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Bill called and told me it was good at Cayucos. When I arrived, Morgan and Ben were both flying and doing well. Bill was at launch but his glider was on his truck. The wind was blowing a solid 20 and there was quite a nip in the air. Bill said he didn't feel like setting up and I had the same attitude, even though it was very soarable. Morgan climbed high, did a couple of loops and then climbed up to repeat. A few minutes later he top landed and asked if I would be interested in flying his Predator. Of course I said "yes"! It was a sweet flying glider and I played in front of launch for about 20 minutes before top landing.Back to Flight Log.
25
I decided to fly my Double Vision this day since the wind was going to be light. I expected to be able to make a couple of passes at launch and then just fly down to the beach for a short flight since the wind was only about 8-10 mph. I hit some turbulence and sink and headed out to the beach but didn't think I would be able to make it across the Why and power lines. Just as I started setting up to land, about 50 feet above the ground, the sink mellowed out. I thought I could make it over the power lines so I went for it. As I was clearing them I ran into a wall of solid lift! It took me up 400 feet without having to turn. This, of course, was a very welcome surprise. There was a mild convergence that ran along the west side of the hiway for 2-3 miles. It was very smooth and buoyant but only reached a little above 500 feet. I had fun racing back and forth above Hwy. 1. I flew over the neighborhoods and waved at people and said "hi" to the Mailwoman, but she didn't see me in her scampering between houses. After a while Dave took off and went to the Nob, while I decided to try and get back to launch and top land. The back of the convergence was VERY turbulent with heavy sink. At one point I was stalled and falling past vertical towards the ground! It was scary! The strongest lift was just along the edge though, and by working this zone I was able to climb over 600 feet. I decided to try and land on the nob below launch and failed in my first attempt. It took a while to return to a high enough altitude but was able to land on my second attempt. A very enjoyable flight of 1 hr 15 min.Back to Flight Log.
17
There was not a cloud in the sky all day. The wind was about 15-20 mph from the NE on launch when we arrived. By the time Pavlo launched first it was down to 10 or less. He flew out to the Oak trees. Morgan launched and got a thermal that took him above the ridge top. I was flying Bill's K2 and launched at 12:55 PM, joining Morgan. Eventually Bill and Jeff, took off, with Dave launching about an hour after me. I generally stayed over the ridge top, flying back and forth in front of launch, anywhere from 200 feet below to 500 feet above launch. It eventually became quite boring. By the time Dave launched however, I was the only one left in the air. Everyone else had wandered somewhere, encountered heavy sink, and landed. Dave joined me to the East of launch and we entered the best thermal of the day, climbing to 5500 feet MSL! Prior to that I never gotten above 4500. I used this altitude to explore around, but finding nothing I decided to head out to the Oak trees to think about landing.As I was crossing the river and getting directly above the people on the ground I entered some nice smooth lift. I was down to 3000 but was in no hurry to land. I turned in this lift and it got stronger! It turned into a steady 500 feet per minute (fpm) thermal and took me to 5600 feet. A nice 2600 foot altitude gain. It was a very clear day, with visibility 50+ miles. I decided to head North over the Caliente mountain range to see if I could find some more lift. I eventually hit 1000 fpm sink, and turned back toward where I had the good stuff. Once again I dropped below 4000 feet, but having tasted the sweetness of altitude on a clear day I wanted more! I began searching and shortly saw and large bird circling south of me, a hundred feet above the tree tops. I wandered over to him and entered some light lift. Dave was still back on the ridge near launch but was starting to head out. I told him where I was and he came toward me and my friend below. I stayed directly above the bird and was slowly climbing, although he was climbing a little faster. As it got closer I realized it was a Golden Eagle! A very large, shiny master of the sky. He was obviously not intimidated by me, he was enjoying the climb just as much as I was. As he approached me from below I could see his large beaked face turn and look at me to see what I was up to. He pulled up just behind me right wing tip and we made a full circle together, each of us checking out the other from 20 feet apart! Then we traded positions as he rose above me. What a beautiful creature! He had led me to the best thermal of the day and let me share it with him for a solid 5 minutes. We were well above 5000 feet when he finally disappeared above me. I kept drifting with this thermal, eventually reaching 6300 feet.
Meanwhile Dave had pulled in several hundred feet below me and was also making the climb. The drift was from the NE, and I was actually back behind the ridge top, so I decided to keep going downwind in a westerly direction. I had never gone this way before, mainly because the road winds through steep-walled canyons for about 20 miles with very few safe landing zones. Also the wind usually blows from the West and it would mean a very short flight going into a head wind. I drifted with the lift for as long as I could, out over extreme no-mans land. I could see the wide sandy river bed off in the distance that would have provided a fine place to land. I thought I might be able to make it if I didn't hit heavy sink. There was one excellent field on the North side of the road prior to a stretch of a few miles that were unlandable. I had entered some mild sink and was down to 4000 ft. I decided to play it safe and not go for the distant river bed. This gave me plenty of time to scope the area for power lines and fences. There were some large 240,000 volt high tension lines running along the South side of the road. I noticed they crossed to the north side of the road at the east end of the field I had chosen. The wind was very light from the east, so I set up and landed on the west end of the field, 2 hrs and 6.5 miles from launch. Dave had eventually climbed to 5800 feet and followed me, landing a few minutes after I did, in the same place. This was a fairly short flight by cross country standards, but was extremely rewarding and tremendously enjoyable. It was like two different flights, getting bored flying back and forth in front of launch, and then a true adventure flying with an Eagle and going where I've never been before! Hang gliding sure is fun!
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3
This day was a perfect example of how looks can be deceiving. The Cuyama valley was speckled with cumulus clouds a couple of thousand feet above launch. The wind was a bit strong when we arrived so we took our time setting up. Pavlo launched first and pretty much flew out over the LZ at the Oak trees before entering some light lift and extending his sled run. Eventually Bill, then I, then Jeff, then Dave all launched and basically flew down and landed. We all had sled runs of 15-20 minutes. I borrowed Jeff's old HPII, which flew very similar to mine. I landed heading South. The wind was light and variable in the LZ. While we were tearing down, we saw two Golden Eagles a few dozen feet overhead, just across the street, circle slowly up. As we drove away, about a mile down the road we saw a coyote hanging out on the shoulder.Back to Flight Log.
7
Monday began sunny and calm, a change from the previous day. The cycles started coming in from the SE again, and cumulus clouds began forming in a manner very similar to the day before. We were joined by 3 pilots from Santa Barbara, and by 12:30 the cycles were getting quite strong. Bill took off first, not wanting to get stuck on the ground like the day before, I followed him a few minutes later. I flew around launch, staying 200 to 400 feet above the top in the ridge lift, while the others launched one by one, and headed downwind to the left of launch eventually finding lift to above 8000 feet.. I was hoping to get a thermal before leaving launch, but one never came along. The second to last person to launch was flying the hot new rigid wing called an Exxtacy, so I decided to hang out with him. He turned right and worked some light lift a ways in front of launch, drifting towards the WNW. I drifted in it also but was directly over the ridge top. My lift ran out so I kept heading along the ridge hoping to find something further along. The mountain top drops off in this direction so as I got lower and lower, I was still above the crest. The whole ridge was in shadow so I kept going to where the sun was. I got there but was down to 6000 feet! I entered some strong lift but it was very unorganized and turbulent. Since I was only a couple hundred feet above the ridge tops I finally gave up on it and headed over the back to Ozena.I had been hearing radio reports that the lift was good over the river bed, pilots were getting above 8000 feet. As I approached this area I was down to just over 5000 feet. I decided to use my remaining altitude and head back into the hills where I was the day before. The cloud street had set up almost the same, and I thought if I could reach the sun/shadow line I could finally get back to a comfortable altitude. Just before I would have been forced to turn back and make a dash for a safe landing area (because I was so low) I entered very light lift. It was just enough to allow me to look further. In turn I found a small thermal that ever so slowly brought me back above 6000 feet, then 7000. I began drifting downwind towards the dark clouds above Cuyama Peak, just like the previous day, only I was 2-3 thousand feet lower! The other pilots (except the Exxtacy pilot) had stayed over the river bed, and didn't encounter more lift. Bill landed within a quarter mile of the two Santa Barbara pilots, a mile short of the tiny town of Venticopa (10-12 miles from launch). Meanwhile Dave had trouble on the ridge and never made it over the back.
About 4 miles from the Peak I found another nice area of lift that brought me above 8000 feet and into a much more comfortable position. This is when I heard the Exxtacy pilot say he was at 9900 feet and heading straight N along Hwy 33! I thought it would be great if I, on my old worn glider, could make it as far as someone on the most current, top of the line equipment! I knew I had Cuyama Peak made, but there was a heavy rain shower on the NW side. As I approached from the SE side I had to decide where I should go. I wanted to fly in a more westerly direction, since that is the way the wind was blowing, but I could have headed straight N to where the last pilot flying was and enter a cloud free area but be heading more into the wind. I knew I had no chance of out gliding him so I decided to get as high as I could and fly around the rain shower, turning to the west once I was past. Cuyama Peak was booming as I arrived. I entered strong, smooth lift that easily took me through 9000 feet. Then I noticed the cloud above me was a kind of umbrella shape. I began getting above wispy edges, and then I was surrounded on three sides by solid, dark cloud. As I broke 10,000 feet the lift got even stronger and I started getting concerned! The cloud was very black and I realized, as I passed 10,300 that I was in CLOUD SUCK! I better get out of there fast! I stuffed the bar past my waist and went into what normally would be a high speed dive, aiming for the N wall of cloud. I reached it, but was still climbing strong through 10,800 feet! As I whited out in the side of the cloud I just hoped it wasn't very thick. Luckily I popped out the other side and left the cloud suck. Now I was in light rain.
I kept flying N eventually leaving the drizzle and dropping below 10,000 feet. Then I turned to the W and knew I had a long glide in front of me to get to Cuyama Valley and hopefully more lift. This gave me time to relax and enjoy the awesome expanse of scenery all around me. More rain showers were scattered to the SW and even the E. The dry Cuyama river bed was a sandy scar cutting across the perfect manmade squares of fields and roads more the a mile below me. As I approached Foothill Rd, I checked my GPS to determine whether I should cross the valley to Hwy 166, or head W along Foothill. The west track gave me a slightly higher ground speed, so I flew along it until I reached the ground, 25.5 miles and 1 hr 25 minutes from launch. What an exciting flight! The Exxtacy pilot landed along Hwy 33 a little more than 20 miles from launch so I had the longest flight of the day! I sat and waited for more than an hour as several rain showers drifted out of the mountains to the east and west of me. It was a very peaceful, relaxing place. The rain shower that I had skirted back near Cuyama Peak ended up dumping on Bill for more than half an hour! He was soaked. This was a very successful last blast of summer, camping trip for me.
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6
Sunday started out with plenty of wind, but no clouds. It was questionable as to whether we would fly but cumulus clouds started popping up around 11 AM so we decided to go set up in case it got better. Eventually a cloud street developed. It started way out in front of Reyes Peak (to the E of launch) and came overhead and back to the NW towards Cuyama Valley. It looked very promising so I took off in the high winds about 1:50 PM. By this time the clouds were getting large and a good part of the valley in front of launch was in shadow. The lift was mellow and relatively smooth and I climbed slowly above 8000 feet. Then I started getting into stronger lift which carried me above 9000. I wandered over in front of Reyes Peak and got up to the clouds at 10,600 feet. Jeff launched and got up above 9000 over launch, while Dave took off after Jeff and was still near the top of the ridge. I headed back to launch to get in the thermal Jeff was in, but missed it. By the time I knew it was gone, I had drifted too far over the back to make it to the front of the ridge and keep me altitude, so I turned downwind and headed towards Ozena.I was 2000 feet above the mountain (9000 feet above sea level) so I had no problems. The cloud street became solid from about Ozena to beyond Cuyama Peak 12 miles to the NW of launch. I flew to the SW side of the clouds, staying above the shadow/sun line that was on the ground. It was quite a ways into unlandable mountainous terrain, but I was high enough to make it back to a safe landing area. I hit some strong lift and took the thermal back into the cloud where I whited out at 10,600! Jeff was a few thousand feet below me looking for lift. I told him over the radio that he should head back into the mountains to the shadow/sun line because it was working well. He took my advice and hit strong lift also and climbed high again. Meanwhile Dave was having trouble in turbulence over launch so he went over the back and landed at Ozena.
It was an easy, effortless downwind glide to Cuyama Peak, I was covering the ground at 50 mph at some points! As I approached this peak at about 9000 feet, I again entered light lift, which got stronger the closer I got to cloudbase. This time I whited out in the cloud at 11,000 feet! I knew I was going to disappear so I took heading readings on my GPS so once I couldn't see the ground I knew which direction to fly. After a few circles I headed on my bearing and shortly popped out the side of the cloud. From there I flew across Santa Barbara Canyon and headed out to the Cuyama Valley. The cloud street was broken apart at this point but cloud cover was filling in most of the sky. I hit some sporadic lift as I approached Foothill Rd and climbed from about 7300 to 8100 feet. From there I flew towards the NW and Hwy 166. Then I headed along the highway until I reached the ground, landing at the High School in New Cuyama! I wasn't sure what the wind direction was on the ground so I did one circle over the field. My GPS showed me the slowest ground speed (which was into the wind) was towards the NE, so I set up and had an excellent landing to finish a great flight! It was a 30 miler in 1 hr and 35 min. Jeff landed on Foothill Road near the place I hit my last bit of lift and Bill and John (who had joined us the previous evening) decided not to fly due to the windy conditions at launch.
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5
This Labor Day holiday trip was supposed to start on Friday the 4th, but unusual rain kept us at home until Sat the 5th. Bill, Dave, Jeff and I set up a campsite and then got to launch a bit later than usual. The wind was strong from the SE, Bill launched first, about 2:30 PM. He got low but eventually got over the back and made it past the town of Venticopa for close to a 20 mile flight. I launched a little later and scratched around the mountain top waiting for a thermal to come through. It never did so finally I just bailed over the back at about 7500 feet. I hit some 1500 foot per minute sink for a while and made it to Ozena with several hundred feet to spare. I had a very good landing, about 4.3 miles and 40 minutes from launch. Jeff and Dave chose not to fly due to the high winds and lack of thermals.Back to Flight Log.
15
Word of the 152 mile flights the previous week must have gotten out because at least 23 pilots showed up this day! The cycles were over the back, crossed from both directions, and very light to nonexistent. The cloud development in Lockwood Valley began early and steadily built. The first 2 pilots launched about 1 PM, I was third and had to wait 10 to 15 minutes for another reasonable cycle. I slowly but steadily climbed, as the air slowly but steadily filled with gliders. Eventually I reached 10,000+ over launch, then drifted east towards Reyes Peak. I continued climbing, topping out at 11,200.The clouds over the back had all come together and over-developed. It was a large, black, intimidating mass. At altitude, the wind was pretty strong from the NW, so the drift took us away from Dry Canyon, which is the normal destination over the back. Richard was in the same thermal with me, and we decided to continue heading east. Eventually we noticed the bottom dropping out of the south end of the cumulo-nimbus cloud that was centered over Lockwood Valley. We decided it would be best to fly back towards Dry Canyon and try and fly around the north end of the Valley. I entered heavy sink and a strong headwind, but was so deep in inhospitable terrain my only choice was to keep going and hope I could reach a ranch with a flat landable area that was several miles away. My sink-rate reached 1000 feet per minute while my ground speed was only 15 mph, so I was worried! Eventually I got so low that I was able to work the lift from the wind on the ridge tops. This allowed me to eventually reach a safe landing zone, however I was still several miles from Lockwood Valley Road, in a canyon that I didn't want to hike out of. I kept working the ridge tops, hoping a workable thermal would lift me out of my predicament. Eventually I worked my way closer to the road but a saving thermal never arrived and I landed in 4-6 foot bushy, dry brush. I was next to a dirt road (Reyes Creek Ranch Rd.) and, after tearing down, I hiked 1.38 miles to the road and waited for the van.
Most of the others made it over the badlands and into Lockwood Valley. They all got flushed there and then got dumped on by heavy downpours, and in one case hail! I was happy to have stayed dry, even though my 1 hour flight only took me 4 miles from launch!
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8
It was originally my turn to drive but Bill had a cold and switched with me. Pine has been an unpredictable site this year, this day looked similar to the previous time (July 25) with solid cycles crossing slightly from the west. I launched first, about 12:50, and got a couple hundred feet over the top. The wind was strong, so the ridge lift made it easy to stay up. The thermals were few and not very consistent. I explored Reyes Peak a little, but mostly hung out near launch. The best I did was 8500, or 1500 feet over launch. I had the mountain to myself for about 45 minutes before Dave finally took off. This was the first time other pilots came this year, 4 from Santa Barbara. They launched shortly after Dave. Dave must have launched during a down cycle because he dropped a few hundred feet and had to start heading out away from the mountain. This was the first time I dropped below launch also but only 100 feet or so. Dave caught a thermal out in the valley and worked back over launch. I got one that took me to 8000 feet. A short time later Dave got within a couple hundred feet of me and I said we should go over the back since this was as good as it has been. We headed to Dry Canyon. About 2/3rds of the way there we started hitting light lift. Dave was quite a bit lower and hung out, working this lift eventually to 9300 over the middle of the 'badlands'. I was above 8000 so just kept flying towards Lockwood Valley. I hit some stronger lift which I should have worked to get high, but instead I kept flying straight, concentrating on clearing the 'badlands'. I did, but only had a few hundred feet to work with once I reached the edge of Lockwood Valley. The wind was strong from the SW and I hit a small patch of lift that carried me the last couple of miles to the airstrip in the center of the valley. I had a good landing there, after 1 hour 50 minutes and 16.1 miles from launch.Meanwhile, because Dave had worked the lift in the 'badlands' he was able to reach the good stuff in Lockwood Valley. This was his first flight beyond the badlands and he was stoked. He eventually reached 12,800 feet, over Frazier Mountain, and landed on the east side of Quail Lake, about 30 miles from launch. Two Santa Barbara pilots did what Dave did, only when they reached Frazier they headed to the NE instead of the SE. They ended up flying to Panamint Valley and landed shortly after 7 PM, 152 miles from launch!! I sure picked the wrong day to make a tactical error!
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25 This day started out looking good. There were high sub-tropical clouds moving overhead from the SE. The cycles were strong at launch. I took off about 1 PM and immediately gained 200 feet. I could tell the wind was quite strong above the ridge top; as I headed to the E, my ground speed was about 20 mph, when I headed towards the W, it was over 35 mph. After several minutes of just staying 200 to 300 feet above launch, I noticed Bill and Dave and Jeff (who was driving this day) all just sitting on launch. I asked them why no one was taking off and they said the wind had picked up and they were going to wait for a while. I started expanding the area I was flying in to see if I could find a thermal somewhere. I flew around the entire bowl section near launch and found nothing. I knew the wind was strong and there would probably be a large, nasty rotor somewhere on the back side of the majestic mountain, so I wanted to be in lifting air as I made the plunge. I finally got a thermal that took me to 8200 feet, 1200 feet above launch. I didn't drift with it because I was hoping to get a little higher before committing myself. I slowly dropped back down to about 7500 feet when I hit a similar thermal. It took me to 8000 feet and I was pretty tired of the strong air over the mountain. My turns took me far behind the mountain when the wind blew the thermal apart around 8200.
The back side of the mountain is very steep and long. This is one of my favorite activities in a hang glider, the down wind run! My target area was 5 miles away and the quicker I got there the better. It is very exhilarating to be nearly a mile above the ground and turn down wind in a strong breeze, cruising with a ground speed above 50 mph! This was a 7 or 8 minute stretch of straight flight. I reached the area with 2000 feet between me and the ground, but all around me was gusty and turbulent air. The air here was very stable also, there were no thermals that were developing and I was just happy to get on to the ground with a pretty wild landing. This was one of the rare instances that I thought I might break a down tube. At the very end of my glide, I hit some turbulence that caused my left wing to drop, and quit flying. My right wing lifted and I tried to flare but was flopping sideways. Luckily I overshot the spot I wanted to finish on and was in tall (3 feet), thick grass. It was a soft, if stickery, cushion to plop onto.
I landed at 2 PM, 5.67 miles from launch, then tore down and went across the street for shade. I found a nice pine tree shading a sandy area that was in the dry creek bed. The other guys hung out on launch waiting for conditions to improve. They finally decided to bag it and picked me up at 4:45 PM. The flies were brutal!
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18
Bill, Dave and I (with Dave's friend Larry driving, thanks Larry) were the only people around the launch area at Pine Mtn. A landslide on Hwy. 33 blocked access for people from So. CA. The day was hot and stable. We took our time setting up since the wind was very light. Around 1:30 PM a lone CA Condor (#7, they all were tags) flew over launch and hung out, watching us set up. At about the same time a small cumulus cloud formed above launch, estimated at 13,000 feet (launch is at 7000 feet). The cycles were coming in nicely so we hurriedly finished setting up. The Condor hung out for about 15 or 20 minutes, and then specked out directly over launch! This means he went higher and higher, until he became a speck, before disappearing. It is always enjoyable to 'speck out'. Bill launched first and got a couple hundred feet above launch. After a few minutes, a thermal came through and took him to 10,000 feet. He headed over the back to the badlands. By now the cycles began to die off and Dave stood on launch for several minutes waiting for something reasonable to launch into. He hung out on the knob to the right of launch but never hit a thermal.I took off a little later, but the wind had really died down. I scratched around the tree tops, but the stability of the high pressure kept the thermals from forming. Dave slowly progressed the 3 miles across the tilted blocks of the 'transverse range' to the dry creek bed at the bottom of the narrow, winding canyon. I was not far behind. The last ridge above the LZ (which is at 4300 feet) is a rock cliff a couple of hundred feet high. As I reached this point, I entered a my only thermal of the day. It took me straight up to 6200 feet (from about 4800 feet). When it quit rising, I decided to make a dash back to the mountain and hope I could find another thermal to get me out of there! I hit nothing but sink, so I had to turn and high-tail it back to the LZ. I barely cleared the last ridge by a few dozen feet! I made 2 - 90 degree turns and had a fine landing. Dave landed 2 minutes later. Bill was able to cross the badlands and make it to Frazier Park, before turning back and landing at the Lockwood Valley airstrip, about 15 miles from launch.
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11
We (me, Bill, Steve, John, Dave, Jeff, and Amtrak as driver) were surprised when we got to launch and saw the wind blowing 20-30! and there were 5 Santa Barbara pilots there! It was more than an hour before we even thought about setting up, and a couple more before John launched first. He went up a couple of times but went to the wrong place and sunk out to the Oak trees LZ. I launched at 2:45 PM with about 3 gliders left on the hill. I got up in a good thermal with 2 SB pilots flying new 'topless' type gliders and headed Miranda Pines Mountain. This thermal lasted a while and eventually there were 6 or 7 gliders working in it. I got to 6100 with the SB pilots above me. I headed to Timber Peak and they chased after me. I found a good thermal and started turning and they jumped right in it. The wind was still from the NE and there was a good bit if drift, which meant we were heading into the wind. The next peak was working ok (6200), but the one after that was not. I reached it just below the top and was just feet above trees on a steep mountain side. The other side was steeper and rocky but had just enough lift so I could maintain above it. I turned in this and there were the 2 SB pilots. They followed me down into the canyon! We all scratched around with just enough room, when I bailed and flew back to the previous peak. This took me way below the ridge top but I found a nice thermal that took me back above. The other 2 did the same. Then they got above me and went back for some more!I hung out, watching Jeff, who was the only one left flying at this point, going up and down like a yo-yo over Timber Peak. I was doing the same and on an up cycle I began drifting out to the middle of the valley. I was a LONG way from the road and had to decide if I should fly downwind, back towards where everyone else had landed, or try and make some distance and head East but farther away from the road. The air was buoyant and I was in light lift which took me up to 6500 ft. I thought I could make it to the road if I went E so began a long slow drift across miles of empty, erosion filled foothills with little vegetation. I was about 4000 feet above the ground floating in smooth air. Amazing! I made the highway easily and saw the wind was blowing straight from the E. I just flew into it until I reached the ground about 11.7 miles from launch. The 2 SB pilots landed about 1/4 mile short of me and Jeff was about 3/4 mile short of me. Not bad for my ancient glider! I felt really good on this flight and enjoyed it.
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4
The wind was blowing down when we got to launch, not usually a good sign. I took my time to set up, I was willing to wait around today. The cycles began coming in and pilots began launching around 11 AM. It was looking like a repeat of Friday, though with better lift. There were at least 33 pilots, I took off in the middle of the pack, right behind Steve, at noon. He went to the saddle and climbed out nicely, with me just below. Several minutes later, at 11,200, I noticed he was a couple hundred feet above me. The next turn I saw he had taken off for the next ridge N. I chased after him, sliding into a nice thermal just below. We took this one to about 11,500. That is when we noticed Morgan come in below us. We headed down range with Morgan right behind. The thermals were powerful, tending to want to toss you out into the sink, so it took concentration, and a physical effort whenever you were in the lower part (more near the mountain side). We moved deeper into the majestic spires as the thermals took us to 12,500.Steve was several hundred feet above me, when I noticed him way back in a canyon. I headed to the next ridge leaving him and Morgan to chase after me for several spines. Actually, for a good 40 miles, we were all within several hundred feet of each other. It is quite incredible to be flying slowly along, next to the top of a 13,000 foot mountain, and look over and see your friend next to you waving! I took a thermal near Onion Valley to 14,200, getting a grand view of snowcapped peaks for hundreds of miles, a cold brisk breeze in my face, and lungs working harder than normal for oxygen. Several miles later, Morgan and Steve headed out into the valley, towards Black Mountain, about 20 miles away. I hung back in the high Sierra working one last thermal to 14,000 feet and taking in the incredible experience. My drift took me to the N towards Bishop, but as I neared Big Pine I saw Morgan circling in lift on the E side. I wasted a couple thousand feet going back to find a thermal that was no longer there. Steve was already on the ground, so I searched the area for a comfortable landing place. On the N end of town, there were several large green grassy fields. I chose one that allowed me to land parallel to the road and have the least influence from trees. The wind was gusty at 15-20 so it was a real rock and roll ride the last couple hundred feet. At the last second, I found myself aimed straight for some 5 foot high bushy growth, that wasn't visible from above! I prepared for the situation when, just before me feet entered the weeds, I floated along another 30 feet and clear of my tormentors! I was 49.7 miles and 3 hours from launch. A very rewarding and enjoyable flight.
Each evening we played a round of golf in the Alabama Hills! (The Alabama Hills are often visible in western's and car commercials) We have made a habit of pioneering golf courses, and this is one of the best! We create holes on the run and only have one club each, but it was a big course and we had a lot of ricochet shots! Just after dark on the 4th, about 8-10 of us were sitting around having nice company, when what looked like a rocket was shooting across the sky. We thought 'fireworks from the town'. The moon made the sky looked washed out but everyone had time to turn their head and watch it. Then we realized it was a nice sized bolide giving us one more show!
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3
OWENS VALLEY!The going was slow, Morgan radioed that he was on the ground at Westgaurd pass, with strong winds out of the SE. I was not around anyone for most of the flight N of Whitney Portal Rd. After passing Onion Valley, I was feeling fatigued, I had been flying for about 3 hours, and had not even gone 30 miles. I decided to save some energy for the next day and drifted out into the valley at about 12.000. I was in some heavy sink for awhile but made the hwy N of Independence very easily. I just flew along the road until I was within a few hundred feet of the ground. There was a Rest Area about 2 miles away, but everything else was just desert scrub, and fences, and power lines! I began intensely surveying the terrain for a place next to the highway that had minimal plants, no fences and no power lines. The East side of the road had a barbed wire fence about 20 feet away and parallel to it. As I was narrowing my prospects, I noticed a power pole on the West side of the road. I searched frantically for several seconds before seeing the lines ran perpendicular to the road, and would not be an issue. The fence on the West side was about 150 feet from the road. Since the wind was blowing from the South and I was heading N, I just needed to make 180 degree turn and land 50 feet from the hwy. The wind was blowing about 15 mph, so I was covering the ground at about 40 to 50 mph. It is always quite a rush flying just a few hundred feet above oncoming traffic, knowing that you are just waiting for the right moment to crank a sharp 180 and get up-right for a landing. The people in the cars don't know what is going on of course so you have to be careful not to cause an accident! Of course the people heading in my direction are undertaking me slowly. They have time to slow a little and hope to see some exciting crash landing! Luckily that virtually never happens with me. My GPS said I had flown 30.8 miles from launch in 3 hours and 20 minutes, although the trip meter said over 100 miles counting all my turns.
I drove out with Bill and we set up camp in the Alabama Hills. We met Craig, Morgan, Dave, Steve, Brian, Charlie, and a few other people. Thanks must go to Brian's wife Kate, for being our driver, although that part of the trip was probably the scariest. Craig flew to about 60 miles, Steve 55, Morgan 50, me 31, Bill 25, ...
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27 The
wind was NE about 15 when we arrived to launch. Not a cloud was in the sky all
day. The pilots (in launch order) were Morgan, Craig, Mike, Chris, Jeff, Bill, and
Dave, with Chris aka Amtrak driving. Morgan got up and went down range right
away. When I took off, I got up a few hundred feet, then slowly dropped to about
3000 feet. I was working light sketchy lift next to Jeff, with Bill a little higher
nearby. Eventually Jeff had to head out just before it turned on for me. I
circled right past Bill and eventually the 600 to 800 foot per minute thermal took me over
6200 feet and was joined by Mike. Jeff and Bill both landed at the Oak trees.
I headed toward Timber Peak where Craig was doing well. Before I arrived, he sunk
out and headed to the middle of the valley where he had good luck. I hung out on the
ridge for a while going between 4700 and 6000 feet, then went out to join Craig in the
middle of the valley. I reached 6200 feet and then lost the good stuff. I
should have kept going east, but just floundered around not far from the big LZ in front
of launch (where Dave and Mike had landed). Craig went down the middle of the valley
and eventually made it to the High School in New Cuyama. Morgan made it to Aliso
Rd. I caught a light drifting thermal and drifted over Spanish Ranch at 4000
feet. I made it past the gap and landed across from the rodeo arena in dead, hot
air, 8.8 miles from launch. It was a bit of work, but a nice warm-up flight for
Owens Valley next week!
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26 The white caps where peppering the bay as I drove to launch. Bill and Dave were setting up. There were noticeable layers af air, the colder ocean air was turbulent and closer to the ground. As you got higher, you entered a warm layer that was smooth and buoyant. It was very easy to fly across the road to twin peaks. I flew north of there past the cemetery, just floating around in the warm air. At one point I flew from launch, south to the point, then north to twin peaks again, all without turning in lift! Usually it is very difficult to return north to launch after going to the point. We all did it several times without any problems.
There were quite a few hawks enjoying the abundant lift, at least 2 species in addition to the Red Tails. Once when I was in the back bowl, a Red Tail came cruising towards me at my altitude. I watched as it came within about 5 feet! Just as it was passing below me, it rolled 2/3rds of the way over, showing me its chest and legs. I watched its eyes checking me out. It was a very beautiful bird, and I was lucky to get such a close view. I saw another one carrying a snake towards the north again, carving the contour of the hill. Near launch once, I saw a Blue Heron flap bay at my altitude.
The air in the back bowl was smooth and buoyant also, although there were giant holes that you could fall into if you got in the wrong place. I tried going further back on the ridge than I should have and dropped 200 feet in a matter of seconds! Bill found a very good place to work and eventually got over 1500 feet, way back in the canyon. He was very happy! It was a great 2 hours of fun day! Back to Flight Log.
24 The day was mellow but consistent. I launch first, followed by Craig, Bill, and later Dave. I flew around launch for a while, then noticed a Red Tail hawk contouring the side of the hill. It was carrying what was probably a snake, so I began following it north. It flew across Old Creek Rd. toward twin peaks. Luckily I was high enough to make it across also. The raptor must have been heading back to its lair with dinner. I couldn't follow it back to Whale Rock Reservoir dam, however.
After a while, I headed south to the point to join Craig and Bill. The were staying up, but weren't making it back to the back bowl. After a while I went back and they joined me. We flew around getting to about 1000 feet. It was fun, but the next 2 days were better. Back to Flight Log.
31
The wind was less than 5 mph and switchy when we arrived at launch. I rushed to set up with Bill, Jeff, Steve, and John, with Chris, aka Amtrak, as driver. We were concerned the NW would blow in hard and prevent us from launching. I launched 4th, at 11:30 AM, and was the last to launch the front. Bill launched the back side a couple minutes later. Steve launched 1st and was unable to stay up, though he tried hard. John and Jeff launched a few minutes later and were able to maintain below launch for a while. When I launched, I turned into lift right away and went to cloud base at 6000 feet!I flew around a few minutes and then headed down range towards Timber Peak. The lift was missing, but I was maintaining well enough to keep going. I got about half way to Miranda Pines Peak and entered light lift which eventually took me back to cloudbase. Above the mountain top, wind was from the SE, so heading to the east was into a head wind. I went almost right to Miranda and hit some more lift. I worked this until I started to white out in the well developed cumulus. The lift was mellow, but consistent so I kept going, reaching about 6700 feet MSL, or 700 feet above cloudbase! I popped out the side of the cloud, and found myself in the hole of a doughnut! I could see blue sky above, and the mountain top 2000 feet below, but steep, ragged walls of white all around me. It was a very unique and incredible experience. As I was circling, I would enter the side of the cloud, almost completely white out, and then suddenly pop out the side into a surreal world, with swirling soft caressing fingers of moisture all around me. I enjoyed this for about 10 or 15 minutes, until the lift subsided and the clouds broke apart, to reform in another area. I headed farther east, only to encounter sink and more of a head wind. I decided to head back towards launch and found out only Jeff was left in the air, out in the middle of the valley. I raced away from the mountain, dropping like a rock to about 3200 feet before entering the lift he was in. The thermal took me close to 5000 feet. We flew around together, sinking again under 4000. We found another thermal near the same place and went back above 5000. The wind was NW on the ground and SE above about 4800. I decided to make a dash to the Caliente Range and found nothing, so I headed to the field Bill and John had landed in, for a flight of an hour and a half. What a wonderful flight! Back to Flight Log.
24 This was a basic flight at Cayucos. I stayed near launch, except one excursion to Twin Peaks. Then I top landed after an hour. Back to Flight Log.
17 I arrived at the top with Pavlo, who would be taking his first flight here. The wind was a solid 25-30 mph from the NW (STRONG!!). We were the only ones on top, so I wire launched him. He didn't penetrate into the wind the way he should have and I temporarily held onto his base tube while it was above my head! Bill and Dave pulled up just as this happened and shook their heads. I took off then and immediately took the elevator ride 200 feet over launch. There was strong lift everywhere, of course. I flew N to twin peaks and Pavlo followed. Then I went back to the dam of Whale Rock Reservoir (which was spilling) and encountered quite a lot of heavy turbulence. I quickly returned to twin peaks and flew around a while. Then I headed back to launch. In the meantime, about 6-8 more pilots arrived and were setting up. An hour after I launched, lift was very good and I got above 1100 ft MSL (above mean seal level), which is very good for launch area. At that point others started launching and I headed S to the back bowl. I flew around by myself for a while, eventually getting above 1200 for a while. After another hour I headed out and landed on the beach by my car. A very enjoyable flight!! Everyone else except Bill and John stayed at launch and top landed. Pavlo was the last and he had never top landed before. The wind was too strong for this to be his first attempt at it, but he did it anyway and ended up breaking a down tube and bending his keel, but was unhurt. Back to Flight Log.
3 I took an aero-towing clinic this weekend at Paso Robles airport in northern San Luis Obispo County. This was during an ultralight fly-in, so there was an interesting variety of ultralight aircraft flying, along with several hang gliders who were there to get some airtime and put on an aerobatics demonstration. Unfortunately the weather was not very good, rain showers kept most aircraft grounded on Friday and Saturday afternoons. I went through the ground school on Saturday morning, while the sky was partly to mostly cloudy. Many aircraft were able to fly during this time. By about 2 PM, when I was ready to get towed up by the ultralight, the rain and wind moved in.
The way an aero-tow works is that an ultralight with a 300 foot line trailing behind is sitting on the runway. The line is connected to a 3-point bridle system, two points tied to the hang glider pilots harness, and one to the gliders center of gravity. The pilot is hooked in to the glider as if in normal flight, laying down with legs inside the harness. The glider and pilot are, in turn, resting on a simple 3-wheeled dolly. As the ultralight powers up and gains speed down the runway, the hang glider will simply lift away from the dolly when it has attained flying speed (which will occur before the ultralight leaves the ground), usually in only 20 to 80 feet, depending on the wind conditions. The hang glider pilot needs to maintain proper position behind the ultralight at all times. Both the ultralight pilot and the hang glider pilot can hit the release at any time if any troubles are encountered. There is also a weak link that will break if the system is over stressed, releasing the two aircraft from each other. During the tow, each aircraft influences the other, so it is important that the pair fly synchronized.
Sunday morning started out sunny, so I got my first two tows to 2500 AGL (above ground level) feet before noon. The sky was became peppered with cumulus clouds at about 3500 feet AGL, so there was a bit of turbulence in the area. These tows were done on the instructors novice level glider, which is lower performance than mine, so I set up my own glider to complete the final 3 tows on. Each tow lasted about 6 to 10 minutes to altitude and then a similar amount of time to return to the ground. My third tow, after noon, was on my glider. As I was releasing from the dolly, the ring finger on my right hand scraped on a small plastic lip the gliders base tube rested on, giving me a short cut right at the base of the nail. A bit of blood dripped out of my body, some of which spattered on my harness, but I kept going and completed the flight. My nail turned black and looks pretty ugly. The wind picked up in the afternoon, blowing 15-20 from the SW. I took my fourth tow and encountered a gust which banked the glider before it left the dolly. My wing tip nearly hit the ground but I was able to maintain control and fly away. Steve, who was taking the clinic with me, had the same thing happen to him as I was landing, only his wing tip did hit the ground and the glider flipped. It looked scary, but the tow line released immediately and he was not hurt (we were towing on a grass strip). Because the wind was strong and gusty and a rain shower was moving in, we took no more flights, but I got my tow rating signed off. Back to Flight Log.
25
This day started out very similar to the previous week, NE wind about 25, only there was a solid blanket of clouds at about 4500 feet (500 ft above launch). I had a dinner date at 6:30 PM that I was hoping to make so I figured I might catch a ride back to town with Pavlo, who was not going to go XC and who wanted to leave by 4 PM. (He had parked his truck at the Oak trees). I launched first, a little after 1 PM. Just then, my shoulder line broke, which meant I had very little support of my upper chest and head, causing me to have to do a push up on the base tube. Needless to say this was not very comfortable, so I radioed back that I was probably just going to head out and land shortly. I kept flying away from the mountain but was climbing quite nicely. Before I knew it I was above 5000 ft so I just started drifting down range, still way out over the foothills. As I passed Timber Peak I had reached cloudbase, which had risen to about 5900 ft by then. It was about this time that Craig, Morgan, and Bill decided it was time to launch, so they started suiting up. Pavlo followed me off the mountain but stayed at launch, since he is a relatively new pilot and has not done any XC yet.I got into as comfortable a position as possible and decided to see how far I could go. These conditions were amazing, the lift was solid and fairly smooth so I didn't even need to turn. I made it to more than 10 miles, to Cottonwood Canyon, before Craig was able to launch! and without turning once! The whole way I was below 6000 ft., also very unusual. One canyon beyond Cottonwood, I did a full 360 and climbed above 6000 ft. About this time the cloud blanket started getting holes in it and the air was becoming slightly more turbulent. The peaks on this part of the range get a little more rugged, and bigger, and farther away from the Hwy. I continued along however, figuring the next spine would provide me with the solid lift I had been experiencing. About half way between Cottonwood Canyon and McPherson Peak I reached a spine that was completely bathed in sunlight. I was below the crest of the mountain with no lift around! At that point I could have flown straight out to Wasioja Rd and reached a safe landing area, but instead decided to head back towards Cottonwood Cyn. This was a MISTAKE! Going back to the NW was into a very slight head wind, and the air in the sunlit canyons was very turbulent and full of sink. Before I knew it I was out on the last point of a foothill at 3700 ft, looking for a saving thermal. I did figure 8's on this point knowing that if I landed in the field below, I would be several miles behind locked gates and access to the truck! The wind was still strong so there was a bit of ridge lift at the knob I was stuck on. Craig was circling at Cottonwood Cyn by this time and had an easy visual on me, every few minutes he came across the radio telling me "You can't land there! You'll never make your dinner!", "You'll be miles from the road! don't land their no matter what!". Thanks, Craig, for making me feel at ease and not worry!
This whole time the thought that my shoulder strap was broken and that I really could not fly my glider very efficiently was in the back of my mind. After what seemed like more than half an hour, but was probably only 20 minutes! a very friendly smooth thermal rolled through. As I cleared the top of the knob and 4000 ft, I began circling, drifting along the spine. As I reached about 5500 and the temperature was a bit colder, Craig drifted by on his way to McPherson. I was so happy to be back at an altitude I could do something with I decided to head across Cottonwood Cyn, and out to the large field, not far from Bates Campground. The flight across the canyon was actually quite treacherous, I ran into severe turbulence and sink of 1200 feet per minute down. I wasn't sure I would make it out of the canyon! Finally as I got closer to the spine, I wasn't dropping out of the sky like a rock, so I made it to the knob on that spine. From there it was an easy glide to the field I landed in, 1 hr and a half after launching. What an exciting flight that turned out to be! Craig made it to McPherson and back to land in the same field I was in. Morgan landed at Wasioja Rd. I even made the dinner date! Back to Flight Log.
22 I had the hill to myself when I arrived this overcast Wed. afternoon at Cayucos. While I was setting up, Ian arrived and launched his paraglider into the steady 12-15 mph SW breeze. The SW slope is gently drops away, so a good run was required to get off the hill. Once air born the smooth lift quickly took me a above the paraglider's altitude. I began flying figure 8's in the bowl and slowly climbed to 1000 feet above the beach (300 feet over launch). I then began to explore the lift band, finding it to be quite extensive along the lower S spine and out to Hwy. 1. More than once I had the pleasure of watching Red Tailed Hawks hanging out nearby, or cruising along 100 feet below me. It is amazing to see such a beautiful bird while in its domain, which they master so exquisitely.
Eventually I was able to get 1350 ft MSL and flew out perhaps 1/4 mile beyond the breakers. The ocean takes on a different personality and color when you see it from straight above. Bill arrived on launch, and later said he thought I could probably make it to Harmony if I turned down wind! I think it was very possible since the air was so buoyant along the coast. I finally headed back to the ridge and top landed (after several aborted attempts!) on the hill just South of launch. A really fine experience! Back to Flight Log.
18 The wind at launch was gusting from 25 to 30 mph when we arrived about 11 AM, not very promising for our first XC flight of the season. We (myself, Bill, Craig, Morgan, Steve, Mike, Gordie) waited until nearly 3:00 PM to launch, hacking some of the brush below launch with Morgan's machete to pass the time. The wind was still gusting over 20, with no sign that the NW would kick in. The ridge lift was fairly easy to stay up in, with some thermals that would blow through once in awhile. I got to 5500 ft above seal level (MSL), which is 1500 feet over launch. Morgan and Craig were able to work their way over to Timber Peak, but couldn't get much over 6000. I eventually went down a spine that got me low, so I had to head back towards launch. Unfortunately I got to launch more than 500 ft below it. I worked some lower hills for some time, bouncing between 3000 and 3400, but eventually headed out to land in a light NE breeze at the Oak trees. Everyone else ended up landing there, which is unusual for Plowshare with this many of us flying. But we had fun! Back to Flight Log.
12 I arrived minutes before the last paraglider pilot landed due to high winds, which were perfect for hang gliding, about 20+ mph from the NW. Bill was setting up, so he launched first. Sally was there with Nikki, and they found a cozy place to lay and observe the ocean 100 feet above the beach. She saw well over a dozen Gray Whales on their migration North that afternoon. Steve arrived and then John. I launched and started my climb along the cliffs. Eventually Bill and I got more than 700 feet above the beach, but not quite high enough to fly back to the tree line on the ridge behind the beach. This was the highest for me this day, the rest of the time I was generally 300 to 500 feet. A Golden Eagle came up behind me, about my altitude, then wandered away. More than once both Steve and John attempted to fly to the back ridge, once Steve didn't make it back out, landing in no-man's land N of the parking lot. He eventually hiked his glider back to the ridge line and relaunched.
I enjoyed flying S along the cliffs as far as I could safely go. Once when John and I were at the S end about 300 feet, a small plane flew past us about 1/4 mile in front of us at the same altitude! Fearing a wave of turbulence we headed back N but felt nothing from this close encounter. There were half a dozen, or more RC sail planes racing around a section of the ridge. The day was sunny and it was quite nice to enjoy it from our vantage point above the cliffs. Just under 2 hrs. after launching, I landed back near the road in a bit of turbulence, a very nice day! Back to Flight Log.
4 As I put my glider on the car it was dumping rain. Sally had agreed to drive today and we were due in the landing zone about 11:45 AM to meet Bill, Craig, Trevor and Morgan. By the time we drove away the rain had ended. Morgan launched first, at 1:00 PM, and I took off about 5 minutes later. The wind was straight in and solid, it was an easy launch and elevator ride up. I buzzed launch for a few minutes as Sally finished off a roll of film in the camera. The air was lifting smoothly and powerfully, and as the other pilots started launching I gained altitude. As I climbed 1000 feet above launch, I noticed Morgan several hundred feet higher, and circling behind the ridge. This was the last anyone saw of him in the air, as he turned downwind and flew over the back. He eventually landed near the dump east of Atascadero, a flight of about 10 miles.
Eventually several other pilots arrived and flew, including Steve, and Ben. After about a half hour, the air started becoming more turbulent and I had quite a good workout fighting the punchy air for another hour. I wandered over to the towers a couple of times, but it was a head wind in that direction. I also went out to near the LZ and then back to the ridge. Towards the end of my flight, everyone was less than 500 feet over launch, and we were feeling crowded on the ridge since the air was so turbulent (classic Cuesta Ridge air). I had a perfect landing one hour and 40 minutes after launching. It was a good day.
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21
This flight looked promising from the landing zone (LZ), prior to going up to launch. I was flying with Pavlo, who had never flown this sight before, and Steve W. After showing Pavlo the area, we went up to the lower launch. The wind was light, but good launch cycles rolled up the face. I went first and turned right. On the far ridge I hit some lift and got above launch with a gaggle of Turkey Vultures. I flew for a while, then Pavlo launched and flew out to the LZ. He landed, then a few minutes later, I landed. Then Steve flew out and landed. In other words, the day was a bust.15 I was first up to launch, around 1:00 PM. I used a shovel on some bad road areas on the way up the back side. As I set up, Bill and Dave and eventually a few others arrived. The cycles were light, the lulls were not soarable. Since Sally was returning from Atlanta that afternoon, I decided to launch and fly as long as I could. I was able to scratch for 20 minutes, below launch the entire flight, slowly drifting towards the beach. After landing, I hiked up the front side, which has turned into an interesting natural area, since the road is so severely El Niñoed away. As I retrieved my glider and drove away, Dave and Bill were soaring the point. Back to Flight Log.
8 This was a really fun day! There were at least 15 hang gliders flying this day. Spread out between launch and the back bowl. Several people were in the air when I launched. I hung out at launch for a while, then, as the air became more crowded, I ventured North, across Old Creek Road, to twin peaks. I didn't feel like I was high enough to drop back to the Whale Rock Reservoir, so I went back and flew the peak behind launch for a while. Eventually I wandered South to the point and the back bowl. Usually about 6 to 10 gliders were flying in the back bowl, everyone was spread out since the lift seemed easy to come by. Virtually all the pilots were locals, we just hung out together, criss-crossing the sky on our magic carpets. The view down the valley to the South-East was surreal. The horizon all around was sharp, and above 1000 feet MSL, with the Morros looking like part of a carnivores lower jawbone with every other tooth missing, and the lovely green carpet covering every open area up to the mountains, it would have been impossible to think about taxes. It was a day that was good for watching the Earth slowly rotate in front of the sun.
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24
Shortly after I started setting up, Morgan and Charlie were soaring the point. The convergence set up about 300 to 500 feet over the beach. My whole flight was spent hanging out above the houses lining Hwy. 1, and the beach on the South end of Cayucos. I would fly up wind as far as I could and then turn to the South and race the cars doing 60ish, just 400 feet below my feet. Then we landed.20 Cloudbase was about 300 to 400 feet above launch. Bill, Dave and I had no trouble getting into the clouds over the ridge top. Disappearing was fairly easy, but by flying straight away from the mountain you eventually punched out the side of the cloud. What a blast!
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