Fly Site- Sarangkot, Pokhara, Nepal

Mid-air selfie.

ParaglidingEarth Description Link
Blue Sky Paragliding Link

Perhaps the best way to introduce Sarangot to a visiting solo pilot is with a cliché: here you'll find the good, the bad and the ugly. The good here is truly great, though I'll confess it took me a day or two to see past the bad and enjoy myself. I'll forgo going in to detail here about logistics, meteorology, or routes as I sometimes do because many others already have: simply Google “Paragliding Nepal” or “Sarangkot” to find a plethora of information. Here it is my aim to help you make the decision, “Is this the kind of place I'd like to visit for paragliding?” Speaking for myself, I learned more, set more personal records, and met more new friends here in a month than I would have almost anywhere else. Highlights included taking a three-day SIV course and also making a successful circuit of The Green Wall, a relatively easy XC loop of about 35 km that begins and ends at Sarangkot. There may be a few issues on the ground with Sarangkot, but once up in the air all is well!

En route to one of three landing zones spaced conveniently along the edge of Phewa Tal.

The Good: The setting is spectacular: as a backdrop for some of the most consistent and friendliest flying conditions anywhere in the world are a jaw-dropping six-thousand meters of rock and ice to the North, and Phewa Tal to the South, a large lake well-situated for those aspiring to practice acro and SIV. The geography and climate inspires XC routes limited only by the imagination, and pilots regularly achieve 100 km triangle flights from here in peak flying season (January-March). One can learn from some of the best pilots in the world who visit often for extended periods, and a regular community of both local and ex-pat pilots exists to welcome anyone who is serious and respectful about flying here. There is something for every level of ambition from ridge-soaring to regularly scheduled SIV courses to XC expeditions.

Evening briefing for SIV course with David Arrufat of Blue Sky Paragliding.

If you're looking for a place to start making sense of the scene make your way to the North Lakeside area of Pokhara. Here you'll find several of the more long-established paragliding booking offices including Blue Sky, Frontiers, and Sunrise. Sunrise sells a fold-up map with various XC routes and other useful information for flying in the area. Pop in to one of the the offices and if someone has a moment they should be able to line you out. In this area also it is possible to share taxi or jeep rides up to launch at Sarangkot between the hours of approximately 9:00 am and 12:00 pm- just look for anyone wandering around with an over-sized backpack. (The time of day may vary some with season.) Outside of these hours you may have some difficulty in finding other pilots to share costs with. The ride is approximately 25 minutes and about 700 rupees ($7.00 U.S.).

There are also several hiking routes up to Sarangkot, which I personally made regular use of! Hiking time would be about 1.5 to 3.0 hours. The trail beginning in Khapaudi just outside of Pokhara is my favorite one. Follow the shore of Phewa Tal headed out of North Lakeside, and after 2 km look for for the turn-off with the sign that says “This Way to Sarangot” with an arrow. After appx 0.75 km there is a turnoff on to a trail up in to the brush. If you can find this, the way is obvious from here, it's all up! It is not well marked but is well-trodden.

Be prepared to mobbed by people demanding to help fold your wing, or give one chocolate, or one rupee, one pen, etc.  Obviously most Nepalis find such behavior distasteful so don't let such pestering leave you with a bad taste in your mouth.  Disarm them with your amazing charm and talent, like my ability to juggle for three seconds!

The Bad: Perhaps nowhere else will you find a place where the sport of paragliding has been so thoroughly commercialized and overexploited. No less than twenty businesses operate to take tourists on tandem flights, and rumor had it that twenty more had applied for permits for the following year. At the main launch and in the nearby house thermal you should be comfortable with the idea of flying in a gaggle. Same rules apply here as anywhere else: circle in the same direction as everyone else, and always, always be scanning for traffic in 360 degrees.

Upon my first visit to the main launch area at Sarangkot I watched slack-jawed as I witnessed the kind of missteps and trespasses occur every fifteen minutes that would go down in history for bad launch juju nearly anywhere else. It as if all the pilots crowding their way to the front thought they were in a mosh pit... Before getting your equipment out the first time I recommend just observing take-offs at launch for at least an hour to see what sort of crowd you'll be flying with. See my earlier entry about Pokhara for a longer rant, but let it be said that one should proceed with extra caution to guard themselves against actions of other pilots here, particularly in your first days. I had never flown in real crowds before coming here and it took me a few days to get used to the idea of starting out in a gaggle. In summary, you will not be the first visitor to have discovered this flying Shangri-La.

On Cloud Ten- one step above Cloud Nine.

The Ugly: The amazing flying here appears to cultivate a level of peril in equal proportion. There are various unattractive aspects of flying here that should not be overlooked, though nor should they deter anyone from the idea of coming to this great place.

Reports of injuries, fatalities, and near-misses were spoken of a bit too regularly for my comfort around Sarangkot. Perhaps this is merely a result of the large number of people who fly here, but in general I found an attitude towards safety a bit more casual than I have witnessed in other renowned flying areas of the world, of which I have visited several. Bottom line: don't let it rub off on you.

When I visited during February and March 2014, a commission of local aviation and free-flight officials that may or may not be a sort of mafia had just elected to totally prohibit all beginner pilot classes. Perhaps this is an attempt to mandate better safety by removing less-experienced pilots from the crowds, or perhaps it is part of an effort to stifle potential future competition for already-employed tandem pilots.

If you dare step outside your hotel on the day of Holi in mid-March, be prepared to be assaulted with color...

There is officially a fee of approximately $50 U.S. that is to be paid for your permit to fly in Nepal to the C.A.A.N. (Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal), to be renewed every two weeks. That comes out to around $1200 per year if one were to maintain their permit in Nepal year-round, an impressive extortion compared to my yearly $75 USHPA registration back home in the US. There are several uniformed officials manning the launch area as well as one checkpoint on the road up who are said to occasionally check permits, though I never met anyone who had it happen to them. I recommend acquiring your permit initially when you arrive, carrying it with you, and I'll leave the decision up to you if you think it's necessary to renew it should your flying plans last longer than two weeks. Acquiring your permit requires that you show the following:

1. Proof of membership in the national paragliding organization of your country.
2. Proof of insurance covering paragliding activities.
3. Your passport, as well as one extra passport-sized photo (easily acquired in Pokhara).

I got my permit from the Blue Sky office in North Lakeside, though I believe almost any paragliding office can help you with this process.

I hope that the future is bright for this place and to return someday soon!

Head to the landing zone at the far West side of the lake to practice your ground handling, truly a great spot!

Fly Site- Llacolen, Antofagasta, Chile

ParaglidingEarth Site Link (None)

Launch: (S 23°43’20”, W 70°25’48”)                             185  m

Landing Zone: The beach                                   0   m

Antofagasta is a large port city several hundred kilometers South of Iquique.  While Antofagasta might not have the same level of tourist infrastructure or white crescent beaches like Iquique, it’s flying sites are many and varied and well worth a visit for paraglider pilots.

Llacolen is a ridge-soaring site on the Southern edge of Antofagasta.  Awesome views of the coast, smooth laminar air, no obstructions other than a few antennae near launch.  About three kilometers of the ridge in a Southerly direction are easily soar-able.  Further distances should require experienced pilots with a briefing from local pilots.

Wind is principally from the Southwest and West.  Wind from a direction too Southerly will not serve to produce ridge lift.

I sunk out here once and easily kited my way part way back up the ridge, and jumped back into the lift band.  Where else could you get away with that but in a climate as awesome for flying as the Atacama desert?!

Notes on Launch: Launch is a smooth dirt/gravel clearing adjacent to some antennae.  Drop-off is fairly steep, so as always good launch technique is essential.  Flying to the North is inadvisable as the antennae obstruct the route.  Top-landings are possible.

Notes on Landing Zone: Landing anywhere on the beach is fine.  If you sink out right away, avoid rotor by not flying too close behind the tall buildings just below launch.  Expect curious kids on the beach.

Flyable days per year: Almost all of them.

Best times of the day: When I was there in April 2012, conditions became ideal at around 12:00 p.m.

Cost: No launch fees.

How to get there:

To Launch:
Head South along the coast until you see a large cluster of antennae close up on the ridge to the left, almost at the edge of the city.  City bus No. 102 or 103 both pass by this spot.  Launch is directly adjacent on the South side of these antennae.  To get to launch, you can either hoof it straight up the hill once you have your destination in sight (appx. 45 min hike), or even launch from half-way up if the lift is good.

If you have a car, there is a route through some neighborhoods and dirt tracks leading directly to launch.  I went out with a member of a local club who navigated the route for me, so I do not have the details of every turn.

Your best bet for having a good flying experience in Antofagasta is to get in touch with member of the local club, Club Termicas, and catch a ride to launch with them.  If you don’t have a cell phone, have them give you a place and time to meet.  Local instructor David Castro was also very helpful with putting me in touch with local pilots.

To Antofagasta: Recommended bus companies include Pullman and Tur-Bus, regularly scheduled trips are available from any major city in Chile, as well as from Jujuy and Salta across the border in Argentina.

Antofagasta also has an international airport with flights scheduled daily from Santiago.

Websites:

Site description (Spanish): http://www.viento-norte.cl/llacolen.htm

Local pilots, Club Termicas: http://www.clubparapentetermicas.superwebchile.com/

Great information also available in Dylan Neyme’s guide book Condor Trail.

My awesome hosts in Antofagasta, Karla and Viktor, who I met through www.couchsurfing.com !

Fly Site- Palo Buque, Iquique, Chile

ParaglidingEarth Site Link

Launch (S 20°23’0”, W 70°09’0”)                       297  m

Landing Zone Same

Palo Buque is the easiest place in the world to achieve the most ancient of human dreams- to spread our arms and fly into the sky on a whim.  On a good day, all that’s necessary to get airborne from flat ground is to set up the equipment, kite the wing a little ways up a small hill- and you’re up in the air.  This is truly a magical place for paraglider pilots

The site  lies about fifteen minutes driving South of Iquique.  From the road it doesn’t look like anything special and there are no facilities of any kind nearby the site, but once in the air it is an other-wordly place.  It is possible to gain 800-900 meters of elevation within several minutes of launch on a good day, and you may find it at times a challenge to descend as quickly as you’d like.  Cross country-flights following the coastal range may also begin from here.  Winds are generally from the Southwest.

For more information on the necessary permissions needed for cross-country flights in the area, contact Altazor.

I highly recommend having your risers already clipped in to your harness before arriving at this site.  There is no sheltered, protected area of any kind to lay out equipment.  In my first visit here I struggled like a newbie for nearly an hour with my equipment tangling and dragging across the sand and the rocks.  Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Notes on Launch:

Set up your equipment either at the bottom of or part way up the small (appx. 50 m) South-facing hill at the site.  (How high you’ll need to set up your equipment depends on wind speed, start lower down in higher winds).  Kite your wing up to the point where you are feeling lift, and launch.  Begin by making ridge-soaring passes until you are above the small hill, then use the much larger, smooth slope to the East connected to the hill to continue climbing.  Watch out for the Venturi effect in the corner where the small hill connects to the mountain slope.

Palo Buque is a world-famous site and sometimes a popular place, but there is plenty of room for all.  If you happen to arrive on a day where thirty Argentinian or French or Russian pilots are all jockeying for a place, just be patient and you’ll have all the space you need momentarily.

Notes on Landing Zone:  

You should be able to land right next to where you parked without issue.  If you land far away, the highway parallels the coast and you should be able to hitch a ride.

Flyable days per year: Nearly all of them, so they tell me.

Best times of the day: When I was there in March the best times were later in the day, after 3:00 or 4:00 p.m. until sundown-

Cost: No launch fees.

How to get there: No public transportation is available to Palo Buque.  Altazor rents vans for the trip to Palo Buque at 15.00 COP (appx. 30$ U.S.).  Split amongst five or six people it is quite reasonable.  Or, you can try your luck at hitch-hiking.  

If you’re going it on your own, head South from Iquique along the coast for about 15-20 minutes driving time.   Appx. 1 km. past the Punta Gruesa turn off, several dirt roads turn off to the left (you will see a small cemetary on the right just before) and all lead to the small lump up against the mountain about 1 km. away that will be your launch site.  If you have a GPS, use the coordinates to have an idea of where to get off.

Website: www.altazor.cl

Fly Site- Alto Hospicio, Iquique, Chile

View from Launch, Bajo Molle down below.

ParaglidingEarth Site Link

Launch (S 20°16’54”, W 70°06’27”)                       506  m

Landing Zone (N 0°22’21”, W 78°5’25”)                0   m

Northern Chile is truly in a class of it’s own when it comes to paragliding.  The driest climate in the world coupled with a coastal mountain range produces legendarily consistent winds, and the utter lack of vegetation means you can launch and land from almost anywhere.  And no city in Chile is more paraglider-friendly than Iquique.  One day after landing at the beach near downtown I found myself a bit lost looking for the right bus back to Altazor Flight Park.  After wandering around for a while like a dumb tourist, a car pulled over and rolled the window down.  The guy inside said he noticed my large backpack and asked if I was a paraglider...  he was headed to Palo Buque (another nearby fly site), do I need a ride?  Only in Iquique!

Alto Hospicio is an outlying community near Iquique up on the mesa above the city and is the main launch used for flying around Iquique. It is easily reached by bus from almost anywhere in the city.  From launch there is access to clean, sea breeze-impacted ridgeline extending all along behind the city.  Flying is thermal-dynamic, meaning one can almost always find lift near the ridgeline while seeking thermals further out.

A fun flight to attempt is launching from Alto Hospicio and landing on the beach at either Playa Brava or Playa Cavancha.  Head North along the ridge from Alto Hospicio and then out over the city to the beach.  There are electrical lines to avoid in several places (difficult to see even with the orange balls), ask to have someone describe to you where they are.  Make sure you have good elevation before pointing your glider out over the city to land on the beach!

THE place is town for pilots to stay is Altazor Flight Park.  Here you will find answers to any questions you have about flying in the area from an expert staff of fellow pilot/travelers.  They are located next to a good LZ in the sand dunes, have all levels of accommodation in a fun hostel-style atmosphere, all you need for equipment repair and maintenance, and blessedly- a large astroturf surface where you can clean out the copious amounts of sand that will get in to your wing...

Camping at Altazor Flight Park

Notes on Launch: Launch is free of any nearby obstacles.  There is almost always a service thermaldirectly below launch, but avoid spending too much time there if other pilots are waiting to launch.

I was told by one local tandem pilot that top-landings are discouraged due to a nearby road, but I saw several people doing it and looks to be easily achievable.  Inquire during site orientation if you plan to top-land, though there is generally little reason for it.

Notes on Landing Zone:  As mentioned earlier, the beauty of flying in the desert is one can be less worried about always being in reach of an LZ.  Between Alto Hospicio and Iquique is pure sand dunes, so almost anywhere will do.  Of course, if you bail out try to land closer to the road so you don’t have to hoof it so far!  Be prepared to be bounced back up from your intended LZ from the omnipresent thermal/glass off conditions.

From launch at Alto Hospicio, Altazor Flight Park is visible as the long, white wall straight ahead in the line of vision towards the ocean from launch.  

If you plan to land on the beach at Playa Cavancha or Playa Brava, you’ll have a very wide, smooth, sandy beach to land.  Keep your distance from the skyscrapers in your approximation.  Watch out to not land on any sunbathers, kids building sand castles, or people playing beach tennis.

Flyable days per year: Just about all of ‘em, they tell me.

Best times of the day: When I was there in April, best time to launch was between 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m and then again after 4 or 5:00 p.m. until dusk.

Cost: No launch fees.

How to get there:

To Iquique

Daily direct buses are available from nearly any other major Chilean city as well as from Jujuy, Argentina just across the border.  Tur-Bus and Pullman are two enterprises I with whom I had good experiences.

Flights are also scheduled daily from Santiago on LAN airlines.

To Alto Hospicio

From the Airport- Contact Altazor for directions on how to arrive from the airport.

From the Iquique Bus Terminal- From nearly anywhere in town, the No. 3 bus (or any bus clearly marked with Alto Hospicio, there are several) will take you on the route you need.  At the terminal, ask which bus will take you to Alto Hospicio (sorry guys, I didn’t ever go straight from the terminal so I’m not sure what all the bus routes are that go up there...).  Once you are headed up the long, gradual slope leaving out of the city, you are on the way there.  When you are close to the three very large flags up on the ridge top ( you can’t miss them!) let the driver know to let you off at the mirador de parapente in just a minute.  Launch will be on your left, a large cleared area.

If you are arriving into Iquique overland from the North, you will pass through Alto Hospicio en route to Iquique.  If you don’t have too much luggage, here’s a cool trick: you can ask the bus driver to drop you off at Alto Hospicio on his way down and fly directly down below to Altazor, thereby avoiding any extra buses or taxis in town.  (I had too much stuff, so lame...)

Website: www.altazor.cl (Yours truly assisted in the English translation of the site).

Good if slightly old information also available in Dylan Neyme’s guide book Condor Trail.

Fly Site- Cuenca, Ecuador

ParaglidingEarth Site Link (None)

Launch (S 02°53’12”, W 79°04’54”)                         3109 m

Landing Zone (N 02°53’29”, W 79°03’29”)              2719 m

Cuenca, the third largest city in Ecuador, has a surprisingly small paragliding community for a city of its size.  The area seems like it has potential for a lot of great flying but few pilots.  Through another contact in Baños I was able to get in touch with some locals here who took me out one day.  I do not recall the name of this launch.  Launch area was an extremely steep back-yard type of area next to a house above the city.

I had only one sledder flight here so am not intimately familiar with it.  A spine leads down the mountain from launch and looks to have some good thermal-generating potential.

A caution: although in the whole flight I diverged only once from a straight path towards the indicated LZ (attempting to turn into a thermal), my elevation was insufficient to reach the LZ and I had to bail out early.  Be prepared to do the same.

Notes on Launch: The launch area was one of the more challenging I have used in my flying career.  A small cleared area on a steep slope lies on the downhill side of the GPS coordinates indicated here.  If you are not safely in the air after a few seconds sprint, you will probably need to abort launch.

From here, a pilot should be able to make several back and forth passes to gain elevation and rise towards cloud base.

Notes on Landing Zone: A number of large fields below are visible from launch.  Bisecting the fields at various points are dirt roads- these are the preferred landing points as landing on the fields may destroy crops and upset locals.  Paralleling these roads are sometimes power lines.

You will pass by the landing zone on the way up to launch (GPS coordinates indicated).  If you are going with local pilots, ask them to point it out to you.

Hazards: All of the usual.

Flyable days per year: Unknown.  

Best times of the day: After noon, mid-day.

Cost: No launch fees.

How to get there:  As I was given a ride and went only once, I do not recall the route up to launch.  Contact local pilots for details.  

Website: None.  If you are interested, contact me (see “Contact Me” box on right hand side of this page) and I will put you in touch with the local pilots.

My landing zone.

Fly Site- Niton, Ecuador

ParaglidingEarth Site Link

Launch (N 1°17’11”, W 78°32’38”)                       2993  m

Landing Zone (N 0°22’21”, W 78°5’25”)              

Niton is a ridge-soaring/dynamic site about a forty minute drive from Baños, Ecuador.  Flying hours are generally from about 2:30 p.m. to sun down.  Launch is on a smooth ridge top of about three kilometers in length.  In strong dynamic conditions, it is possible to get quite a ways out from the ridge and have room for acro maneauvers.  Mid-flight views of the active Volcán Tungurahua are truly impressive!

The launch site is private property owned by local Baños tandem pilot Edgar Soria.  Get in touch with Edgar (flyedgars@hotmail.com, www.flyniton.com) to arrange details of your visit.  When I was there, he graciously allowed visiting pilots to accompany him up to launch free of charge- provided he had passengers booked for the day and extra space available.  Otherwise, round trip transport from Baños to launch is 20$ U.S.

Notes on Launch: Directly below to the left of launch is a large stand of pine trees.  Under no circumstances (i.e. even when launching or landing) should you fly too close behind the trees, as strong rotor is found there.  To the right of launch is a low set of power lines, with high tension lines about a kilometer further to the right.

Notes on Landing Zone:  Top-landing is easily achieved here. Be conscious of not landing on adjacent cultivated fields.  If top-landing is not possible, choose one of the fields in the plains below visible from launch.  Choose a field that is not currently in cultivation, which field is preferable will vary on the season.  Ask local pilots for details.

Hazards: Power lines, high-altitude conditions.  Weather conditions can change quickly and produce strong turbulence.  Get a weather briefing from local pilots before launching.

Flyable days per year: Unknown.  

Best times of the day: 3:00 p.m. to sun down.

Cost: I was not charged any launch fees.

How to get there:

To Baños: Baños is a national and international tourist mecca and has regularly scheduled buses from Quito, Ambato, and Riobamba.  You will be overwhelmed by the availability of hotels and restaraunts.  As touristy as it is, Baños is a place truly pleasant enough to merit it’s hordes of visitors.  You will not be bored here in your non-flying time with hot-springs, hiking, biking, and any number of distractions beckoning.

If you wish to shun the tourist bubble altogether, lodging is also available in Pelileo (closer to Niton) and famed for its local jeans manufacturing.

To Niton:  From Baños to Niton is approximately forty minutes driving.  Turn right across from the fire station in Pelileo.  Navigation past this point involved a series of turns I can not recall precisely to reach a cobblestone road leading to the ridge top.  Where the cobblestone ends, a dirt road leads to the right about 2 km to launch.

Website: http://www.flyniton.com (As of May 2013, this link is appears to be no longer active. I may be able to put you in touch with a local pilot if you contact me directly though!)

Edgar giving pre-flight simulations to tandem passengers.

Drying equipment at Chez Roberto's, which was also my campsite for the week.