked like you could actually walk across the Bay!) which made the crossing to Sasquatch very easy. Up to cloudbase and then time to make our way west towards Dewdney. My plan was to turn around at Big Nick (and not make the final Dewdney crossing) and then do the Raymont Triangle (Woodside-Bear-Ludwig-Bridal-Elk-Woodside).</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOclpIGnq0Faf2WVaPuHC2T8rk9BuFy6tt4pRF-PCQTH-awafuexf6zeE4aUIi0HE8LKbZg7YtO05QVJECKYctZn24FeuqJ4qKNlbFXlOxZzOxaDFy_fl4_a6mNkqxS8EOFAPdYM3gJWwLfSAt8fjeT4wxSzidTQbB5BIpILCKRZAqTWhnJ5u4WRxCIg/s4608/IMG_20230414_132823031.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOclpIGnq0Faf2WVaPuHC2T8rk9BuFy6tt4pRF-PCQTH-awafuexf6zeE4aUIi0HE8LKbZg7YtO05QVJECKYctZn24FeuqJ4qKNlbFXlOxZzOxaDFy_fl4_a6mNkqxS8EOFAPdYM3gJWwLfSAt8fjeT4wxSzidTQbB5BIpILCKRZAqTWhnJ5u4WRxCIg/w640-h480/IMG_20230414_132823031.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Crossing from Sasquatch back to Woodside. A very low Harrison River!<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Cloudbase was comfortable under the 1981m airspace limit, so as long as you remained out of the clouds you were fine! Crossing back to Woodside was also easy, but it took me a bit to climb high enough, once at Woodside, to glide to Agassiz Mountain. But finally made it over there and then the crossing to Bear, where some pilots were reporting it being a bit "rough". Personally I didn't find it any worse than usual, and after getting to 1600m crossed over to Ludwig.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDdr1SKjEVJ8aPdUmRvceQZFu0iDMazWp4GK9RXSPmnmYnYwd4j_Jmgs5cKR7JONIk6DlYgLm2SZ5HryBiyj6F5HIXfh4htNNvIUtCFtYWhu6Akq7P-sa9JBF1Gq_BIBLnOH8IJhJBy022ph87ydRqpD_NynoArUgEj3ba3NiwjFsHp8PamHPBZw3e_w/s4608/IMG_20230414_143927828.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDdr1SKjEVJ8aPdUmRvceQZFu0iDMazWp4GK9RXSPmnmYnYwd4j_Jmgs5cKR7JONIk6DlYgLm2SZ5HryBiyj6F5HIXfh4htNNvIUtCFtYWhu6Akq7P-sa9JBF1Gq_BIBLnOH8IJhJBy022ph87ydRqpD_NynoArUgEj3ba3NiwjFsHp8PamHPBZw3e_w/w640-h480/IMG_20230414_143927828.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Hwy 7 with the November 2021 landslide still visible, and Hwy 1, looking east towards Hope.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The Bridal side was shady in lots of spots, fortunately the Ludwig/Butterfly location was sunny enough to get high and then do the big glide to the other side of the shade, with a pitstop at 4 Brothers to tank up in a shady thermal. Despite the shade there was lots of lift and also several pilots flying the Bridal side already who had launched from there.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">We weren't really feeling any inflow wind yet, but those who were attempting to cross back to Woodside from downwind (Agassiz/Bear area) were reporting significant west wind and landing short of Woodside, near Harvest Market or Harvest West. So it sounded like crossing from as far upwind would be best, ie. Elk.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilny7hNQ_tuBt2NCrMGavOEMZn-5sfsaKke8r0B5F8vNgDfSSFJmqMOCXdJVUdyKFHLEOJzAovA-bYvrfeCy0-C2ifbLINfFHgAsZS10bez6vFqMO5LwjQYo2RHWPBMZfo_bsWlWYWhNrVfz2dB2AfVhWPb4nQtVW3YjNMwACPA9z_nWt9uS5iAUCCjQ/s4608/IMG_20230414_164026356.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilny7hNQ_tuBt2NCrMGavOEMZn-5sfsaKke8r0B5F8vNgDfSSFJmqMOCXdJVUdyKFHLEOJzAovA-bYvrfeCy0-C2ifbLINfFHgAsZS10bez6vFqMO5LwjQYo2RHWPBMZfo_bsWlWYWhNrVfz2dB2AfVhWPb4nQtVW3YjNMwACPA9z_nWt9uS5iAUCCjQ/w640-h480/IMG_20230414_164026356.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Final into-wind glide to the Riverside LZ.<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;">Cloudbase at Elk was something like 1800m, but you have to be below 1676m when crossing the TransCanada highway west of the Agassiz/Rosedale bridge, so it's a bit of a challenge to make the glide. You almost always need a flatland thermal partway across to make it. Fortunately there were still lots of mid-valley cu's forming (not a common occurrence in the late afternoon!) so Tom and Kevin and myself started the glide across. As per usual, there was a thermal popping off just downwind of the golfcourse at Little Mountain, which got me another 400m and an easy glide to Riverside. In fact, once back at Woodside, it was tough to get down as everything was lifting off!</span><p></p><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/14.4.2023/18:32" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: medium;">78 km FAI triangle flight.</span></a></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><br /><br /></span><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-41888457409856194762023-04-12T22:00:00.034-07:002023-04-21T13:54:06.298-07:00Upper Tunnel Bluffs April 12<p> <span style="font-size: medium;">The weather conditions in the Fraser Valley were looking a bit overdevelop-y, but perfect for the north shore, and with a very low tide of 0.5m at 5pm, that meant a Tunnel Bluffs flying day!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I have only been up Tunnel a few times, it's a long hike for me so I don't do it very much. Many thanks to Guillaume who drove a bunch of us to the upper trailhead parking, and then drove back down, so we could get a 200m elevation gain head start while he hiked from the bottom (he's training as a supporter for the 2023 X-Alps!).</span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFsIKVSdGlgzPgweMNGih1SXEqOzBYp9TcS6qDB0rFUJ_D-NOZytdCz6_tKL_sVzmZG7X09GB9lpxCyJU_dfEntP849N-qbuxw-fxZK8gvBV6YW8NArxzWYQK90eXnLtIvVGs8GMlMvTkFbIrFaIedsXF0eee7AbiS8e91tPZfbrcrSGkuwnaNx4wTEg/s4608/IMG_20230412_141336621_HDR.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFsIKVSdGlgzPgweMNGih1SXEqOzBYp9TcS6qDB0rFUJ_D-NOZytdCz6_tKL_sVzmZG7X09GB9lpxCyJU_dfEntP849N-qbuxw-fxZK8gvBV6YW8NArxzWYQK90eXnLtIvVGs8GMlMvTkFbIrFaIedsXF0eee7AbiS8e91tPZfbrcrSGkuwnaNx4wTEg/w640-h480/IMG_20230412_141336621_HDR.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A busy launch at Upper Tunnel</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This time of year there's lots of water available en-route, so no need to carry water, just a filter, saves some weight! And the launch still has a bit of snow in the back which is nice as that helps to reduce the chance of line-snaggage. When the snow fully melts it'll be time to add more grass seed to make the launch even nicer!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">We had 9 people on launch today, which is a site record, and I opted to go last as I wanted to relax a bit after the hike and not feel like being in a rush. Plenty of lift in the skies, but down low it felt a bit rough, while up higher it was definitely smoother.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcI00fNUhekEXPk8jVs-v1EYz6CMge-a1biN89QlT-RK0KiDyXWVe62U-NolJjQnhetRM0ehayVsaaPHPGgxyJQqt0pBQ5E9q97oDuC4BCUa_5AfmsM9iEIRJf78p8qKXu78K7HY_WCdFKG7T8hfCCUtwN-dg_yyoAhDzBGvT2FTuN6ID_ZStSX8wGQA/s4328/IMG_20230412_163241274.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3246" data-original-width="4328" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcI00fNUhekEXPk8jVs-v1EYz6CMge-a1biN89QlT-RK0KiDyXWVe62U-NolJjQnhetRM0ehayVsaaPHPGgxyJQqt0pBQ5E9q97oDuC4BCUa_5AfmsM9iEIRJf78p8qKXu78K7HY_WCdFKG7T8hfCCUtwN-dg_yyoAhDzBGvT2FTuN6ID_ZStSX8wGQA/w640-h480/IMG_20230412_163241274.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Looking north up Howe Sound and the Brunswick Beach LZ.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This time of year the Lions are still fully in the snow, and possibly top-landable, but with the always-there risk of sinking in up to your thighs and having a hard time relaunching :) Best to simply enjoy them from the air, and also the views of the Vancouver skyline, and of course the fjiord itself with the mountains dropping directly into Howe Sound. Some OD on Vancouver Island and also Gambier Island ended up with some rain coming out of a cloud that didn't seem to really justify it...just so unstable I guess!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/12.4.2023/22:25#fd=takeoff" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: medium;">Upper tunnel flight.</span></a></p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-60238502405519104082023-04-02T18:30:00.027-07:002023-04-21T13:53:22.268-07:00Short road trip to southern Okanagan<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> Alex and I have been wanting to go on a southern California road trip, but unfortunately since many of the roads and passes in CA are currently (still) closed due to snow, flooding, landslide, etc, and since the weather on the Oregon coast was also looking iffy, we decided to head to the southern Okanagan instead to fly with the local pilots there.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">It's still very much winter there with snow higher up, and the occasional snowsquall in the Willowbrook area. But flyable if you are willing to put up with the cold!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">As usual Ottos was the call for most days (they have a ENE launch in addition to the usual S/SE launch), with the occasional McIntyre, Secrest, or Parker choices, depending on wind direction, strength, and whether it was going to OD or not.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">As always, the trip was a success with several flights and also nice quiet camping listening to the coyotes at night. A nice change from the city!</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-51874787813868185672023-03-29T22:00:00.035-07:002023-04-21T11:41:02.503-07:00Mt. St. Benedict March 29<p><span style="font-size: medium;"> Al Thielmann very kindly offered his truck to drive up a bunch of equipment while pilots hiked up. Unfortunately, his driver did not want to attempt to drive through the still-snowy upper part of the road, so we all had to hike up our gear from that point onwards. Then when Al arrived from his hike, he walked down and Hammered his way up the snowy part and got the truck to launch anyways!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_E33scLzBqdgOIpWXG7aXZyTstVXjT1LFZfByaF08eVkl1X7eY6Nro4xc3TiKR5eEX2H_fc-Zp810aeGVTXNDprS9fQD6aGJQeVeTrCRiS9ziWDv-GOYPgwOiRe8XnGODDe_54n2CkzMdUS5S4CVSG-4lB1qbs_Ba-Mkg0zKXe1l2iuCjl69zpgD_7g/s1220/Capture.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="931" data-original-width="1220" height="488" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_E33scLzBqdgOIpWXG7aXZyTstVXjT1LFZfByaF08eVkl1X7eY6Nro4xc3TiKR5eEX2H_fc-Zp810aeGVTXNDprS9fQD6aGJQeVeTrCRiS9ziWDv-GOYPgwOiRe8XnGODDe_54n2CkzMdUS5S4CVSG-4lB1qbs_Ba-Mkg0zKXe1l2iuCjl69zpgD_7g/w640-h488/Capture.PNG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">March 29 windgram for Mt. St. Benedict.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;">There was quite the crew on launch today; I counted 19 pilots! And cloudbase was very high, above airspace, plus very cold, something like -10C at 2000m. Dress warm!</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Several pilots including Alex flew the back way to Woodside and onwards to Bridal, while I decided to stay "local" and fly the Steelhead region, as I needed to land near the car since we were continuing inland to the southern Okanagan after flying. Staying legal, airspace-wise, was difficult as cloudbase was somewhere north of 2000m, and after I hit the convergence between the upper level NE, and the incoming SW, I briefly exceeded the ceiling according to my GPS. But as it's actually barometric pressure that matters and not GPS, after making the necessary instrument adjustments I came in at 1980m, 1 meter under the 1981m ceiling, that's cutting it tight!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The water levels in both Hatzic lake and also Stave Lake are extremely low, making for some nice emergency LZs if need be, although it would then be a long walk back to a road. But as the conditions were so "on" that wasn't really a consideration...you could fly anywhere and it was hard to get down!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/29.3.2023/20:07" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: medium;">33km FAI triangle. </span></a></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-12533950298942571132023-03-22T20:00:00.001-07:002023-04-21T11:42:17.887-07:00Woodside March 18 and 22<p> <span style="font-size: medium;">First flights of 2023 and on my new Swift 6! Since I'm a lot more picky nowadays about the days I fly, I decided to step down to an EN-B (my first in 20 years!). I'm happy to say it's not much of a difference, performance-wise to an EN-C, but has an easier mental workload. I'm also happy to be on a brightly-colored glider for improved visibility and safety.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I hadn't flown since October 2022 so definitely some cobwebs to dust off. Not really XC conditions but it was fun to fly around for 2 hours in light lift and make sure my reflexes and instruments are still up-to-snuff :) I think Alex and myself were the only ones to get high enough to drift back to the cellphone antennas.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-58159890022424714682022-10-08T22:30:00.001-07:002022-12-29T15:15:59.887-08:00Hedley October 8<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh74SPsQppcXsA_fR79FkTffIzIi3_ZBfriZTX0thucsJ-tAIvY0YRDbU9_EXNXVdgt9XQLRlwylQMNiVtIipEjDWOdqfmK3n9Zo_xpzTIG1Z22qQLiTHBafPy8R1PnaoHgW3tDZp-sVwS-NfQ_UxiNNQO9yjdOoxP9fShWc5_OZsUge0imjIovFqokPQ/s4608/IMG_20221008_120553746_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh74SPsQppcXsA_fR79FkTffIzIi3_ZBfriZTX0thucsJ-tAIvY0YRDbU9_EXNXVdgt9XQLRlwylQMNiVtIipEjDWOdqfmK3n9Zo_xpzTIG1Z22qQLiTHBafPy8R1PnaoHgW3tDZp-sVwS-NfQ_UxiNNQO9yjdOoxP9fShWc5_OZsUge0imjIovFqokPQ/w640-h480/IMG_20221008_120553746_2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bit smokey on Hedley lauch!<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table> On my way back to Vancouver from southern Utah, I stopped at Hedley as the local South OK group was flying there. It's been years since I flew Hedley and it's still a bit of a scary place to fly if there is wind forecast. Fortunately even though there was a morning wind, it died shortly after we got up to launch. However the smokey skies did not dissipate (there was a fire in nearby Keremeos) so not much of a view.</p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlayg0jbHlJf9l8Bc59MolPQdZ6TIu5U-Y6NwOrh-NjmJYDr3KTUB_A9kmBNx9BKNOTzPfKaPAQKW63VChE5e5v7q7Kbs7uzZ_O48cIxiHSkvxtbgvQTQZoJ4U1MGDBb-fv_7drh-zhJUSepBZUAZF3HAACh9bgN7xweznLR8nGCMOlo-f-sLMqa9FQ/s4608/IMG_20221008_122258996.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAlayg0jbHlJf9l8Bc59MolPQdZ6TIu5U-Y6NwOrh-NjmJYDr3KTUB_A9kmBNx9BKNOTzPfKaPAQKW63VChE5e5v7q7Kbs7uzZ_O48cIxiHSkvxtbgvQTQZoJ4U1MGDBb-fv_7drh-zhJUSepBZUAZF3HAACh9bgN7xweznLR8nGCMOlo-f-sLMqa9FQ/w640-h480/IMG_20221008_122258996.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rob doing some week-whacking while we parawaited.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/8.10.2022/20:36" target="_blank">Spent about 45 minutes below launch height</a>, scratching against the rocks to the west. A few other pilots held on as well, but turned out to be a bit more stable than we would have liked, ah well good to fly the site again!</p><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNU8QN62GvpHmpw2XLDfn_4yXjgxzCkm5BYnNpKyjKAkhIRiN-Mw2raTMmDGS_6u9cSNxFHwHvNPfE6uDI0N4EfmFBtHvp-fOHcQ44fuS0sb9JUiuhuyBs2gzpvaYoWuHg6-LTlPsjgLkIMUl_di9G3BYywCHMWoCe8V9MZjb50axvuZArBP8MQ1MoYw/s4608/IMG_20221008_151123857.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNU8QN62GvpHmpw2XLDfn_4yXjgxzCkm5BYnNpKyjKAkhIRiN-Mw2raTMmDGS_6u9cSNxFHwHvNPfE6uDI0N4EfmFBtHvp-fOHcQ44fuS0sb9JUiuhuyBs2gzpvaYoWuHg6-LTlPsjgLkIMUl_di9G3BYywCHMWoCe8V9MZjb50axvuZArBP8MQ1MoYw/w640-h480/IMG_20221008_151123857.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Similkameen River at the Rustic LZ has a pool to cool off in!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-63763763182234821832022-10-08T14:44:00.000-07:002022-12-29T15:17:03.641-08:005-week road trip to southern Utah<p>After attending last year's Red Rocks fly-in and having a fantastic time, I've been wanting to go again and enjoy the sand, heat, and dryness (compared to Vancouver!). This year there was a trifecta of events going on in September: the Red Rocks US Nationals, the Red Rocks Fly-In, and the X-Red-Rocks, so there were going to be lots of pilots around the area for over a month!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5qUGCgpdHmhzAYoXXnDFrSAQgsX3zn360hPzpKd3BQjfIs9iL2GKQrqJcSum_aWxoYWzh5LT4s0c6bgr_tSz3qyAq5FrMyLSY3kk47ZxRGRZo8jsYzCkHL8DP8x8A2P8cxnIOC-tS_cM8sIIhYPMvhFkoe9Y248dYBui8vqYTaPV46b3P7EXZSouqVA/s4608/IMG_20221004_103359158_HDR_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5qUGCgpdHmhzAYoXXnDFrSAQgsX3zn360hPzpKd3BQjfIs9iL2GKQrqJcSum_aWxoYWzh5LT4s0c6bgr_tSz3qyAq5FrMyLSY3kk47ZxRGRZo8jsYzCkHL8DP8x8A2P8cxnIOC-tS_cM8sIIhYPMvhFkoe9Y248dYBui8vqYTaPV46b3P7EXZSouqVA/w640-h480/IMG_20221004_103359158_HDR_3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The fall colors in full swing!</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p>Southern Utah is a gem of a place to visit and especially in the Monroe/Richfield area, due to the multiple paragliding sites, some great hotspringing, and oodles of National Parks within a day's drive. July and August tend to be thunderstormy due to the numerous Gulf of Mexico monsoons throwing bands of precipitation into Arizona and Utah, whereas by September the monsoons have largely finished for the year. As well it's cooled off a bit and the crowds are less!</p><p><br /></p><p>First off was the final leg of the US PG Nationals. The weather was not the greatest as there was a late-season monsoon swirling in the Gulf of Mexico, throwing bands of storms at us, but we were able to get 3 tasks in. I think the comp was just held a bit too early, a week later, with an extra buffer week to allow any late-monsoons to dissipate and the weather to normalize, would have been ideal. Results can be found at the <a href="https://airtribune.com/red-rocks-wide-open-22/results" target="_blank">Air Tribune website</a>.</p><p><br /></p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq03p1zJ7I-QXsaDEfRK1RAab3ijy21l_xFEA8abDDMpbhHHj0z2_lnrAsJ5aYUDjusFSIsZZiq7NJrh5T9oriz3LBArRsCCc7spo3ZxmQPMM7utrSS0kJZKj3fml9TdGU1G4466bB0g4H9iUqBtrfJl8jJKDraZPP6WHo_TcNGe1gygl1GlLhLOaqIw/s4608/IMG_20220917_100525810_HDR.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq03p1zJ7I-QXsaDEfRK1RAab3ijy21l_xFEA8abDDMpbhHHj0z2_lnrAsJ5aYUDjusFSIsZZiq7NJrh5T9oriz3LBArRsCCc7spo3ZxmQPMM7utrSS0kJZKj3fml9TdGU1G4466bB0g4H9iUqBtrfJl8jJKDraZPP6WHo_TcNGe1gygl1GlLhLOaqIw/w640-h480/IMG_20220917_100525810_HDR.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alex tries out a new stump-clearing technique during a parawaiting session</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p>The Red Rocks Fly-In is pretty much the largest free-flying event in the USA, up to 300 pilots will participate and the logistics are to the point that it's a well-oiled machine! There are 3-4 flying sites close to Monroe, 2-3x daily shuttle service, a large LZ with bathrooms, grass, shade, and running water, cheap or free camping nearby, and lots of other activities to do if you want to the take off from flying. Rather than re-list all the amenities, simply visit my last year's post since most of the info remains current.</p><p><a href="http://www.nicolemclearn.com/2021/10/2021-red-rocks-fly-in-monroe-ut.html" target="_blank">Red Rocks 2021 Blog Post</a>.</p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTT0Lp2bkGU4Chnoq6wV9YNGEpRgvbJSLtP0bZFLyfjEH-B_Aa4Qm3yirKOyBQamWcRk70LBHKcXAkVYhlxTzYdNqttFmzYB9X0waf4pyepnz1GgCk5RZyr5qrZqnCcoqaXRRvBdln4Vf8MQysZ8DIg-E0tKAvdyoIPQCh51MUG50uGcMZQjxYTqaFvw/s4032/PXL_20220914_231151192.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTT0Lp2bkGU4Chnoq6wV9YNGEpRgvbJSLtP0bZFLyfjEH-B_Aa4Qm3yirKOyBQamWcRk70LBHKcXAkVYhlxTzYdNqttFmzYB9X0waf4pyepnz1GgCk5RZyr5qrZqnCcoqaXRRvBdln4Vf8MQysZ8DIg-E0tKAvdyoIPQCh51MUG50uGcMZQjxYTqaFvw/w640-h480/PXL_20220914_231151192.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meadow Hot Springs and the 30' deep pool.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p>This year the RR Fly-in was sold-out, but fortunately with the multiple flying sites and huge skies, it's hard to say things are crowded...The new challenge this year was hiking up the training hill (300', 10 minutes) and seeing if you could bench up and away to Monroe Peak behind you. On an overdeveloping or potentially windy day when you aren't sure you want to be up high, this is an excellent option!</p><p><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjND3psd1fCR9U9L1Xh-QXJx3O2HnFVtYCsjRJocstpYOH8i1LenkSRjtFzkdOjPqag04xwYv985cSprFRZepN7PPTzLu7G9ZVP8imn1MED3SCUpOAJGN-KPKhjNu7B82r3YEOlH_6Xp254tYAUOA7l-kOnsdgqdycyixQR3RQuu7ldaSOsQ7XVfs-mWQ/s4608/IMG_20220919_182124933_HDR_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjND3psd1fCR9U9L1Xh-QXJx3O2HnFVtYCsjRJocstpYOH8i1LenkSRjtFzkdOjPqag04xwYv985cSprFRZepN7PPTzLu7G9ZVP8imn1MED3SCUpOAJGN-KPKhjNu7B82r3YEOlH_6Xp254tYAUOA7l-kOnsdgqdycyixQR3RQuu7ldaSOsQ7XVfs-mWQ/w640-h480/IMG_20220919_182124933_HDR_3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunset at the north rim of the Grand Canyon</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p><br /></p><p></p><p>Once again, flying in Monroe in mid-late September was very picturesque as the larch trees are just changing colors from green to gold, the maples are going red, and there may be the odd snowfall to coat everything in white. Simply spectacular, I never got tired of looking at the colors and the overall vistas.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3-fs5XEnYx5W7g9usoFTMpztGcF8tici4nMVO0L3U29riuV4weUoe7T8l9bb4-f6jxiY3f4iHtPWhk2ncw4bBndqvQT4y1rlHFij99GQ10NZS98LpF1gymesKkclb-k0U-PaMthOOUvickSWbAcTfEHr9_sgoj8zDFCXg4jmTkTEWx8h2UN-tbNs5HQ/s4608/IMG_20220925_122756311_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3-fs5XEnYx5W7g9usoFTMpztGcF8tici4nMVO0L3U29riuV4weUoe7T8l9bb4-f6jxiY3f4iHtPWhk2ncw4bBndqvQT4y1rlHFij99GQ10NZS98LpF1gymesKkclb-k0U-PaMthOOUvickSWbAcTfEHr9_sgoj8zDFCXg4jmTkTEWx8h2UN-tbNs5HQ/w640-h480/IMG_20220925_122756311_3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climbing out over the Junction launch.</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><br /></p><p>In addition to the flying, I took the opportunity to visit many of the nearby National Parks. There are 5 within a few hours drive of Monroe (Arches, Bryce, Zion, Capitol Reef, Canyonlands), and if you are willing to do an overnight drive, you can go see the Grand Canyon too. And going in September is *much* nicer vs. July or August...less or no crowds and the temperatures are more reasonable. One thing I really enjoyed, overnighting in the Parks, is the fact that many are "International Dark Sky"-rated, which means they are exposed to little to no light pollution and thus you can make out many celestial features that are otherwise obscured by nearby city lights. Camping out under an easy-to-see Milky Way is an experience I urge everyone to do at least once.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxYFnwjAIpO7F9f4fvofBgjpxs2rKIGvxD3_G5wMIID5iHa1FscMd_8w2iU-oliTiNHzwdv-TYmL792KKq7GnPWWbJrR2yfahBKvBiNUXYFb0FVHmw0EjJB62RjG9Jl3odnUyYxiag7vcfB4lp2O258WZbHN9D-MMI3ZFSkR6aiGVPdbiP5pKPY_k8WA/s4608/IMG_20220922_151242502_HDR_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxYFnwjAIpO7F9f4fvofBgjpxs2rKIGvxD3_G5wMIID5iHa1FscMd_8w2iU-oliTiNHzwdv-TYmL792KKq7GnPWWbJrR2yfahBKvBiNUXYFb0FVHmw0EjJB62RjG9Jl3odnUyYxiag7vcfB4lp2O258WZbHN9D-MMI3ZFSkR6aiGVPdbiP5pKPY_k8WA/w640-h480/IMG_20220922_151242502_HDR_2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the many sights in Arches NP.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>Hot springing is easy to do in southern Utah. Monroe boasts some commercial hotsprings, but if you want the "locals' experience", go to Red Hill Hot Springs (Google it). And if you want to see some really special hotsprings with swimming and diving, check out Meadow Hot Springs near Meadow. And finally, if you want to go further abroad, check out Fifth Water Hot Springs just east of Spanish Fork. These ones are a ~45 minute hike in and rather than only a couple of pools, the entire river at the 45-minute mark is hot, just pick a random spot or sit under a hot waterfall! Go early in the morning (I went at 7am) and plan to be out by 10-11am as the daily crowds arrive. If you go early enough, you'll have the place to yourself for an hour or so!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDViIlrytc2fLp33EbNMpbZAfDIwlrErektmjrohIiTms43xLo4AxYtc4cQF2loJn1sOB2i2nwkujpiHwjfwvST696d3KFYEPu-fPenT7JhMIVHyMhWya3id4UxhPwuwTz9TLF9onMUmHKXop_Y683SRA69xuyL8E2rZkRkVF7gV1kQ1HxqdPbqzSAeQ/s4608/IMG_20221004_072713875.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDViIlrytc2fLp33EbNMpbZAfDIwlrErektmjrohIiTms43xLo4AxYtc4cQF2loJn1sOB2i2nwkujpiHwjfwvST696d3KFYEPu-fPenT7JhMIVHyMhWya3id4UxhPwuwTz9TLF9onMUmHKXop_Y683SRA69xuyL8E2rZkRkVF7gV1kQ1HxqdPbqzSAeQ/w640-h480/IMG_20221004_072713875.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK2Yt0xJ3lFQeApXurny5SC13enQWCWMBuLUPUw1xHb9vKfmecwTEzw21pYi_Tr_NlArlZWYw30GMsbjS5IFQ1SpMvFJlOf1M-cxoes6ckyS5l8JS2g5MGXuGTrVbHKLveIC3eoy5tLrdE78mTmZWg6PiGXiAukOgqGFf7l7HcVfch9XgrSmK96YHgtQ/s4608/IMG_20221004_084317742_3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK2Yt0xJ3lFQeApXurny5SC13enQWCWMBuLUPUw1xHb9vKfmecwTEzw21pYi_Tr_NlArlZWYw30GMsbjS5IFQ1SpMvFJlOf1M-cxoes6ckyS5l8JS2g5MGXuGTrVbHKLveIC3eoy5tLrdE78mTmZWg6PiGXiAukOgqGFf7l7HcVfch9XgrSmK96YHgtQ/w640-h480/IMG_20221004_084317742_3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Several of the established pools at Fifth Water Hot Springs. <br />You can also just pick a random spot if the pools are too crowded for your liking;<br />the entire river is hot at this point!</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p>After nearly 5 weeks in southern Utah and the fall XC season winding down, it was time to head back to Vancouver. But one more stop, Yellowstone National Park is (almost) on the way back! And with it being early October by this point, the crowds were minimal and in fact some amenities were closed for the season, and overnight frost was common. This park is a geologists dream with steaming hillsides, geysers, and hot acidic pools. Oh yeah, wildlife is all over the place too!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfQvF0Y1rlZ47MrGUVhqrpk5PaKuXmtjWXH7O6rPTxPHCRx-5x91_UJKgOogzImAYUUEIgnotHbDEuyq9-envK023SIiSa5sDXUMnQkW0mQwYRFii356peJgdrLamSkYPxhUrCfVJVCFnzCjTZTGWOWIdakmGgLYIcHTPci1w-1XyMiDf2MdH2eLIZA/s4608/IMG_20221005_175316195_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfQvF0Y1rlZ47MrGUVhqrpk5PaKuXmtjWXH7O6rPTxPHCRx-5x91_UJKgOogzImAYUUEIgnotHbDEuyq9-envK023SIiSa5sDXUMnQkW0mQwYRFii356peJgdrLamSkYPxhUrCfVJVCFnzCjTZTGWOWIdakmGgLYIcHTPci1w-1XyMiDf2MdH2eLIZA/w640-h480/IMG_20221005_175316195_2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the many hot acidic pools at Yellowstone NP.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p>I'd say my favorite part of the park was the boardwalk surrounding the main geyser area. From the boardwalk you can safely walk within a few meters of steaming fumaroles and venting geysers, and you can see the footprints of the local wildlife that all of a sudden stop and there's a new hole where the ground gave way...don't leave the boardwalk! Be aware of the crowds that will surround Old Faithful, there is a clock there that will give you an idea of when the next eruption is scheduled so you can plan things in advance. If you want a less-crowded eruption-viewing experience, walk the boardwalk to the other side and you'll see the eruption from another angle and away from the amphitheater. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6sso_cfiTcttacIU6hE1xl8pI7a513o2ZolXnPZhyPtY20Fjn6tcRyGisA0yNnYWLki85_mLz7ZIEU9nMiVd_7s_ejJdJIjuRceKPUzUj6dtbEjgJde_D_EHsSpiBqCt-RXsq48luTsnYzkDtCPgNpPOaOjs4ntgMtawYs7W6TtLrCTbV-1XH_IW3lg/s4608/IMG_20221006_103350006_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6sso_cfiTcttacIU6hE1xl8pI7a513o2ZolXnPZhyPtY20Fjn6tcRyGisA0yNnYWLki85_mLz7ZIEU9nMiVd_7s_ejJdJIjuRceKPUzUj6dtbEjgJde_D_EHsSpiBqCt-RXsq48luTsnYzkDtCPgNpPOaOjs4ntgMtawYs7W6TtLrCTbV-1XH_IW3lg/w640-h480/IMG_20221006_103350006_2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of Grand Prismatic Pool. The rest of the pool is hidden in the steam. <br />There is actually an overlook view of the entire pool from the hillside behind.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>If visiting Yellowstone NP, I would recommend planning your overnight stops in advance since things tend to book up, and with the size of the park there's no way you can see it in a day...you can spend 2+ hours simply driving from one part of the park to another. Add in any hiking or exploring off the beaten path, and you are looking at 3-4 days easy. Also bring enough days of food and water...there are limited shopping and restaurant opportunities once inside the park.</p><p><br /></p><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-17485599135167393692022-08-14T22:30:00.001-07:002022-08-15T15:29:20.761-07:00Lower and Upper Bridal Falls August 14, 2022<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh60bCNWGyqXdUGnQKU4aVO_QPFq_0PLf87dLFwqS1REA2El87Wk48lOr9sanhPT1s4dfTqIMzefQyU9rJMxWGHPL-HBiFjSVy8wmVmfz2VHnicqnndWlebNyXnlocPsRQk4d8JokCsSCxUKwi6m8aLI-DGDP4rwxbylBiDXXCDqcg0b4_ft8DXq_IvIQ/s4032/PXL_20220814_222004000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh60bCNWGyqXdUGnQKU4aVO_QPFq_0PLf87dLFwqS1REA2El87Wk48lOr9sanhPT1s4dfTqIMzefQyU9rJMxWGHPL-HBiFjSVy8wmVmfz2VHnicqnndWlebNyXnlocPsRQk4d8JokCsSCxUKwi6m8aLI-DGDP4rwxbylBiDXXCDqcg0b4_ft8DXq_IvIQ/w640-h480/PXL_20220814_222004000.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting for the knob traffic jam to dissipate before launching. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /> </p><p>A nice, rather average, but totally flyable day, at Bridal. With the Woodside shuttle out of service, and the cancelled Sunpeaks fly-in pilots on their way back to the coast and the Island, Bridal was busy!</p><p><br /></p><p>Launched and got away from the knob traffic jam and then flew up to Upper launch and top landed. Nice and quiet up there, lots of berries on launch! Alex also top landed and then relaunched to fly to Cheam, while others flew to Ludwig and Elk. All in all an uneventful day in the Fraser Valley and lots of happy pilots at the Wildcat for dinner later that evening!</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-6637234709636083882022-08-05T22:00:00.047-07:002022-08-15T16:16:30.264-07:00Lower Bridal Falls August 5, 2022<p> </p><p>The forecast was calling for east and northeast wind in the Fraser Valley, which will often produce thermals going high enough to get over the peak of Cheam. This happens maybe a half-dozen times a year, so when you see a forecast such as this, you go!</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1tPR6RJMXRPPPoqQhM5a-3gmyADtAki-NvoFSR9Uo-eXpqO6e_wabhUVqW1SyhWUV1XNrtGH0yLx6_oYHjyn_INTKxTy2SnAb3Zh5TQ8I-WAcBdWXVZxlgKSLamw7rbT6HG9Ltr3D8Ig80kudVPJ4ZbdkCCPx-6JZVuw3DVt40QGniLKY04H62kb6OQ/s1780/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-15%20at%203.39.01%20PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1540" data-original-width="1780" height="554" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1tPR6RJMXRPPPoqQhM5a-3gmyADtAki-NvoFSR9Uo-eXpqO6e_wabhUVqW1SyhWUV1XNrtGH0yLx6_oYHjyn_INTKxTy2SnAb3Zh5TQ8I-WAcBdWXVZxlgKSLamw7rbT6HG9Ltr3D8Ig80kudVPJ4ZbdkCCPx-6JZVuw3DVt40QGniLKY04H62kb6OQ/w640-h554/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-15%20at%203.39.01%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Windgram for Bridal for August 5. Notice the NE wind up high, conducive to Cheam altitudes!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p>There was quite the crowd at launch and with the east wind, pretty much everyone was launching from the top launch. Once in the air it was very much east wind, so much so that I went east to find my first thermal...not west like on "regular" days.</p><p><br /></p><p>The east wind was somewhat significant, so we had to be careful not to get in the lee of the flanks of Cheam. These flanks are usually a washing machine on the best of days, so on a day such as this, even more so. I actually ended up trying 2 times, and going out towards the highway, before I found a thermal strong enough to get me high enough to get around the SW flanks of Cheam with little drama.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAojW7tUgZalVEU6D7NbJyM6dxHY1CWiFeGCrvMBDzii4q0YgzrYV-f35iW6gU3d49lOIaIgVYQ01lVC-zMiOatotAge7eBuoCGStkHNEw6nu46mGBHyc9nq_8z5iAflM3y4pAdzyhmAeFfeaV21-OuZCUy5Ee0KdIjZTwO4e63BW1GQuScsqS8_kvTg/s4032/PXL_20220806_004738883.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAojW7tUgZalVEU6D7NbJyM6dxHY1CWiFeGCrvMBDzii4q0YgzrYV-f35iW6gU3d49lOIaIgVYQ01lVC-zMiOatotAge7eBuoCGStkHNEw6nu46mGBHyc9nq_8z5iAflM3y4pAdzyhmAeFfeaV21-OuZCUy5Ee0KdIjZTwO4e63BW1GQuScsqS8_kvTg/w640-h480/PXL_20220806_004738883.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking at the NE face of Cheam, we often don't get to thermal up that side very often!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p>Once over on the north side, things started looking up. It was almost ridge soarable on the north side and I was able to smoothly climb up on the pyramid, which is usually in the lee of the typical inflow SW wind, and not a good place to be on regular days. But today was not a regular day! We were all getting up on the N and NE side of Cheam, it was smooth thermals, and clouds were forming at 2200+m!</p><p><br /></p><p>Paddy, Alex, and I climbed up on the NE side and over the summit where there were many hikers waving and taking photos. Soon thereafter a half dozen additional pilots thermalled up, and we had quite the crowd in the air over the summit of Cheam in the smooth air. It was 6pm and the hiking crowd still had a 2-3-hour hike/drive down ahead of them before dark, while we could be on the ground and next to our cars in under 30 minutes if we wanted! But we didn't want to...it was too awesome to want to leave so early.</p><p><br /></p><p>But I don't think anybody had dressed for freezing temperatures...it was something like 5ºC at cloud base, and we were dressed for 25ºC. Lots of comments about freezing hands etc so it was time to land and talk about how awesome it was to thermal up the NE side of Cheam. Rare to get an over-Cheam day, even rarer to do it on the NE side!</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/5.8.2022/23:15" target="_blank">Lower Bridal to Cheam summit flight</a>.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-29906348647601410112022-07-27T18:00:00.098-07:002022-08-15T14:35:33.915-07:00Mt. 7 July 27, 2022<p> The previous day I had chased for Guillaume and Alex who flew to Fort Steele and Jaffray (200-240km), today was a fly day for me. Lots of pilots in Golden for the Willi Muller XC Challenge, plus the BCXC group was in town, so launch was a bit busy!</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRaupbOR0_dXtcVHS571i0RPO-AygciAF_O1I_0OZLoAVhkApqYg8cM2pQxinrvOd65HzCJWwwfZoa5X7btjFieQHgRaIWCydiky7nF7bgn8fYzEvSf_y0vIsqYJ2PlkToUJyOOCxnQtoPDLE-UKDkP-LMd-guep4Gl9g3kJPbH8o0oaDpJC8eXEX1Hg/s1782/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-15%20at%202.19.05%20PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1546" data-original-width="1782" height="556" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRaupbOR0_dXtcVHS571i0RPO-AygciAF_O1I_0OZLoAVhkApqYg8cM2pQxinrvOd65HzCJWwwfZoa5X7btjFieQHgRaIWCydiky7nF7bgn8fYzEvSf_y0vIsqYJ2PlkToUJyOOCxnQtoPDLE-UKDkP-LMd-guep4Gl9g3kJPbH8o0oaDpJC8eXEX1Hg/w640-h556/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-15%20at%202.19.05%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mt. 7 Windgram for July 27</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p>Launched and was able to get above launch right away which started the lemming-effect on launch, glad I was in the air by then! I found the air was not very pleasant and had a lot of north in it, and with all the ridges on Mt. 7 that creates lots of lee spots. I spent a lot of time trying to get high, and eventually my persistence paid off with a thermal to 3900+ m right over the peak of Mt. 7 (CYA167 goes to FL250!).</p><p><br /></p><p></p><p>With that kind of altitude I was able to skip the whole Pagliaro business and get straight to Bicarbonate peak, and then it was the usual fight to stay high, but not so high that you were busting airspace (in that area @ 3810m). Pilots were busting airspace all over the place as cloud base was somewhere near 4200+m, and going deep whenever the opportunity presented itself. I was finding the air bouncy and rough (typical Golden!) and did not want to go deep at the range split, as I've seen what that can do to pilots who get low and now need to make their way out in the lower-down wind, or toss their reserve back there and end up with an epic walkout or heli-rescue required.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhynMtGN6omf7LnsHuYuAO_ClJw0JW2FnhdNhisl-uSf8qjsMJhudpcg6olfUHUvGEJoFI5hlj1R1AfmNdGBEqQkKUYDnMEU6Dbc3JUpp0eICPIsb2x1C33uPaa8e64tAhjQ3aZ2pfAB0c3rE0YNkq5SHGjR2xCgyEY3MLNkB14TSbt9Vd8PKqbnnYKUg/s2536/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-15%20at%202.21.55%20PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1496" data-original-width="2536" height="378" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhynMtGN6omf7LnsHuYuAO_ClJw0JW2FnhdNhisl-uSf8qjsMJhudpcg6olfUHUvGEJoFI5hlj1R1AfmNdGBEqQkKUYDnMEU6Dbc3JUpp0eICPIsb2x1C33uPaa8e64tAhjQ3aZ2pfAB0c3rE0YNkq5SHGjR2xCgyEY3MLNkB14TSbt9Vd8PKqbnnYKUg/w640-h378/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-15%20at%202.21.55%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We are allowed quite high at Mt. 7, but once south, our allowed airspace lowers.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p>Was working my way along the Brisco/Spur Valley section when we heard that Guillaume had tossed his reserve near the Judge peak and Diana Lake, had a long reserve ride down (enough time to stuff his glider in his pod!), and crashed through the trees, not catching, and hitting the ground. He was complaining of a sore back and was walking out to the Diana Lake lodge where there were staff and guests, but was asking me and Alex, via his DeLorme, to arrange a retrieve from the Diana Lake trailhead.</p><p><br /></p><p>While all this was going on I was getting tossed around as I was approaching Radium, and the rocks were getting uncomfortably close, and my spidey senses were going off, so I opted to head out and landed in Radium, while Alex landed in Invermere. I was able to thumb a ride back to Nicholson right away (the second car that came by stopped for me!), and when Alex returned he was able to arrange a truck to the trailhead to pick Guillaume up.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/27.7.2022/19:22" target="_blank">95km flight to Radium</a>.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJH0vM1PENRiyzhTcHuwstNLgxUhvDNm9wfn-a3-VL5Jm8sXeEiXGqR3VNvUbemPscGwPvncrDPLh9m6axUXVPYf0uocnNrXFgvnw5heAl0djucs5JlqpCff9wr7_-yIxbCO4SsY83Y6jz44fg0UhliQcuqcJI9ORvLJ77-jfJT_HyoOtd0wZWUSZ_7Q/s4032/PXL_20220727_204250571.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJH0vM1PENRiyzhTcHuwstNLgxUhvDNm9wfn-a3-VL5Jm8sXeEiXGqR3VNvUbemPscGwPvncrDPLh9m6axUXVPYf0uocnNrXFgvnw5heAl0djucs5JlqpCff9wr7_-yIxbCO4SsY83Y6jz44fg0UhliQcuqcJI9ORvLJ77-jfJT_HyoOtd0wZWUSZ_7Q/w640-h480/PXL_20220727_204250571.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Overflying Kapristo peak, cloud base somewhere around 4200+m. Photo courtesy of Alex Raymont.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p>Guillaume was checked out and nothing broken, just bruised, and a few days later his gear was retrieved from where he had stashed it for the original hike out.</p><p><br /></p><p>Even after flying there for 20+ years, I still fly out and land if things are getting too rowdy for my comfort level. If planning to fly Golden, please have a satellite tracking device so others can find you, as there will often be zero cell service and your radio will only transmit so far. In this case Guillaume was able to let us know via his radio, and subsequently via his satellite tracker, that he was OK and his self-rescue plans, which meant there was no need to involve Golden Search and Rescue. Golden SAR was actually used a few days later for another pilot who had tossed near Parson, gotten caught up on a cliff during his descent, and required SAR to extract him from the cliff while he had pelvic injuries. Golden is a big air, strong, turbulent, prone to wind, and demands respect! </p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9062650919216774061.post-12738248180281324642022-07-02T23:00:00.023-07:002022-08-15T13:59:00.850-07:00Upper MacKenzie Pemberton July 2, 2022<p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtX7g3gxDJX1YCswnkUr-shG-dZ6Oo_nLQZnzt2Np-zlbOlWQURRYu017WaxE3SPsUihiGQgh71-vyK8iTMIZmS-eP4ZEcx62TrpzqSo-EvWfzDnAYPfEv4O1x6Jk_V8M0sDHBE1M4cp8goiH8kTGfjKdqiSp9gRFREaOCGdMaEgbdBgHXkANgPezc4w/s1838/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-15%20at%201.54.12%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1838" height="534" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtX7g3gxDJX1YCswnkUr-shG-dZ6Oo_nLQZnzt2Np-zlbOlWQURRYu017WaxE3SPsUihiGQgh71-vyK8iTMIZmS-eP4ZEcx62TrpzqSo-EvWfzDnAYPfEv4O1x6Jk_V8M0sDHBE1M4cp8goiH8kTGfjKdqiSp9gRFREaOCGdMaEgbdBgHXkANgPezc4w/w640-h534/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-15%20at%201.54.12%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Windgram for July 2 @ MacKenzie launch<br /></td></tr></tbody></table></p><p>It was a great-looking day but I found the climbs and air a bit rough, and not much fun. Completely doable to do the Spindrift-and-return run, but I wasn't in the mood to get beat up on the run, so turned around at Goat Mountain. After returning to launch I crossed over to Satellite peak and found the air much nicer over there, and had a great time boating around over the Rutherford valley and the Miller drainage and watching the pilots coming back from Whistler *way* low.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:nicolemclearn/2.7.2022/19:28#fd=flight" target="_blank">68km OR flight</a>.</p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0