Balquidder to Strathbraan - Sat 25th July 2009

So I went to balquidder with bob g and trias and tim j.


Very nice looking sky but early inversion(?) at 850 metres and nw upper winds persisting later than we thought site made flying the south facing ridges tricky. After launching about half 12 both sides of the glen were explored by the others.

trias boating about

anemones

trias above take off

gliding east along loch voil





Staying in a thermal was like chasing a dog that doesn't want to be caught today.... 2 turns in the core thinking "ah ha, got you!" before the next turn thinking "where's it gone?!?"

I landed only 10k down the valley after sticking with the south facing side of the valley but after a sweat up and a relaunch i hit glen ogle just as the upper winds were changing to west and had a nice 2nd flight almost getting to dunkeld (about 50k).

view looking back to the west from my landing point above balquidder village

lochearnhead highland games

base near ben chonzie

Cloud base was over 1600m at about half 3 - the best bit was a climb out from glen almond in a strong thermal pointed out by a curious peregrine

happy to be at base after nearly two hours of effort

auchnafree farm in glen almond, peregrine showed me the way up on the hillside past the farm

crossing loch freuchie

looking back to glen lochan with glen almond behind

decked by the shadows in strathbraan