Wind!! > Silver Canyon, Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, Alabama Hills

Very windy - so it was clear from the beginning that flying would not be possible today :-(
Therefore I used the opportunity to go sightseeing on this otherwise clear and sunny day (at least until noon)...
First I drove my car up Silver Canyon: this is the ultimate test for a 'normal' rental car: lousy road, narrow, (very) steep.

Silver Canyom

This is one way to reach the 'Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest', where some of the oldes trees on earth are found -some are over 4000 years old. The views at this altitude (> 3200m) are just breathtaking!

So for returning I wouldn't drive down Silver Canyon, but take the 'normal' road. This woul just have been simply unreasonable, as probably less than halfway down I would have the brakes fading...
Next stop: 'Alabama Hills' near Lone Pine. In Europe this would most probably be a National Park or something similar, here it's just a 'pile of rocks'...

Sierra Nevada (driving on the 'regular' road)

Alabama Hills

...rain on the way back to Bishop...

When I wanted to say thanks and goodbye to Cookie and Brian, I got (again) invited for dinner at 'Whiskey Creek', where we celebrated Kari's 5x' birthday. It has been a very relaxed and entertaining evening - MANY THANKS Cookie and Brian for your generosity!!
Tomorrow will be a travelling day, which wil bring Kari and me to the west side of the Sierra for my last few days of (possible) flying... But the route across Tioga Pass and via Yosemite NP promises spectcular views.

McGee, Flynns

Another almost cloudless morning here in California's Owens Valley. Kari had texted, that McGee, north of Bishop near Crawley lake, might be a possibility for a morning flight. Spectacular views while driving up/ flying.

Mt.Laurel

McGee -looking NE; CrawleyLake

We even found some thermals, which helped to extend the flight to almost 20mins
After having breakfast/ lunch at Crwaley lake, we once more headed up Flynns, where this time the wind on launch was less strong and taking-off was easier. Already some pilots were flying/ toplanding.

Dave (?)

Brian (& Cookie)

While Brian had misjugded the cycle and found nothing, I found a nice thermal just in front of TO which took me to almost 1000m above launch.

Launch (lookig north)

Pano looking south

Being dead tired I landed after a little more than an hour and returned to my hotel in Bishop to relax...

Flynns, Pajute, (Chalk Bluffs)

Finally, after a week without flying (for different reasons, like weather, but also travel and sightseeing) a good day here in the Owens Valley with 2 (well, almost 3 flights) :-))

First in the morning a sledder off Flynns: one could already feel some thermals creeping up the hill. But a later take-off would have meant a longer flight and thus an even later arrival at Pajute...

Flynns: pano looking WNW

Brian (Flynns launch exactly below Brian)

We then headed for Pajute, where first we 'planted' some streamers at the LZ, then Brian drove us in his truck up to launch. Due to rains earlier this year the 'road' has been badly washed out and is presently rather difficult to pass. Without 4WD, low gear and high clearance there is no way you'll make it...      

and there are worse stretches...

While going up we saw 2 gliders flying amd there was already a car on launch. The wind came in perfectly, even a bit strong at times so I prepared my self without much delay. As the road was in such a bad shape, Brian elected not to fly, but to drive down his truck personally; Cookie felt the conditions were on the stronger side for her and Kari wasn't in the mood for flying. So in the end I was the only one of our group to launch.

Pajute: looking towards Bishop (SSW)

I launched in a increasingly stronger wind (as I missed a lull) and had some problems controlling the glider. But with Stacy's advise 'fly the glider!, I managed to get off the hill in the first attempt.

(possible) LZ and launch; he road can also be partly seen...

looking north

With strong climbs (and sink) I headed north. My XCtracer recorded maxima of +9.0/ -7.0 m/s... As my groundspeed showed 72kmh at times I didn't feel to comfortable about the windsituation out in the valley and thus went looking for a 'nice' place to land. In the end It turned out, that the wind on landing was (luckily) less strong than I had feard, but anyway, it has been a great flight! Shortly after having packed my gear, Kari arrived to pick me up.

my LZ: the round alfaalfafield

Many thanks to Brian, for driving me up to Pajute despite this lousy road and thus permitting this flight!!!

We hoped for a third flight, but conditions on Flynns seemed to strong and at Chalk Bluffs the wind was just a little too weak...

Kari

Sunset near Chalk Bluffs

Flynns: site maintenance; sightseeing

Another windy, rainy day :-(  We met (again) at Flynns, but the winds came in already too strong and too cross. So we did some site maintenance: clearing weeds from launch...

Flynns

Later Kari and I went sightseeing near Mono Lake. It seems that the wx is slowly changing towards 'autumn': lower temperatures and even snow on the higher mountains.

near Mono Lake

Unfortunately, the outlook for the coming days is (again) not too promising  :-((

Rain :-(( > road work on Flynns

pix by KariC

Second rainy day on this trip (the other one was when we travelled from Glenwood Springs via Aspen/ Independence Pass to Salida).

Kari had texted, that she would 'work on the road' with Cookie and Brian and if I wanted to join.

So we met at Flynns where Brian had already driven his 'grader' once up and down to/ from the LZ.

Brians selfdesigned 'grader' at Flynns

This had already improved the 'road' quite a bit. Now he was driving his 'grader' up and down once more. At the most critical places we stopped and also helped to make the road more easy to pass.

Unfortunately it started to rain/ drizzle again, so we couldn't fly down from Flynns as we had hoped.

Later we had dinner together at 'Whiskey Creek'. Cookie: many thanks for picking up the tab!!!

Owens Valley / Bishop: windy :-((

Even though already in the morning some Lenicularis clouds had formed high over the mountains, Kari had hoped that the winds below would allow for a short flight off Flynns, so we met at 0915 at the LZ, Kari had brought along some local pilots: Cookie, Brian and Izzy, but the wind at launch was already too strong and also too cross...

Cookie & Brian, Izzy, Kari (at Flynns)

So Kari proposed I'd go sightseeing in the nearby mountains: Lake Sabrina, North Lake and South Lake. 

near Lake Sabrina

Lake Sabrina

North Lake

South Lake

As the fcst said the winds should get less towards the evening, there might be a possibility to fly Chuck Bluffs, a southfacing cliff just north of Bishop, but: it shouldn't have been...

Chuck Bluffs

But apart from the 'non-flying' it has been a beautiful autumn day for exploring the vicinity of Bishop.

Death Valley NP

As mentioned in my last post, I rose and departed early in order to be 'ready' for the sunrise at Zabrisky point, a well known landmark in the Death Valley NP. Whereas during my last visit here in 2008 I had been almost alone, today many more came to view the sunrise.

Zabrisky Point

 
Also the 'vastness' is absolutely stunning: I have driven close to 400km yesterday, whereof close to 300km in the NP- mostly straight ahead! 

you can see the road for about 20kms...

Ubehebe Crater

near Ubehebe Crater, looking North

 In order to get to the Eureka Sand Dunes, I had to take the Big Pine Road...

Big Pine Road

Eureka Sand Dunes

and finally approaching Owens Valley (Sierra Nevada)...

For the next week I'll be staying in Bishop, hoping to fly some of the great sites here; my guide will be (again) Kari Castle ;-))