Hat Creek Rim Cleanup & Soaring

[al_small]

A site work party at Hat Creek Rim main launch was scheduled for this past Saturday, April 25. Ten days before the date the weather forecast projected rain showers with snow in the higher elevations, but Apollo (the deity, not the rocket) smiled on us, and with each passing day the forecast improved over that of the previous day. By the 24th, when most of us were going to set up camp in LZ #2, the forecast was for some rain/snow early Friday, with clearing and sunny weather all day Saturday and then increasing clouds on Sunday. Phil Sergent drove up early on Friday and encountered the precipitation. I didn't get there until 5pm and saw only wet roadways in the vicinity of Lassen N.P. Heading north on I-5, numerous dust devils or thermals were lofting the dirt thrown up by plowing tractors, and thunderheads and squalls lay out to the west, toward the coast.

The reason for the work party was the damage done to the site by vandals. They had surgically sawed the porta-potty in LZ #2 into nearly perfect halves; moved one of the large rocks that prevents vehicle access to the setup area, and also had felled a number of trees at the main launch that had provided some windbreak for setup. The goal of the work effort was to repair the outhouse, replace the rock, place park-approved "no vehicle" signs, and to clear the downed trees and use the resulting brush for a windbreak at the cliff edge, replacing a windbreaking deadfall zone that had existed a number of years back. All work, and a permit to build a fire, were with permission of the Park Service.

By the time I got there, Phil, Phillip, Brian, and Steve had surgically knit the porta-potty together with some kind of heavy rubber stripping and quarter-inch stainless-steel bolts. They did an amazing, expert job, and the pot is now fully functional and is plumb and true. It was moved into a more wooded area than before, and Brian painted it a Spring Green that blends quite well with its surroundings. If the vandals' objections had been that it was an eyesore in plain sight, then it is now hardly visible at all. Numerous of us tested it during the weekend and found it to be fully operational.

Friday night was icy, and a substantial bonfire was kept going with Brian Bokkin and Steve doing sentry duty against stray sparks, though the ground is quite moist right now, and fire danger not great. It was cozy in a warm sleeping bag with thermal underwear and other layers, but hard to get out of bed. Once the sun rose, dramatically, over the Rim the air warmed quickly.

We headed up to launch about 10:00am equipped with chain saws, rakes, shovels and a pickax. By 2pm we had cleared the area of debris, except for stumps, and built up the planned windbreak. The views were spectacular with a completely snow-covered Mt. Lassen and Mt. Shasta, with shasta shining like a jewel in the distance -- our own Mt. Fuji. We headed down for lunch and rest. Then some of us went back up to launch with the hopes of flying.

The wind was coming straight in at about 12mph and wire assistance didn't seem necessary. Only Brian and I set up, and I launched first, about 5:15, immediately rose to about 500' above launch, and was never lower than that for the remainder of my hour over the rim. Conditions weren't glass-off, but more like wide-ranging small thermal activity; there seemed to be a house thermal out front and to the right of launch and at one point I rode it to 6500', 2000' over launch. I spent much of the time practicing turns and airspeed changes with my new Sport-2, working on my tendency to cross-control; my glider felt as though it had an inclination to turn right and I needed to keep bumping left to keep on a straight course.
Brian launched about 30 minutes after me and kept me company and amused me with wingovers. After an hour of boating around I sped out to LZ #2 and landed uneventfully.

That night we had a great cookout of chicken and tri-tip with salads and the usual beverages. It was a bit warmer than it had been on Friday night, and the campfire was very warming and enjoyable.

Phil Sergent documented much of the activity in photos that can be viewed at:

http://tinyurl.com/derav8

Exerpts from the first 45 minutes of my flight (camera shuts down after that) are in a video posted at:

http://www.flintsgrove.com/hg/hatCreekHg.wmv

I think this is a beautiful site, often soarable, with good LZs. I'd encourage people to come up from the Bay area and fly here.

[Big Bird]

Al,

Thank for the report about the weekend and thanks especially for volunteering your time and effort at the site. There are before and after pictures of the weekend here; http://hatcreek.info/RecentImprovements.htm

[Big Bird]

Video of the weekend is here; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBQ183Txd7o