2025 11 03 Fall Foliage Flight at TTT Henson Gap скачать в хорошем качестве

2025 11 03 Fall Foliage Flight at TTT Henson Gap

Sequatchie Skies November 3, 2025 Monday, November 3 was forecast strong northwest, so we anticipated long flights soaring over the Sequatchie Valley’s sylvan autumnal palette. When we arrived at the TTT Henson Gap launch, it was light to calm with a slight west cross. Finding club chores and other such diversions to pass the time, we kept a hopeful eye on the sock, which began to fill in more consistently in the early afternoon. Reddy Bhimanapati committed first and began setting up in sled run conditions. Kathy Lee and I vacillated with the wind direction and velocity. Our aerial intentions were most discouraged when the sock indicated a 90-degree cross at 5 to 10 mph. We’d almost given up when the wind straightened and lightened, presenting conditions with no reason not to fly, though perhaps for diminished duration. Reddy, Kathy, Jeff Dodgen, and Jerry Shockley launched and worked the light lift with varying success. With Allie Dodgen, Steve Lee, and Charlie Yowell on my wire crew, I took a light and straight cycle, turned right, and found no leaves shaking on the north facing bluff. The cliff gets lower in this direction, but not enough for me to feel comfortable squeaking over there in no wind. Making the 180 at Charlie’s house, it was a little surprising to still be even with the ramp. But the low ridge scratching game is nerve racking, so a right turn at the ramp pointed me toward the house thermals over the edge of the escarpment. A smooth buoyant ride didn’t lose much in getting there and a few meanders in the trickle of rising air had me breaking the ridge to get just above launch. I’m sure all the cheerleading from the ramp helped! Thanks, Allie! Jeff and Kathy did better, climbing immediately above launch in the very light ridge lift, then snooping around with an altitude advantage to find the generous but weak cores in the gap. Jim Gibson and Debbie Wolford launched later, when I was too busy keeping my feet off the ground to observe, but their sunset landings were graceful and their grins were wide. We broke down in the beautiful dusk, after which Jerry treated us to fajitas, nachos, guacamole, and queso at El Metate. Thanks, Jerry! The forecast calls for light northwest this (11/13) afternoon with a good chance of convection under clear skies if not suppressed by high pressure. Temperature differential approaches 30 degrees between a low in the upper 30s and a high in the upper 60s! A little warmer with a similar range Friday under clear skies with southwesterly winds from 5 to 10 mph. Continued southwesterly but stronger Saturday with increasing clouds and temperatures between the upper 40s and the lower 70s. Clearing skies with northwest winds Sunday and declining velocities through the afternoon. Veering through north and northeast during the day for southeast by late Monday under mostly sunny skies. With the first freeze of the season behind us in the Free-Flight Capital of the East, flying days of tolerable temps are bound to become scarce for all but the winter warriors. Come fly with us while there’s still some warmth in the weather, and maybe we’ll… See you in the sky!