Big friday on the forecast and all the local xc hotshots have taken the day off work! But too many beers round the bbq the night before for us and its a bit of a late start. I try hard to convince jon to leave the valley for the chance of a 150 or even 200k flight but fail.... St Marcel near Chambery is probably the place to start – its probably ok to take off about 11 on such a good day - and the out and return trip with end turnponts of Grenoble and Annecy is achievable. However this means leaving Verthier at 9am and it just doesn't happen.
Nevermind, we walk up to Plan Fait (after some practice its feeling a lot easier now!) and get into the air around 2pm. After some mincing around the teeth we climb to 2500 and try to decide what to do - its one of those days when you could choose to go literally any direction. ”Pointe D'andey”, I bawl to jon and we head off north staying well above 2000m for most of the trip over Lachat du Thones and then on to Jallouvre where I get the jump on Jon finding a better core among the many under a large spread out cloud. Base is now 3000 – definitely big friday!
From there its a quick sprint through sinky air to Pointe D'andey where there is a classic cumulus waiting. Its obvious that the next transition is going to be a key one for the day. Going back the way we came looks sinky and I don't want to try it having been decked by it previously (it got jon too on this day unfortunately) but the way I want to go is SW to Parmelan and it looks worse!
Its very shaded by active cumulus forming a bit out in the valley but I get the feeling it can work and after taking a few turns in the white room I set out. Mega sink and a bit of head wind and its not long before I am ridge surfing but one unexpected climb gets me out of a hole just as another glider lands on a grassy summit to wait out the shadows. Good climbs follow and soon I can push round the corner at Parmelan. I can hear Irwyn and Hairy have taken off at Forclaz on the radio – they have a different type of adventure in mind and it is great fun to join them in beautiful and easy thermals above the teeth and we share the climbs along beefy and on to Mageriaz. There they head off for their bivvy spot and I turn for home to complete the circuit feeling there is plenty of time left in the day but mindful of the thick cirrus layer that has pushed in mid-afternoon. I needn't have worried as the good climbs continue and its a breeze to get back to the lac via Columbier and Rocs de Boeufs again. Not bad for a late start! My final flying day of what has been a great trip.
Track log is here.
