Hike and Fly from Offa’s Dyke back to my parent’s house

Alastair BegleyParagliding Short Link

I flew back to the UK for Christmas with my hike and fly gear on the off chance that the weather would allow some kind of hike and fly, which seemed unlikely given the forecast when we left Germany, and became even more unlikely as our time in the UK progressed. However despite the Boxing Day forecast being for extensive fog, this was initially constrained to lower in the valley than my parents house. With some cautious optimism we quickly drove around the valley and walked up the Red Darren to Offa’s Dyke. As we were walking up there was definitely a catabatic wind, however thankfully as we approached the top this was significantly weaker. After setting up we all took off and enjoyed the flight back to land in the field next to my parents’ house, which on my hike&fly gear I only just made!

Bleispitze Hike and Fly

Alastair BegleyAustria, Paragliding, Walking Short Link

I thought that when I returned from India and then the UK the mountains would have their winter coat, unfortunately they do not yet, so I decided to make the most of the sunny still conditions and headed to climb the Bleispitze above Bichlbach and fly back down. As I could travel there for free using the Deutschland ticket, I elected to take the train despite it taking significantly longer than driving. I was surprised at the amount of snow in the valley at Bichlbach and as I headed up the valley towards Berwang, but these valleys hardly get any sun at this time of year so it hadn’t melted despite the sun over the past few days. I had planned on heading up via a much less well trodden path which involved heading steeply up to join a ridge which runs up to the summit. I could find no trace of a path as I walked past the turn off, and when I used gps to work out where it should be, it appeared to traverse across steep grassy slopes which were covered in wet snow. Due to this. Read the full article…

Delhi

Alastair BegleyIndia Short Link

On my way back to Germany from Bir I had a 12 hour layover in Delhi, to make the most of this I booked a tour which picked me and my luggage up from the airport headed into Old Delhi. It was a very intense afternoon, especially the e-rickshaw ride around Old Delhi with an assault on the senses with lots of varying smells, lots of noise and an awful lot of people. I did enjoy it, and would go back to Old Delhi and explore it in slower time if I was ever back and had enough time.

Staying at Camp360 and then a flight to Dharamshala

Alastair BegleyIndia, Paragliding Short Link

With only a few days left in Bir, the first of which was not looking very good I decided to head to the classic Camp360 for another Bivi. However this is a bivy with a difference as for 1500 rupees you can stay in a tent with all bedding materials provided in a wonderful setting and enjoy a fresh home cooked thali for dinner and Indian breakfast (all included). What I was not prepared for when I set off on this is just how good the second day would be, which resulted in an absolutely fantastic flight with clear air, strong climbs, lots of birds and plenty of enjoyment. Day 1 On the first day my plan was to fly around a bit before heading to Camp360, however after launch it became clear that this wasn’t going to work as there was a very strong inversion which no one was escaping from and the airspace was getting busier and busier. At one point I considered top landing and even set myself up for it, however in the end decided against it. Once I had climbed back up to the inversion. Read the full article…

Paragliding to Dharamshala and then back to Golf Course for a Bivi

Alastair BegleyIndia, Paragliding Short Link

Having met some people in Bir over the previous few days a plan had formed to head to Bivi at “Golf Course” near Bir in the mountains for Diwali, in order to get away from the noise of the fireworks and firecrackers which go on well into the early hours. I did not think the conditions were going to be that great on this day, so my aim was to have a nice flight and ensure that I got to the golf course. However as soon as I reached launch it was clear that the day was much better than I had anticipated. Day 1 After launching I was able to quickly climb up to 3500m with wonderful views into the back, despite being tempted I decided to stick with my plan to stay on the front, and I am really glad I did as I had a wonderful flight. I really enjoyed myself on this flight, the views were excellent, the flying was great fun and there were loads of birds of prey, the only ones which came out on the camera were the massive Himalayan Griffon vultures. As. Read the full article…

Paragliding at 5000m in the Himalayas over the back from Bir, India

Alastair BegleyIndia, Paragliding Short Link

Flying “over the back” in the proper mountains rather than just along the front ridge was definitely high on my agenda while I was in Bir, however this was certainly not something to be underestimated with limited landing possibilities and a multi day walk out following an out landing. With an excellent forecast for the next day I tentatively made some plans, bought some gas and packed my Bivi gear in case I landed out. As this was my first time over the back, I decided against planning to Bivi but rather left it as an emergency option. Next time I will definitely plan a Bivi but it seemed more sensible to just have a chilled out flight the first time rather than worrying about finding a Bivi site and top landing and I was also unsure about the conditions to get back the day after. Compared to the previous two days it was so easy to climb out from launch and I soon found myself high above Hanuman Gargi ready to commit to the valley crossing and go over the back. While I could see other people had already. Read the full article…

First two days paragliding in Bir, India

Alastair BegleyIndia, Paragliding Short Link

Having arrived in Bir I was very tired having had three hours sleep in Delhi due to a late flight and watch time malfunction the next morning, which was made worse by another day of travel while exhausted. The first few days were certainly impacted by the travel, however they were still good flight days and were critical to learning the ridge for flights later in the week. I elected to take the internal flight from Delhi to Dharamshala, I am not sure if I would do this again in hindsight as it was much more expensive than a taxi once excess luggage had been paid for, but it did mean I didn’t have a 12 hour taxi ride from Delhi. After arriving in Bir just after lunch I went and had some wonderful food and explored the village in a slightly delusional state, even managing to find the money exchange where for a small fee I could withdraw cash from my credit card. Day 1 I was unsure how I was going to sort a taxi on the first morning, so I just assumed that I would walk to. Read the full article…

Unternberg Hike and Fly

Alastair BegleyBavaria, Paragliding Short Link

Following our Hike and Fly up Vorderunnütz, we were keen todo another hike and fly, however fitting this in with Oktoberfest was proving difficult. However after a restrained Sunday afternoon at the Weisn we were feeling good the next day so decided to go for a Hike and Fly at the Unternberg to make the most of the conditions before meeting up with some friends who were visiting Germany. The walk up the Unternberg is relatively short and very easy as it is just up forrest tracks to the summit. This does mean that most of the ascent is fairly dull, but the views as you emerge from the forest are pretty enjoyable. In the summer the Unternberg will work pretty much every day with good weather due to the Bavarian wind, so given its proximity to Munich is certainly somewhere we will come back to. The flight down was a short glide which was enjoyable as ever, these small wings are so much fun! After landing, in the unfortunately slightly damp meadow, we went for a swim in a lake on the way to see our friends for dinner.