Powered paraglider XC to Yzerfontein

Section of the aeronautical chart showing the area and airspace

Great PPG flying on the West Coast today.  We met at Grotto Bay and flew north along the coastline to Yzerfontein – 30km of almost uninhabited and deserted beach, with the occasional wild ostrich for company.  After an extended coffee break at Yzerfontein to assess what the wind was doing (a NE land breeze meeting the forecast NW sea breeze) the general consensus was to head back to Grotto rather than chancing a flight to Langebaan.  Fortunately, help was at hand in the form of Dave, who offered to drive my Pajero as a support vehicle, and so I invited him to drive it all the way to Blouberg, said goodbye to the others at Grotto Bay and flew the whole stretch back in one go – more than 70km cross-country flight if you allow the small detour around the Koeberg Nuclear Power Station restricted airspace which I had to make.

Total track distance for the day’s flying was 115km; just under 3 hours and 10 litres of fuel.  The 70km/1h45 return from Yzer to Dolphin Beach burnt only 5 litres of fuel – probably on par with the average car 🙂

Least fun: the inland section through the D200 where I was crabbing crosswind  over fields of power lines in lumpy thermic air.

Best bits:  Flying at 30 knots a metre off the beach with a flock of seagulls as wingmen.

Some teaser pics – more words and some video to follow.

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