Partial Paragliding Flight from Niederhorn to Höhenmatte | Lee Thermals & Missed Opportunities скачать в хорошем качестве

Partial Paragliding Flight from Niederhorn to Höhenmatte | Lee Thermals & Missed Opportunities

March 5th, 2025 – a flight full of hope, deep snow, and turbulent reality. After a morning watching Freya, I handed her over to Susi and caught the 13:05 bus up to Niederhorn. I kept checking the wind during the ride up, and things still looked promising. Once on top, the conditions were light—switching between still air and gentle updrafts. The launch was tough: deep snow swallowed my legs, but somehow I got airborne. Right in front of takeoff, I caught some lift and climbed a bit above launch. Feeling optimistic, I pushed over the top ridge of Niederhorn, hoping for more thermals. But the atmosphere had other plans. I scratched around ridge lines, checking spots like Unter Burgfeldstand, Hohwald, Amisbühl, and even Hühnerhubel and Luegi. Everything was weak or choppy. Then, while flying deep in the lee of Hühnerhubel toward Harder, I got slammed by an aggressive thermal. I chose not to mess with it—lee thermals can be brutal—and flew straight through. After greeting Tigi mid-air, I made a gentle landing at Höhenmatte. Most of the pilots landing there had flown from Schiltgrat, and in hindsight, that might have been the better call. But mentally, after a morning of toddler duty, I probably wouldn’t have made more of it even from there. A raw, honest day in the air—sometimes it’s about showing up, even if you don’t climb out.