Bernina (Palü, Bellavista, Zupò, Bernina, Rosegg)
As "Gleitsegelwetter" had predicted, today proved to be an excellent XC day with high base, nice thermals and very good visibility for pictures!
This time I was able to complete the 100km FAI triangle out of Fanas (see: 24.4.2010 "Fanas"). It's a pitty, that I was (again) unable to take any pictures of the eagles which flew a couple of times in the same thermal as I did... 6hrs/ 105kms.
Lenzerheide
If you feel like doing something different, here's an idea...
Für einmal schmücke ich mich hier mit fremden Federn und möchte Euch auf die herrliche Geschichte "Flug 69 nach JFK" von NFF verweisen.
Zugegeben, 'leicht' überspitzt, doch eben halt nur 'leicht' -Viel Spass dabei!
"Bähnli" Fanas-Eggli
Today I was incredibly lucky: I had a reservation for the gondola in Fanas for 1215. I arrived by public bus at 1045 and because some people didn't show up on time I got a seat in the 1100 gondola...
This permiotted take-off at least 1 hour earlier than anticipated.
As expected there were many pilots, but the TO area at this time of the year is wide enough for everybody.
looking back from "Chrütz" towards Fanas/ Sassauna
The flight was really great, even though I didn't make it back to Fanas/ Schiers due to shadowing in the 'Landwasssertal/ Davos'. I still haven't figured out yet how to fly this area in the afternoon: most probably in the middle of the valley.
Detail here: almost 80kms in less than 4hrs...
For some days now "Gleitsegelwetter" is predicting good xc conditions for Saturday (23.4.). "Gleitsegelwetter" is a specialised forecast for PG (and HG), which during "high season" appears twice daily. The guy who makes it (Stephan Hörmann) does an excellent job and I hope he is right on the spot about tomorrow :-)) He'd even send out text messages if a "hammer day" is to be expected...
The only problem: as the winterseason has ended last weekend, there is only 1 (!) cable car left running (Fanas) and its capacity is only 32 persons/ hour :-((
I forgot to make an early reservation and so I'll have to wait untill 1215 before there is a space available for me. (They run at full capacity starting 0700!)
So TO will be earliest around 1300 - a little late for a really great flight, but still permitting me a theoretical 5-6 flying hours; and that's generally more than enough for me. All the 'cracks' will take off around 1000 (or earlier)'till 1100(latest) and I expect to see different 200+kms-flight in the XContest.
Last Saturday I was finally able to make a flight I had in mind for many years: flying "around Arosa". Details here
Even tough I was able to close the triangle, the "cherry on the cake" would have been to land again in Arosa, which due to my impatience at the end of the flight I didn't - so there is still some room for improvement.
I had planned this triangle with XCPlanner in detail and I knew that in order to make this an FAI-triangle where the last turnpoint had to be. So to be on the safe side (as there was not that much room for error), I pushed this turnpoint a little too far and then I was unable to find the last good thermal again...
On the same day people flew quite some distances/ triangles from nearby 'Fanas' and I could also have made a longer flight if I wouldn't have flown this (selfimposed) task - but after so many atttempts in doing this I'm more than happy with these 53kms :-))
By coincidence I've found this video.
That's something we (unfortunately) cannot do with our PG's...
I do not mean flying close to the ground but so fast.
...cool sound too...
Here is the link to the "original -if you want to see it in better quality.
looking South from Arosa towards the 'Bernina'-massiv
The long wait is over! 3 good flying days in Arosa with some short xc-flights.
As (almost) usual the eagle(s) sometimes showed where the thermals were - unfortunately all attempts to take pictures failed...
over 'Litzirüti'
How a tree landing looks like from the pilots point of view can be seen here.
