Three Hill High!

There is a potential launch I have been eyeing from our backyard treehouse for some time but, until today, have never taken the time to explore. It is a series of three small SW facing ridges identified on USGS quads as "Three Hill". The "launch" is a steep spot on the north ridge at 5,600', about 300' above a large bailout LZ at its base. I could not drive all the way to launch, so I ended up hauling my glider & gear the last .9 mile on my shoulders.



I arrived on launch by 13:00 as pre-frontal winds were already building, and I knew that a substantial front would arrive later in the afternoon. Conditions on this sunny late Indian Summer day were beautiful - a record high 66 degrees with SW winds of 18-22 mph. This would be the last of the 60's - or maybe even 50's that we would see this year, and could open the door to the winter snowstorms.



I set up behind a juniper tree, and by 13:30 was standing along a steep portion of the ridge, with Ol' Sport tugging at my hang straps. I always have a sense of excitement on launch, but today there were a few more butterflies of anticipation! Launch was an easy two steps, into my cocoon, and instantly soaring Three Hill. The "front" hill or ridge is about 75' lower than the north launch ridge, with the shorter middle "hill" farther east and of little consequence. I was able to soar back and forth between the two ridges until a bubble came through and took me about 400' over, allowing me to drift north over Hyde Park Canyon and reach the face of Cedar Mountain. I found little if any lift along the south canyon-facing side, so I flew around the front and found plenty of lift along the west face,



allowing me to climb over the top of Cedar to about 6,100' where the ridge lift was plentiful. I took a few pictures and watched one of the university trainer airplanes fly by in the valley about 500 vertical feet below me. With no instruments today I had a hard time staying with the gentle thermals which seemed to track up the main spine and release along the way or near the top. After taking a few pictures and marvelling at the miles of clear, blue-sky visibility, I started to focus on the lift and "tune-in" to my altitude in relation to the nearby ridge and mountains.



Relying on the visual cues around me, I soon found a large thermal in which I could climb and drift.



I arrived at the higher mountain range to the east at about 6,400' and found abundant lift along the face, with an obvious southerly component. I now had to stuff the bar to make progress to the south, but was gradually climbing with every spine and ridge along the way.


I soon found myself at the mouth of Green Canyon, with enough altitude to attempt the crossing! I lost about 800' beating through the venturi, but soon found lift on the other side which quickly took me up and over the next mountain,


topping out 500' over the microwave towers at about 8,000' MSL. From here I flew south until I was looking straight down on Logan Canyon and across to Logan Peak, where I took notice of a stronger funnel-effect. I decided that I would leave that crossing for another day, and pointed back north to regain a safer "glide cushion". I later found out just how prudent a decision this was when I saw that the Logan Peak wind gauge had registered a 60 mph gust from the west at 15:04 - no wonder the canyons seemed to be "sucking"!

The last seven years I have not only dreamed of flying this mountain range, but also of landing in the field behind my back yard. At 4,000' over the valley, I knew I had a chance to make it today, so I pointed west to go for it. By watching my goal, I soon realized that it was not to be today, due to the stiff headwind. With the bar stuffed, my ground speed was 2 or 3 mph, and my glide suffered greatly due to my light wing loading (about 1 lb/sq. ft.) and lack of VG. So I eased the bar out, climbed back over the mountain,



and just enjoyed the new, incredible view of the university and city laid out below.



I noticed the approaching front on the horizon nw of the Short Divide,


so I pointed north, raced back over Cedar Mountain, and began to fight my way down through the lift.


I thought about top landing, but decided to make a long, conservative final approach over the wide open bailout LZ, where I gently touched down at 15:30 into a nice 15 mph headwind.
I packed up, retrieved my pick-up, and made it home before dark. I know I fell asleep with a big grin on my sun-kissed, slightly wind-burned face - dreaming of the day's adventures.

Airtime: 2 Hours!