Val d'en Bas, just before landing.The forecast was great and we headed out to Santa Brigida with great excitement. Clouds were good, it was south and there was a bunch of us there. Lluis launched first and sunk out, only to get a heroic low save which took him really, really high. We took off and flew out into the valley ahead. I was starting to think that I am not actually flying the glider very well, as I was having trouble centering the glider in the thermals. I decided that I would fly for at least an hour before top-landing, so pootled about trying to work out the thermals a little better.

Geoff and I went out to a cloud together and on the way back I managed to get a good thermal which I took to 2300′ ATO (about 300′ below cloud base). It’s the highest I’ve been over Santa Brigida. So off I headed towards Olot. It’s uphill all the way until you get into the Val d’en Bas, so you need to get a lot of height to try it.

I lost the thermal on the way to Les Planes des Hostoles and crossed the tree covered ridge in big sink. Unlike the last time I was in this valley, I managed to get on to the other side and dropped onto the hill before the castle. I forced myself to be patient and after 5 minutes soaring it found the thermal I was hoping for. As I was winding out, I saw Geoff in the distance. Unfortunately he didn’t have the height to make it over the ridge, so had to turn back to the last available landing field.

I got back up to 2200′ ATO and thermalled over St Feliu de Pallerols. Then it was decision time – along the road or cross the ridge into the Val d’en Bas. The road leads to high ridges and it was after 4pm by this time, so I chose the lower pass over the Rupit road. I cleared the ridge and then looked around for the next thermal source. The valley wind was strong and I found a thermal on the leeside of the ridge I had just crossed. I was low at this point and the thermal was not properly formed and being blown along the ground fast. I managed to hang on to it past Els Hostalets but was down by St Esteve d’en Bas. I was hugely pleased. Best height gain and longest flight from Santa Brigida to date. Not very far, but immensely satisfying.

And I got chatted up by a trucker. What is it about men and big rucksacks?

The track log is on our XC page (the first XC for 2009, so it’s a bit empty at the moment! Opens in a new window).

Geoff writes: it was a good day. I launched first, made it out to the cliff in front again. Went back, met up with Judith, went out front…. finally we left over the back, Judith first, me in a later thermal. I messed up the first thermal a little, and didn’t get to cloud base, so didn’t have enough height to get over a ridge a few kilometers behind, so had to land. But a lot of fun, and Judith flew really well.

See photos of today.

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