Technical Cheam

Its always amazing to fly up to and over Cheam Peak. Our launch is at an altitude of 750 meter and Cheam is 2104 meter high. Its not a big cross country flight by any means but a nice challenge to keep things interesting.

On many days its not possible to get to this height, on rare days its easy. Yesterday it took a bit of work to solve the puzzle, finding thermals in some areas and using smooth ridge lift along snow, cornices and rocks. Wind was west lower down and north at the peak.

Fall Flying

Paragliding conditions were below average this year except for a stellar week in July but we were away for it, paddling our canoe in the Northwest Territories.

But in fall we enjoyed a couple of very scenic flights. On a hike and fly mission we thermaled several hundred meters over the summit of Mt. Cheam and flew over nearby summits of the range.
Dodging clouds at Woodside I got a nice photo of a Glory or Brocken Spectre.

Hike and Fly Mt Cheam

Brocken Spectre at Woodside

Pete exploring the scenery in the Northern Cascades at Sauk Mountain

Getting High in the Fraser Valley - June 14

Light outflow winds in the Fraser Valley. Sometimes that means not the best flying conditions and bumpy air, sometimes its epic. Sunday was one of the epic days, getting a ways above Mt Cheam summit elevation (though for me not directly over the peak). Pretty amazing nevertheless, flying and looking down at the Cheam range.

Cheam Range: Mt Cheam, Lady Peak, Knight, and Welch.

Looking south Mt Baker, McGuire (middle ground), Tomyhoi, Shuksan and the Border Peaks, Mt Slesse.

East view Fraser Valley and Harrison Lake upper left.

Bridal Awesomeness

Awesome flight at Bridal in light NE outflow wind. My favored flight of the year so far! We went to Woodside first but after a launch-able window it started blowing over the back for the next hour. We did our duty with some patient parawaiting and sunbathing before deciding that moving over to Bridal would be a better bet. Peter had gone directly to Bridal but waited there for almost an hour for conditions to improve. Just as we arrived he was working hard to stay up in a flush cycle. Luckily he found a thermal out front and east of launch. Just as Bridal guru Alan says… on NE days look for lift to the east of launch.

By the time I got in the air things were working much better. I found the thermal elevator immediately and got up to 1700 meter right from launch. Found a second nice climb and flew over to the west ridge of Mt Cheam and then along the snow covered north face. Following Nicole I made it over the first spur coming of the main peak to the northwest and passed around the outside of the rock pyramid on the second spur. Thermals went even higher over the Lakes and Butterfly where I got to 2300 meter, higher than Mt Cheam by good 200 meters.

First time for me to get so high in the Fraser Valley. Views of Tomihoy and Baker through the Cheam/Lady gap were stunning and I had to take some pictures, but lost over 100 meters getting the camera out with my gloved hands and frozen fingers. What a very different perspective looking over to the other side of the valley (and down to the tops of Bear, Agassiz and Harrison Lake). On the way back from Ludwig thermals were often further out and not too close to the mountain.

For a while I thermalled with a curious juvenile Bald Eagle. S/he flew with me for a few minutes, cocking her head one way and then the other maybe to figure what this weird contraption of fabric and strings was. Later she came straight at me until I yelled and she turned away (maybe playing chicken the eagle-way).

Coming down to land was like being in a time lapse video from winter at 2000 meters to spring in a field yellow with dandelion flowers.


 

Cheam Flight - September 15

Our friend Andrei suggested that it was high time for a hike&fly from Mt Cheam again. But other friends wanted to hike Cheam and offered us a ride up the day before the planned paragliding fly-off, so we jumped the gun for a double mission. Wind wasn't right when we arrived so we paused for some parawaiting and resting in the meadow of red blueberry leaves. After an hour or two conditions improved. Pete launched first and got hovered off. I followed prepared for gusty conditions and launched my Swift without any surprises. Not much lift at 2000 meter, but I could extend the flight to 1.5 h in the lift near lower Bridal Launch.

Parawaiting in blueberries

Pete is off with Mt Baker in the back

Cultus Lake

Mt Cheam Early Winter, Oct 15

First snow of the season!

After two years we finally got around to fly from Mt Cheam again, the 2112 meter high sentinel of the Fraser Valley. It’s a pleasant hike&fly (the hiking part took me just under 2 hours). But the shuttle logistics make some serious planning necessary. I managed to spark the interest of two German paddling friends to join us for the hike. Since a 4WD vehicle is needed to access the trail head they would get to ride up with us and then drive the car down (Danke, Caro und Arndt!).

I had expected intense fall colors with red blueberry bushes and yellow alders (or is it ash?), but most of the flank of Mt Cheam was already covered in ankle-deep snow. It still made for a nice hike and beautiful flight launching from the snow, skirting the bowl with tiny Spoon Lake below, over the ridge to the Fraser Valley and down to our usual landing at Bridal Falls.

Not a single beep on the vario. Better get ready for winter flying…



Summit of Mt Cheam and Harrison Lake behind the ridge

Surf and Fly, August 29/30

Sweet weekend!

Saturday was one of the 'you should have been here days' at Skooks. No kayakers on the ferry and nobody at the dock got me wondering if I had misread the tide table. In Egmont we met a Montana paddler looking for company on his first visit to Skooks. In the end we were 5 boaters - it was a tough job to entertain the endless stream of tourists (several thanked us for the show). Among the 'tourists' was a PG pilot friend. Small world!



Alpine start on Sunday for another hike&fly from Mt Cheam. Lots of tasty blueberries slowed us down. At launch we waited for an hour for the thermals to build and overpower the light easterly crosswind. All got off without a hitch to a nice smooth flight down to Bridal Falls LZ. Although there were no thermals for soaring like for my first flight from Cheam it was just amazing to glide high above the ridge and out over the Fraser Valley way below.


Alpine start


Landing zone is 2000 meters below - just east (below) the highway exit.


Pete fluffing his wing

BFAR: July 11 and 12

Lots of pilots came out for the Bridal Falls Air Races put on by the Westcoast Soaring Club. Over 40 gliders were in the air on Saturday. Best flight for me was the first one from Mt Cheam on Saturday morning. The flight around the ridge and out over the Fraser Valley was well worth the 1:45 h hike up the back side. Friends came out on Sunday and enjoyed their tandem flight (including spiral) immensely.


High traffic volume at Bridal Launch.


Flying from Mt Cheam. Mt Baker in the background.

Ramblings and Explorations - May and June 07

Didn't quite do as much hiking and scrambling as I hoped for this year, but got a couple of nice one day hikes in:

Three Brothers Trail in Manning Park with amazing splendor of flower just after the snow retreated.


Elkridge near Chilliwack treated us to more flowers.


Jones (Wahleach) Lake – a rough 2WD road leads up to lake with stunning backdrop. Peaks from the left are Welch, The Still, Stewart, Baby Munday, Knight, Lady. Cheam is off the right side. Foley is to the left, also not in the picture.



Sumallo Valley from Sunshine Valley east of Hope – Silvertip, Rideout, Rideout's Pup and Payne. Picture coming soon.