BOS - Round 2 Yorkshire Dales. Day 2

Sunday 24th May 2015

High winds over the Dales

The forecast was looking marginal but obediently we drove up to Dodd Fell near Wether Fell and just behind the town of Hawes in the hope that the strong winds would drop off later in the day.

Having being asked to be part of the safety committee, I joined Wayne Thompson and his team in assessing the conditions. With the wind blowing a steady 30+ mph, it was evident that there was a lot of "wave" lift around. Lenticular clouds were forming nicely around us as the wind oscillated  and grew in magnitude over the Dales. Potentially very good soaring if you could connect with the wave, but also there was the risk of high turbulence, something you don't want to experience near to the ground.

Wave clearly visible above launch

After several re-briefs, we were still hill-waiting at 3pm. As a safety committee we were split between whether it was safe to fly, so erring on the side of caution and casting a deciding vote, Jenny and joint Meethead Martin Colclough decided to can the day, leaving a few of us to free fly in the hope of connecting with the wave, something I have only done once in the Alps and was keen to try in the UK where climbs above the cumulus cloud base are very possible, leading to beautiful views. First Grant, then Luke, me and Gordon were flying but it was apparent over the radio that the seasoned wave flyers were not comfortable with what was going on. "I'm testing my sprogs" from Gordon who had struggled to get above launch and was in  nasty air low to the ground.

 Still beautiful, even when its rough

Pretty soon we were all landing on the top. luckily without incident or excitement. A classic smooth top landing. Rebekah Sherwin's parents had come up for a few days in their camper and kindly provided tea and home made carrot cake to our little crew. Spot on. While we enjoyed our refreshments, Kevin Gay was spotted being thrown about having gone over the back to Wether Fell. He made good his escape to the valley below to land safely near his accommodation. "I counted them all out, and counted them all in again". Remember that?

Phippsy and Brett enjoy the Sherwin's hospitality