Just got back from a week paragliding in Algodonales - flew five days out of seven on site including one day that dumped four inches of snow...

Highlights - which probably won't make sense except to other fliers - included:

- soaring a ridge at the coast, and soaring another ridge inland and ending with a cross-country jaunt
- stepping off the mountain and straight into a 5 m/s thermal (a thousand feet a minute) straight up to within a couple of hundred feet of cloudbase, fifteen hundred feet above the summit
- a late recovery from fifty feet above the landing field and a two thousand plus foot climb in lazy and difficult thermals - coming down only really because my arms were too tired to keep precise control on the brake lines.

And of course the usual selection of bimbling around a few thousand feet above the ground.

Rather annoyingly my new camera died the day I got there so I have to rely on others to provide pictures; none posted yet.

A bit of info where you were/are would help Neil.

This must be the place I think Joe.

Sounds like the Mrs!

Algodonales, Spain, per Pete's map.

Fantastic flying at this time of year...

Video from another of the guys flying - I'm the yellow and white wing that pops up from time to time.

Ridge flying at Ronda la Vieja, short cross country to land on a road: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyHAJxaZRRc

Random stuff from Lijar mountain - 3000ft above sea level at takeoff: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxYFPmcEdBU

Couple of cracking flights this weekend - lovely weather for it and I called it just right on the Gyrn: two and a half thousand feet over takeoff in nice gentle easy thermals; bimbling around the countryside trying to decide which pub looked nicest for lunch and accompanied by a buzzard for a while; then in the evening when the wind finally came onto Long Mynd a shorter flight with a mix of thermals and ridge lift ducking and diving with the locals.

Sadly nothing on Sunday; it started to come on for Llangollen but I ran out of time and had to go home.

Hi Neil!


Bye Neil!

Looks top fun!

Heh. Does my bum look big in this?

This weekend, a thousand feet up at Long Mynd on Sunday.

Saturday, an altitude of 110,282 feet 1 and 53/64 inches (according to the google measurements converter) in an attempt to beat the world paper airplane record (which we currently hold, but the Americans are getting close). I didn't fly myself; we used a hydrogen balloon for lift. 90 minutes to altitude...

The story: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/07/15/spears_flight_summary/