Chamonix to the Aravis

Alastair BegleyFrance, Paragliding Short Link

The next day had much of the same plan, but this time we were a group of three. The day started much later, but was a much better day, at least at the start with a higher base. This enabled a quick flight to the Aravis once we finally launched and made the first slow climb up onto the Aiguille Rouges. When I launched I was not that sure how I would be in the air, as after three nights of too little sleep in a row, and definitely too much wine while Alex and I were waiting up for Kirby to arrive from the USA. Thankfully after I launched I quickly worked out my stomach was feeling great and thought it would be a wonderful flight. Unfortunately as we passed Passy we had a miscommunication about waiting before the crossing vs going, which meant that again I was separated from the others. Initially I flew fast down the Aravis but unfortunately ended up low on the lee side towards where I turned around the day before. Despite working hard and almost getting myself out of the poor situation a. Read the full article…

100km Free Triangle from Chamonix and the Aravis

Alastair BegleyFrance, Paragliding Short Link

On our first morning in Chamonix we were planning on hiking up the north side of the valley to Planpraz as the lift was shut and it didn’t look like there was any availability on the lift to the Plan du Midi. While we were eating breakfast in Chamonix the motivation for the walk after some wine the previous night (and Alex’s hike the previous day) was low. We decided to head to the lift where it turned out we could in fact take the lift to the Plan du Midi, the only downside being that we had to make the long glide over the valley to the south facing slops which meant waiting until the day was definitely on. After getting to the Plan du Midi we enjoyed another coffee before heading to launch and wanting for the day to really get going. This ended up being a longer wait than expected as glider after glider was just bombing out, or fighting for a long time on the other side. Eventually we decided to go for it, and by the time we launched it was actually possible to climb. Read the full article…

My first flight from Fiesch

Alastair BegleyParagliding, Switzerland Short Link

Flying from Fiesch has somehow eluded me for the past few years, but this season it was definitely high up on my list of requirements. This weekend I developed a plan, which would enable me two days of flying at Fiesch and two days flying and meeting a friend in Chamonix. After work I set off towards Fiesch, however stopped at a hotel en route, unfortunately I had a terrible nights sleep in the hotel and I woke the next morning feeling pretty rough. I made the short drive to Fiesch and headed up to Riederalp as the Fiescheralp cable car was in revision. The forecast for the first day was the worse xc forecast for the weekend, so I wasn’t really expecting much, my main objective was to enjoy the sights. Shortly after I took off I realised that I had managed to leave my InReach on take off, which was an expensive mistake as I still haven’t got it back! From take off I climbed well and was quickly heading along the ridge and above the Eggishorn with the view that I had been lusting after. Unfortunately by. Read the full article…

Attempting to fly to Munich from Brauneck

Alastair BegleyBavaria, Paragliding Short Link

One of my dream flights is to fly back to Munich, or even better, my house from the Alps. The easiest site to do this is from Bauneck as it is close to the flatlands and is therefore often flyable when the inner alps are not and it is also very easy to access by train. On this day the forecast for the inner alps looked unflyable, but it looked like it would be possible to start from Brauneck and then head out into the flats to fly back to Munich. When I woke up I looked at the updated weather forecast and nearly bailed on the attempt, as the forecast at seriously deteriorated when compared to the previous evening. However as I hadn’t flown for a few weeks I decided to head down and see what actually happened. On the train ride down to Brauneck the flats looked incredible, however the reports of heavy rain at Brauneck were not that appealing. I was very surprised by the amount of snow cover for mid may when I was on the lift up, and after having a coffee with some other members. Read the full article…

Stoderzinken 200km FAI

Alastair BegleyAustria, Paragliding Short Link

After a very poor night of sleep in a nearby hotel, my body was not happy to be awake and at the Sky Club Austria flight school at 06:30 in order to pay for the shuttle which was leaving at 07:00. After paying I made use of their supply of coffee, before 2 shuttle busses and a coach arrived which the large group of eager pilots quickly climbed into. After the long drive up to the end of the road my mood had not improved much, however the tension about the upcoming plan was definitely starting to build. There was a walk from the shuttle bus to the summit, where the views kept getting better and better. It was very strange to be waiting on launch so early, and also with so many high classification wings being unpacked. This was definitely not a normal distribution of pilots. This was confirmed when talking to a local sponsored pilot about if he thought the conditions were good enough for the FAI triangle, in this conversation 200km was the short option! The air felt like it must be working, but nobody was taking. Read the full article…

Lackenkogel Hike&Fly

Alastair BegleyAustria, Paragliding, Walking Short Link

With a plan for a cross-country flight from Stoderzinken the next day, Manuel and I had the idea of making the most of the poor xc conditions by heading for a hike and fly in the Ponzgau, en-route to our destination for the next day. We elected to climb the Lackenkogel which was a really beautiful walk, much better than I was expecting to be honest. From very early on we had wonderful views of the Dachsteingebirge, which only got better as we passed the Lackenalm as we could then see into the Hohe Tauern. The path from the Lackenalm traversed around the west side of the mountain, which provided a beautiful view, but also gave us a relatively snow free ascent, it would have been a different story if we had ascended the north facing slopes. We made very good time on the ascent and were soon at the ridge up to the summit where the views really opened up, and they were absolutely fantastic. After the short ridge up to the summit we were greeted by a perfect wind to start, which was fortunate as the area was. Read the full article…

Grüblspitze Skitour&Fly

Alastair BegleyAustria, Paragliding, Ski Touring Short Link

After a late season dump of snow, and with a slightly uncertain forecast for xc paragliding, I decided to make the most of the snowy conditions and head out for my first ski tour of the year, and my first skitour&fly. Given the recent snowfall careful route choice was necessary, especially as I was heading out alone. I ended up settling on the Grüblspitze in the Tuxertal, which had the added advantage that I could get a lift into the Zillertal with Becky who was skiing at Zillertal Arena. I got the local train up the Zillertal to Mayrhofen before changing onto a bus which took me to the start of the route. The first section of the route up from the valley was untracked, which made me worried that I was going to be breaking trail the entire way up, thankfully this was not the case! The conditions were wonderful with clear skies, wintery scenes due to all the fresh snow and cold air. The only downside was my complete lack of fitness, having essentially done no exercise since November due to our trip to Southern Africa and the. Read the full article…

South Africa and Overlanding from Windhoek to Victoria Falls

Alastair BegleyAfrica, Botswana, Landscape, Namibia, Overlanding, South Africa, Wildlife, Zambia, Zimbabwe Short Link

This blog post tells the story of my five weeks in southern Africa between two jobs. This is the longest period I have had off work since I left university, and it was a great break between the stress of finishing my previous job and starting a new job. The main part of the trip was overlanding through Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe. However our trip started in South Africa which allowed us some time to acclimatise to the heat prior to starting the intense travel of the overlanding portion. South African Prequel Prior to heading up to Windhoek to start our overlanding adventure, I had 12 days in South Africa. The first 10 days were spent paragliding in Porterville, just north of Cape Town. The weather was unfortunately not always the best, so there were some other activities thrown into the mix during this time. Prior to heading up to Namibia, Becky and I had planned two days of wine tasting in Franschhoek, a classic wine valley near Cape Town. South African Open Pre-PWC Paragliding Competition (Full Post) After my first paragliding competition in North Macedonia in August, I signed. Read the full article…