Landings are Mandatory

Off Juniper Launch on Mount Diablo I found small bullet thermals which would disappear into thin air, on this building high pressure, mildly marine influenced summer day. Because I scratched the West side to its full extent, I would soon be coming down, once again at The Thousand Footer and could expect the standard turbulence, being that it's midday in summer. After a conservative, lift up my feet for the last oak tree approach, I got a pop and ended up a little long, over the fire road as shown below. Remember takeoffs are optional, landings are mandatory and days like today, make me really appreciate my Sport 2.

Diablo and The Thousand Footer from Matt Epperson on Vimeo.

Yolla Bolla Mountains

Pilots tell stories of soaring the Yolla Bolly Mountains in an isolated wilderness with countless peaks and abundant lift. The stories have made them and mainly Yolla Peak a constant goal of mine. The problem is, they are usually guarded by a big blue hole over the lowlands South and although I've come close, I always retreat with my tail between my legs. All I need is a spectacularly good day, discipline and to fly the ASW-27B like I stole it. Today is that day.

Off tow at Tree Farm I quickly climb from 6.5K to base and head North following a cloud street splitting Snow Mountain and St. John.

Approaching Alder Springs I notice Hull is developing nicely to my West. Maybe I'll fly by later, but for now, I've got a goal.
I reach Black Butte, the last high ground before the big blue hole so I top out at 11.5K.
The Yolla Bolla Mountains are wonderfully developed, all I have to do is get there. If I'm lucky I won't hit sink and should make the glide. I just have to suck it up and commit.

A straight glide with no sink and I reach the cloud edge, climb to base and head off to Yolla Peak.

The Mountains are absolutely beautiful and lift is everywhere. I dolphin fly and explore the entire area turning both Anthony Peak and Eagle Peak without making a circle.
I head further North and make it to Blackrock Mountain (T15).
Back to Yolla Peak (Mount Linn) for a couple circles, just for circling sake.
The wilderness is awesome but its time to head back. I fly a couple miles East of Hull on my Southbound leg and check out the hang gliders, very cool. My detour to Hull causes a bit of backtrack because of cloud streets and another blue hole. I eventually continue past the Mendocino Mountains to Cache Creek at the Rumsey Gap.
And turn on final glide to WSC. A spectacular day and personal best, two turn points of over 180 statute miles in four hours. I know many comp pilots will laugh and double that speed, but for me, with my hang gliding stop at everything and fly conservatively mentality, it feels great. The Yolla Bolla Mountains is the great playground in the sky I imagined.

The Devils Surprise

The Devil typically lies dormant when the sea breeze blows, during the summer months. However, with all indicators to the contrary, he can provide a pleasant surprise, with bountiful thermals, on any given day. I don't mean to allude, today was far from epic, I never got above launch, but, I pleasantly soared below an atypically thick, 2500' marine layer.

With only a trivial amount of optimism, I launch Juniper on Diablo, grab a handful of cord, point my toes and aim towards Macedo Ranch in Alamo.

On the way I see birds circling and fly through three seconds of solid lift for a second time. Thats it, I scrub the plan for Macedo, roll into the grassy brown hills and get rewarded with thermals aplenty.
The thermals continually top at 2500' as I enjoy my West side soaring with the hawks. After feeling content, I top out above the Thousand Footer and head off towards Pine Canyon en route to my original destination, Macedo Ranch.

Crossing Pine Canyon with decent altitude I enthusiastically turn towards Wall Point Road.

As I hoped, I find more lift. It tops out lower than the lift over the mountain, but, provides another nice surprise.
This side is certainly softer, so I work my way out in the burbly lift. A nice view back towards Pine Ridge and Mount Diablo.
Circling over Macedo Ranch I notice a decent drift to the North. Another big surprise today, South surface wind. This is the one direction that doesn't work at Macedo Ranch unless you like landing on roof tops. Oh well, at least I'll have a moderate uphill slope to tune up my downwind landing technique.
I turn final with a ton of ground speed.
And float high up the hill. Today, I use the technique of stopping my forward momentum quickly, by planting the nose cone firmly on the ground. Although this an effective way to stop a glider, I think with enough practice I could eventually use my feet instead. Even on tailwind landing up to ten, given a moderate slope. Although, I hope to not get much more practice at this. You can't pick your surprises, some are good and others, well, it's only a grass stain.

Fishin For Thermals

My friends at Oakland send a ballon into the sky, bright and early each morning, just so us bay area hang glider pilots can get an idea how lucky we might be on any given day.

With little exception, the data doesn't change much during the summer as it indicates a well established, persistent marine layer sitting about 1500'. This tends to drive all the big trophy thermals into the mountains of the Sierras and Mendocinos. However, the weak, little and slow thermals still hide in the local hills. They're illusive and hard to catch, but still fun. I launch Juniper on Diablo and if there is one here, I'm going to find it, so I try to sneak up on them from behind on the upper ridges.
No luck with the upper mountain. Burma Ridge is home to many a thermal, so I'll fish here.

All the way down the mountain without a bite. Then, right over the 1000 Footer LZ I get a nibble.

It's a little guy, but today I'm a poacher and I'm climbing.
North Gate Road and those ridge lines might have something bigger but I'm not letting this guy go.
Well, I slaughter the devil out of that little guy and buy myself a couple minutes on the sled ride, realizing one thing. The only thermal trigger on the mountain is over the LZ, it's midday summer and it's going to be poppy coming in. I get the speed on and slide it through the oak trees, nice and low.
I still get a good pop, but fortunately I'm on a Sport 2 and get it down before the hilltop, on two feet even, cool.