Lots of happy pilots at Plan Fait launch in prospect of another good day. Looks a bit windy though. Quickly to the middle of the Veyrier ridge at 1950m. It is windy and coming from the SW which means there will be a strong headwind going towards our stated goal of Croix de Nivolet. Its windy enough to make you pause before you cross the lake but me, jon (from geneva) and jon shaw all go for it anyway.
The transition goes well for the 1st half but the 2nd half requires full bar into the head wind coming round the corner of Semonoz.
On the far side various tactics emerge. Jon S tries for a good thermal wide, high and handsome over the industrial park and finds several but gets strong drift and makes little progress. I go for the opposite tactic, surfing only 5m above the ridge and only looking for climbs when I need the height to pass an awkward corner or gap. When I do it often takes several attempts to winkle out something useful from the rough broken lift. Progress is slow with forward speed down to less than 10kph at times. Jon fg tries an intermediate way trying to gain height in the best thermals above the ridge but it seems that only my ridge hugging allows net progress.
Just before the powerlines which I know to have a bowl on the far side which is a good thermal generator even in this wind direction I almost get caught in the wind shade of the spur and have to fight like crazy to get back up. Eventually i do and reach the powerline and taking advantage of a lifty cycle squeak over and then maintain with some difficulty until the next cycle comes and I can step climb into wind back up to 1500m.
Pretty soon I am up at 1800m above Semonoz launch and the first critical part of the flight is done. At the far end of the Semonoz ridge there are half a dozen pilots who, having taking off on Semonoz, are all trying to work the broken thermals before jumping the big gap over Aiguebellette to the Revard/Sire ridge. Several are trying the transition but going direct into wind and sinking badly when they hit the lee. I decide to go for it with 1900m and pick a curving line out to match what should be lifty air coming up the SW facing spur. This keeps me well out from the front of the hill and I use plenty of bar and it works out fine and I arrive above the little cliff on the other side which guarantees a friendly boost to start the scratch up the other side.
5km further on there is another critical section where the ridge kinks back to form a huge bowl. The options are to follow the rim back into the bowl (partial lee could be very messy) or strike straight across the mouth of the bowl for a much longer transition and hope to have just enough height to squeak round a rather difficult corner. I leave for the latter with 1700m this time following a blue glider about a k in front. Rough, rough air but full speed bar is the only thing that will get me through the -3.5m/s sink and 25kph head wind and round the corner. The glider in front is pushing less bar than me and sinking lower and lower until he hits mega sink in the partial lee behind the ridge and only a few seconds later is picking out a landing option among the small fields below. By good choice of line and a bit of luck I arrive just at the spot which i decided was the lowest point i could get up from. Unfortunately, the wind is stronger than ever here and as i come off to half bar as terrain approaches I find myself pinned on the windy corner which turns out to be a washing machine of angry anabatic air feeding up the spur mixing with met wind blowing along the slope.
Suddenly the glider isn't flying any more and I look up to see what is going on. I am puzzled as it didn't feel like normal asym or frontal. Various thrashing and I sort it out just in time with trees rushing up towards me and I'm flying again and take advantage of the adrenaline rush to fight my way round the corner to some easier air.
There is one more tricky section getting round the windy corner onto the main Revard face which feels distinctly uncomfortable given the previous shenanigans. Eventually i find a section where i trust the anabatic flow closer in more than the rotory air from an upwind spur further out and manage to gain just enough height to take a glide round the final tricky corner where I am blasted above the Revard take off and join the many other gliders enjoying the section of ridge down to Croix de Nivolet which since it is facing more into wind is much more friendly. 3 hours of pushing to the Croix!
The section from Aiguebellette to the Croix which took 1.5 hrs on the way out takes only 25 minutes on the way back but i get careless and leave at only 1500m for the downwind crossing back onto Semonoz ridge expecting there to be a great thermal on the other side. When i get there all is quiet - this spur is being wind shaded by the ridge I have just left and the normally reliable late afternoon anabatic breeze is absent. Forty minutes later including some marginal scratching over clearings not far above tall trees I have abandoned the W facing aspect and worked my way into the gorge proper and it is here, protected from the met wind that i get a hint of an escape following a weak thermal as it breaks off a minor ridge line and then following it over minor bluffs and humps working each uneven half turn until it bumps into the S face of Semenoz and forms properly. What a delight to sit back, rest my abdominal muscles and not care about maximising the climb anymore! This one is going all the way up!
The flight has one more treat in store for me for as I climb gently to 2000m above the S end of the Semenoz ridge admiring the hard won view of the lake. There in front of me are 3 puffy cumulus at about 2300m in a line leading directly to Plan Fait above the middle of the valley between Semenoz and Roc de Boeuffs. It can only be a convergence line so i go for it and with a couple of turns top up from the middle cloud lose only about 500m in the next 12 or 14km glide direct to Plan Fait.
An unusual and wonderful way to end the day. Not nearly the longest flight of the trip but definitely the most tiring and demanding!
Track log is
here
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