Blog Posts in Category: Paragliding

Paragliding in the Bregenzerwald

Alastair BegleyAustria, Paragliding Short Link

With a slightly challenging forecast due to the good airmass but strong north westerly winds it was hard to work out where to go in order to make the most of the day. I elected to stay within a day trip of Munich, but made the long drive into the Bregenzerwald in the Bregenzerwald, in order to fly from Niedre, which is above Bezau. As I arrived in the carpark it became clear that I wasn’t the only one with this location as an idea, but that should be no surprise as it is one of the few lifts which are still running at the moment. It was also because there was a competition on from the same launch, but I didn’t know that at the time. After taking the lift to launch I was pleased to see that despite the meteo wind from the north, which was demonstrated by the summit windsock, there was a good thermal breeze flowing up the south facing slopes which created nice launch conditions. After a leisurely setup and a small wait until the thermals became strong enough, I launched and immediately found a. Read the full article…

Brauneck XC

Alastair BegleyBavaria, Paragliding Short Link

As winter has started to draw to an end, my attention is starting to turn back to XC paragliding. At the start of March we were treated to some very warm weather and acceptable flight conditions if the area was chosen correctly. I decided to head to my local site of Brauneck, and was pleased to find strong thermals and acceptable winds. After setting up I was soon up in the sky and feeling right back at home as I circled up in my first thermal. I soon headed along the Benediktenwand and enjoyed the brilliant views over the Kochel- and Walchen- see. Unfortunately I couldn’t climb up high enough to make it back, and wasn’t willing to commit to a deep line on my first flight of the season, so I elected to head north and see if I could make something else work. Unfortunately this didn’t work so I landed in a huge meadow and walked to catch a train back to Munich.

Hintertux Flight

Alastair BegleyAustria, Paragliding Short Link

While away in the Zillertal skiing for Becky’s birthday, I took the opportunity of a perfect weather day to fly down from the top of the Hintertux ski area. It is very rare to get conditions good enough given the high altitude location and complex wind conditions. We were also lucky that despite being half term week in a lot of Bavaria the slopes were very quiet. During the day I was lucky enough to get not just one but two flights down, which were both absolutely beautiful. The views were just stunning and it was great to get a different perspective on the ski area, after my first flight down I wasn’t really expecting to get another, but when we were getting towards the end of the day and the conditions still worked, I couldn’t help myself but to enjoy a second flight back down.

2024 in 100 Photos

Alastair Begley100 Photos, Alpinism, Arco, Austria, Bavaria, France, India, Landscape, Mountain Biking, Paragliding, Rock Climbing, Scrambling, Ski Touring, Skiing, Via Ferrata, Walking, Wildlife Short Link

It seems hard to believe that another year has passed by, but having just had another overindulgent Christmas and new year it is somehow already time to summarise the year in another 100 photos. It was a very busy year with both free time activities and work with many more business trips for me than usual. Winter The year started off with the ski season, we did a lot of alpine skiing and certainly made the most of our Tirol cards, I think I did around 25 days overall! Becky’s skiing has continued to improve and this led us todo our first ski tour on the Kleiner Gamsstein. Unfortunately the snow over the winter was difficult for ski touring, especially for beginners so there was limited ski touring for both Becky and me. I managed one ski mountaineering weekend, but we suffered with terrible snow conditions as well as weather. It was nonetheless enjoyable to spend a weekend high in the mountains. Spring It soon turned to spring, which was unfortunately a bit of a washout along with the start of the summer. This resulted in us not spending that. Read the full article…

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…

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…