Nick's Weekly Roundup from Porterville

[Gron]

Hi Nick (& everyone!)
Welcome home!   
Just a note to say I've enjoyed reading your flying diary from Porterville- absolutely rivetting stuff!  I've been grounded since the end of September, so your exploits have been my virtual "flying fix" for the last few weeks.  Reassuring to hear that a full frontal comes out nice & quickly on the Sigma!   
I'd like to fly Porterville some time.   During my South African visit in 2007, I managed some coastal flying in Wilderness with Jan Minar, and that was a great area down on the southerly Garden Route.   
Here's hoping for better weather in 2009 than 2008!
Gron.

[Nick Roberts]

Thanks Gareth

There aren't many wild beasts in the Western Cape; not any of the big five at least.  However, there are Poffadders and Berg Vipers and you often see and hear Baboons but they are not threatening.  There are Leopards but they are rare and elusive.  The main thing to have with you when flying is spare water and a sunhat.  Cellphone coverage seems to be pretty good  there these days.

[gareth.pawan]

Really interesting blogs, Nick - you should write a book about your adventures. Flying sounds amazing but not for the faint hearted. Wonder what happens if you land in the middle of nowhere and there are are wild beasts about!

[Nick Roberts]

Day 22 - The weather clears up nicely during the morning.  In the air, the thermals are nicely manageable but the wind seems a little strong.  I cross into the Citrusdal valley at the first opportunity and find enough lift to get to the far side but I decline to venture into the foothills as the wind strength leaves me feeling uneasy.  I find good climbs coming up from the fields along the edge of the valley and reach the town where I head out maybe to land but then I find the climb of the day which takes me to 5,200' and I head north towards the end of the valley.  Another good save and I reach the constriction at the end of the valley.  The sky looks great but I feel uneasy about the wind strength and decide to land on the rugby pitch below.   I monitor my groundspeed on my GPS and it seems ok but it does not quell my unease.  I land comfortably at 15:20 having flown 52km.

 The wind on the ground didn't seem too bad and the sky lookd fantastic.  There was a good couple of flying hours left in the day but I had convinced myself that it was going to  become too windy further on.  As I sat and waited  under a tree for my retrieve, I began to wonder   "am I losing my nerve? ".  The flying here is very committing and rarely relaxing.

Day 23 - Lighter conditions on launch.  I decide that I need to try and relax more in the air.
After copping a couple of assymetric tucks in the first ten minutes which I put down to being too relaxed in the harness, I get the message - " This is Porterville, it ain't relaxing, get on with it! "  I mince along for a while with Ed Highfield, A Brit pilot from Derbyshire whose aim for the day is to make it to Citrusdal at 35km.  Alas, Ed goes down just before we reach my favourite crossing point into the valley behind.  I carry on alone; the thermals are quite weak but the winds are light and I feel much better about the flying today.  I reach the end of the valley, passing the rugby pitch where I landed yesterday.  I find some cracking climbs which take me to 7,500' but up high, there is a headwind so progress is slow and I am soon looking for a save.  I pass over a few likely looking trigger points but no joy.  Heading into the middle of nowhere and starting to look at landing options,  I get a last gasp save - a nice drifting thermal which gets me right back up for the glide to Clanwilliam.  I pass the town with plenty of height but the seabreeze has pushed in from the northwest again and I can't get any further.  Landing at 85km after a little over 4 hours, I had completely erased the demons of yesterday - a cracking flight!

Day 24 - Blown out!

Day 25 - An easterly wind blows for most of the morning but fades away as the thermals kick-in and start the southwesterly flow.  Arnold from Fly-De Aar is on the takeoff with a group when we arrive.  He says its really cooking and reminds us  about the Capetown airspace ceiling at 4000m....hmm ! I launch at 14:00 with Pierre from France and we bob up immediately like champagne corks.  We head off north and find a good thermal to take us high above the terrain.  The next climb seems to go on and on and on.....big, smooth and 6m per sec all the way to around 3700m above sea level(12,360').  That's a cool 10,000' above takeoff!  Such conditions are rare in Porterville but not unheard of.  The panoramic views from the coast to the west, the Cedeberg mountains to the northeast and the Karoo desert to the east are breathtaking!  We head off to the northeast.  I can see a cu- nim popping way off to the east in the desert so I rule out heading in that direction.  We track north towards Citrusdal and I plan to try an out and return flight which should be a high altitude cruise.  Alas, with big lift comes big sink and we get stuck near Citrusdal in a headwind and sinking.  I had hoped to go as far as the constriction and back to launch which would give us around 100km.  We grovel around for a good while before getting back up to a comfortable altitude.  Eventually, we get back up to 10,000' and start to head back towards Porterville.  Another good climb in the middle of the valley and we cruise back over the mountain chain and head  for home.  I am confident we will make it but we soon run into a head wind then an additional head wind lower down in the form of the seabreeze coming in from the southwest.  We deck it 20km short - Blast!  Still, - a great 4 hour flight and I think probably my biggest ever height gain.  A remarkable day in Porterville(never before has anyone crossed back over the mountain ridge from Citrusdal!)

Day 26 - My last day.  I hope for a good day to finish off but at takeoff its already quite strong and the wind aloft looks strong also.  After watching a few hairy launches, I decide to call it a day and go back down in the Landrover.  Reports later suggest that the flying was not pleasant, so - good decision!

And so, my stay drew to a close.  I thoroughly enjoyed my third visit to Porterville.  The challenging flying has got me right in the groove for the season ahead aboard my Sigma 7 but the whole experience was not just about the  flying.  At the Flyer's Lodge , I have met and flown with pilots from Sweden, Norway, England, Switzerland, Germany, Poland,  Brazil, USA, France, Namibia and plenty of locals from the Capetown area.  The retrieves always worked well and each day winded down with a nice meal, a glorious sunset and para stories well into the night.  The whole experience was enhanced by the hospitality of hosts Bradley and Jannine for whom nothing is too much trouble and Lodge owner Rob Manzoni whose enthusiasm for aviation remains undimmed since I first met him ten years ago.   

Days in Porterville - 26
Flyable days          - 21
Days  flown          -  17
Bomb outs           -    1
Walk outs            -    0
Kms flown           -  887
Hours flown         -  43:30

[Nick Roberts]

Day 14  Weather looked similar to yesterday but up in the air, the thermals are good.  I set off along the mountain range and cross into the Citrusdal Valley at the first opportunity.   On the east side of the valley, after an initial good climb,  I find myself grovelling along never far from the ground but prayers are answered and I make it to the Cederberg mountain range and head north.  Altitude gains are not great so I decide to head out to the northwest over the lower hills.  This works for a while but I'm not getting much height and the wind seems quite strong from the west.  I head downwind to a likely looking thermal groundsource which if it doesn't work, will leave me with a big walkout.  There is nowhere else I can get to so I keep faith and scratch for my life! .  It works, and I am soon propelled skywards.  I am now on a route that I haven't flown before.  Another two rocketing climbs and I am on my way to the town of Clanwilliam.  I get past the town with plenty of height but the west wind is uncomfortably strong and I spend some twenty minutes on the speedbar with the big ears in, pushing out and finding a landing place.  4 hours and 5 mins and 85km flown - My best flight so far on this trip but as I touch down, my left leg gives way underneath me.  I think it is an attack of cramp.

Day 15  It seems a bit windy and inverted and the forecast is for it to pick up in the afternoon once the inversion breaks.  A big group of Germans has arrived for the day and they want to get a flight in so we all go up to the launch at 10:00 am.  It already seems to be quite strong but they all launch.  I watch for a while but then decide to take a rest day as I feel a bit drained after yesterday's flight and my left leg is playing up.  I can't believe it but I've actually pulled a muscle in my leg! (speedbaritis?)  Back at the Lodge  later in the afternoon, the inversion has broken and the sky looks great.  Norwegian hanglider pilots Morten and Thor have a great flight.  Was it too windy?  It didn't seem too bad on the ground at the Lodge  but ofcourse better to be on the ground wishing you were up there than.........

Day 16 - Blown out!  Bugger! Picked the wrong day for a rest

Day 17 - A strange day - very light winds and lumpy thermals.  very slow progress to get anywhere and not much altitude gain so I try a different route flying much further than usual  along the Porterville  mountain range hoping that the inversion will break and I can  cross a plateau to get to the Citrusdal valley.  Alas, the inversion does not break so I land after 2 hours.  Oh well, at least my leg feels ok in the air! Back at the Lodge in the evening, I have a chat with hanglider pilot Rob Schwab - a regular visitor to Portervlle and as it happens, an old mate of our Norris!

Day 18 - Blown out!

Day 19 - It's hotter than usual and there  is some humidity in the air.  We go up to launch.  The heat is debilitating.  After launching and an initial climbout, I notice Cu-nims starting to pop over the mountains.  I have not seen such conditions here before.   I am not going XC in this and without a flight-plan, I fly around like a headless chicken  and end up in the bottom landing field(known as the turkey patch!) in 12 minutes flat.  My shortest recorded flight at Porterville!

In the evening, I start to feel a bit sick after dinner and retire to bed early.

Day 20 -  I don't get up till 09:00(late for me!)  I feel weak and sick and can't eat any breakfast.  Maybe the heat has got to me.  I go down to the local Chemist who thinks that I have become dehydrated.  I come away with some potion and sit in the shade for the rest of the day.
No way am I fit to fly.  The atmosphere turns humid and thundery.  The temparature rises to 46 degrees.  In the evening, the storm breaks out and it rains for a few hours.  I go to bed early in a weakened state and miss out on saturday night in Porterville.

Day 21 -  I am feeling a bit better but still not really good enough to fly so I spend another day in the shade.  The thundery weather is not going to clear away until tomorrow. 

So, all in all not really a great flying week out here but I am hoping that more normal weather conditions will resume tomorrow and that I will be able to finish next week with a few more XC      :mrgreen:

[John Nash (Nasher)]

Nick - you're really missing out here in Wales - snow and high winds!

Glad you're having a good time

John

[Chris Dusgate]

Hi Nick,

Glad to see you are having such good flying. you are really getting back into the swing, nice one.  Glad to hear S7 is performing well. I've now taken delivery of mine and in fact it's not the same colour as yours but 'Turkish' (like Ivor's but nicer !)

fly safe

Chris

[Nick Roberts]

Day 8. The conditions are more manageable today but there is not much altitude to be had and the wind increases from the west as I go along the Citrusdal Valley.  Some nice low saves but I land after 2hrs 30m and 48km but it would have been  harder to go much further in the westerly wind.  I get mobbed by kids after landing.  They eat all my biscuits!  I get back to the lodge to discover that Dave has pranged his hanglider on launch.  He's ok but one of his uprights is well buckled!

Day 9.  Blown out!  I could do with a rest.....

Day 10.  There is a big group of Swedes in town so the launch is quite busy.  A few of us head off along the mountain range and just about get enough height to cross into the valley behind but the thermals are weak and broken and we all end up on the deck near Citrusdal.  A 1hr 55m flight seems too short and I feel a twinge of disappointment.  I must be getting back to normal!

Day 11. The forecast indicates similar conditions to yesterday but not so!   The wind down low is southwest and the thermals are good but after 20km, I run into a headwind so I find a good climb and cruise back south for 10km maintaining plenty of height.  I then  run into some hideous air and then another headwind so I about turn and take the next climb  out into the flatlands of the valley floor behind.  Out over the flatlands, I find good climbs and get my best altitude yet at 7600' asl(t.o. is 2300' asl).  I cruise along in the cooler higher air, staying high all the way to the end of the valley.  Thereafter the wind comes in from the northwest and its quite strong lower down so after reaching the tail end of the Clanwilliam Reservoir, I  about turn and land at a nice field next to an Orange Grove.  I am well pleased with the flight as I have stayed in the air for 4hrs and 10 mins and flown 85km altogether.  I chat to the farmer and he kindly gives me a lift out to the main road where I await my retrieve.  My retrieve bill is becoming substantial!

Day 12.  Conditions look a bit inverted but the thermals are actually rather good.  I bide my time along the mountain ridge and wait for some decent altitude to make the crossing into the next valley.  The crossing is rough but I find good climbs on the far side and head for the mountain faces of the Cederberg which are really cooking and give off some ripping climbs  but altitude gains are not great and as I head north, I become aware of an increasing tail wind so I push out to the northwest and head for some areas which I know work well in such conditions.  As the valley constricts at its northern end, I find some peachey climbs that  keep me circling for a good while  and I find myself on glide for Clanwilliam.  Needing another climb to get past the town, I find that the wind has become a tad  too strong so I am happy to get down and land.  82km in 3hrs 35mins.  Another fabulous flight!

Day 13.   The day seems very clear(we can see Table Mountain on the horizon) and the forecast indicates thermals to 8000' eeeeh!  The flight starts well.  However, it quickly becomes apparent that ther is a strong southerly component to the wind.  After a couple of  nice climbs, the thermals seem to be very ragged and broken.  I persevere with the flight for a while to see if the thermals improve  but after taking a bit of a pasting in an increasing wind, I fly out away from the ridge and land after 35km.  When, I finally get down,  I kiss the ground,  pack up and find shade under some trees.  While I wait for my retrieve,  I  watch some pretty evil dust devils whistling by!  Oh well,  back to the Lodge for a chillout!  Tomorrow is another day!

Days 11 and 12 have seen the best thermals so far.  The conditions are quite varied here which I think make the place quite  a challenge to fly. Blue conditions are the norm but occasionally, there is some of the fluffy white stuff.  The winds can  come from different directions at different altitudes and locations e.g on day 11, I found a northerly wind at altitude after takeoff but when I flew to the far side of the valley behind, I found a light southerly at altitude and I was less than 10km from where I had been in a northerly - strange but true! .  Also,  a seabreeze sometimes come in during the afternoon and it can be quite strong.  Thermal cores from the mountain faces can be tight and strong 6,7,8 m per sec or more! Out over the flatlands, the thermals are generally bigger and more relaxing.  There are also areas of convergence and in places, you can find some super drifting climbs that seem to go on for ever!

My Sigma 7 seems to be coping with everything in its path.  I have taken a couple of big hits - one full frontal and a couple of substantial  assymetric tucks but normal flight resumes  without too much fuss.  However most flights pass by with little more than a few wing-tip flutters.

And so, after 13 days  :-  Flying days 11
                                    Blown out days 2
                                    Bomb outs         0
                                    Walk outs          0
                                          Rain             0
                                 Retrieve Bill       Lots(but still a lot cheaper than hiring a car!)


More next weekend     

[Nick Roberts]

Hi  all, 
 I  will try and put some pictures up if I can work out how to do it from someone else's computer   

[Norris]

Nice one Nick, take your time now boy, don't overdo it.

[SteveJ]

Glad to hear that you're having a good time, Nick.
Seems as if you haven't lost that 'knack' of flying big distances   

[Neil Parry]

Nice one Nick, not jealous at all.
Post some pic's if you get the chance.

[Nick Roberts]

Hi all

Arrived monday morning after a pleasant nightflight from Heathrow.  Rob Manzoni the proprieter of the Fliers Lodge met me at Capetown Airport and at 09:15 we arrived at the Lodge in Porterville.  It was nice to see that not too much has changed here since my last visit in 2003.  The atmosphere is always relaxed and nothing is too much trouble.

We go by  Landrover,  up to the launch site at Dasklip pass which is less than 30 mins away.  I feel fresh enough to fly but its blown out.  Hey ho, no problem, I am here for 4 weeks!  Its a fairly quiet  week at the Lodge with 2 frenchmen, a swiss and 3 Brits including a hanglider pilot named Dave. 

Day 2 and we go up to takeoff and conditions are spot on and we all launch and head off along the mountain range.  Ye gods its hot - 40! but I'm just fine in my summer flying gear and I immediately feel at home on the glider.  Further along the range, I thermal up and go over the back into the Citrusdal Valley.  I find a nice line of lift above the flat valley floor and head north for  a while before running into a headwind.  Looking around at the utterly awsome mountains and valleys, I wonder how I managed such long flights during my previous visits.  I turn and head back towards the  town of Citrusdal and land in a field on the edge of town.  I'd flown about 40km in 2 hours - just fine for the first flight( I did not want to walk far in such heat).  I wait at a coffee shop on the main street and the retrieve comes out and picks us all up.

Day 3 and its blowing a northerly which is forecast to pick up in the afternoon so we go up to launch quite early and fly south along the range and then head out into the flatlands to get back to Porterville.  I find good climbs out in the flatlands and circle around for a while wondering whether to carry on south, following the main highway but the wind is already picking up so I land outside the Lodge which backs onto open fields and have my free drink(anyone who lands outside the Lodge gets a free drink!)  A short flight of just 15km but very enjoyable nonetheless!  Boy does it blow in the afternoon - good decision!

Day 4  and the skies are beautifully clear with lots of puffy cu's.  Winds are light on launch and the air is cooler and fresher.  Nice thermals abound and we all set off along the mountain range.  I bide my time lookig for a nice cloud line to follow into the Citrusdal  valley.  I make it out over the valley with ease and there are some nice looking cu's over the town so I head over, but the cloud dies and I find only scraps of lift and in no time, I am looking for a save from the flatland beyond.  Prayers are answered and I slowly climb out but ahead,  cloud development has put the whole valley in shade so to avoid risking a walkout, I gravitate towards the main highway and put down in a nice flat field.  60km flown in 2 hours and 10 minutes.  In previous times, I would have been disappointed as I knew that it was a potentially big day but after my enforced lay off, I'm quite happy.  Two german tourists stop and give me a lift all the way back to Porterville - result!

Day 5 and its a blue day which is more normal here at Porterville.  Conditions feel good but its hard to get any decent height and smoke from fires indicates an inversion.  It's usually best to launch before midday here as the wind can get too strong on launch but then it is often neccesary to bide your time in the air until an inversion breaks.  I make good progress along the range, crossing into the valley behind at a later point than normal.  It seems to work, as I find a good lifty line for a while but with not enough height to venture into the mountains, I am soon grovelling along and have to land in a field after 50km in 2hrs 30 mins.  An hour later, Dave the hangie passes over at considerable altitude but ofcourse, he can afford to launch later than the paragliders.  Another potentially big day but I am in the air for longer and my back feels fine.

Day 6  Mainly blue conditions.  Its saturday so some of the local Capetown pilots are out to play.  It's always nice to see a few others in the air, and a few of them, I know from competition flying in Europe.  However,  I make the valley crossing alone and a little earlier and head for the mountain range behind.  Here, I know,  I can get up and mince along until the triggers in the valley become more regular.  I head north along the mountain faces for a while marvelling at the scenery but after a while, conditions start to get a wee bit spicy so I push out into the main valley and head for a known trigger point.  It works, and I'm drifting north in a big, lazy UK style climb.  There's some clouds up ahead  and I'm soon into some magical convergence and on a glide to the town of Clanwilliam.  Taking some pictures,  I can't help but think what a truly awe inspiring landscape this is.  The combination of faltland and mountain flying just has to be experienced.  On the reservoir before the town, I can see that the wind is coming in from the northwest although I am heading north at 68km per hour!

Dropping down, its quite strong, so I am happy to land in a field just past the town after 85km and 3hours 50 mins in the air.   One of the  classic Porterville flights -  very satisfying!  Later on, in the Landrover on the way back, we learn that, a local hangie has flown on to the town of Klawer at 130km - impressive!

Day 7  Conditions look good and I have thoughts of flying to Klawer if the wind does not get too strong.  I've been there before and it is a fantastic flight.  However, flying along the range after takeoff, the wind is strong and conditions are rough to say the least and after I hour and 20  minutes wrestling with the glider, I fly out and land by the main road after 30km. back at the lodge, we all agree that it was unpleasantly rough.  I check my GPS.  Max groundspeed 82.9km per hour......hmmm...good decision, there's always tomorrow!

So  - after 7 days :-     Flying days  6
                                     Walkouts     0
                                             Rain    0

Another roundup next week