Mount Brace 4/24?
Anyone interested in trying Mount Brace on Saturday? Seems like the winds are favorable, the hike in though is an undertaking... there's no way I could do it alone. Went there once with Wayne and company a few years back, quite a nice place to fly if you're willing to put the work in.
Mike
I am interested!
How far is the hike in? I'd like to fly the Blade but it weighs 61 pounds, however the Fun is a toy and very hikeable.
Nice video, Mike!
Jane
Jane,
It's a 30 minute hike in (1/2 mile?)... *if* the road in is not a mud pit. If we can't get a vehicle all the way in, it's a much longer hike (2 miles or more). I'd need to pair up with someone to get my glider in, so we'd be making two trips up and down, most likely.
Zoe today is going to try to find out the condition of the road in, which the PG pilots don't normally use.
Mike
I am thinking Brace is a bit hardcore for only 2 people. The more the merrier!!
If aerotowing is an option, I might rather do that tomorrow (early) and save the Brace trip for another day. Bryon will let me know later today if towing is a go.
What do you think?
Jane
Would a kayak trolley make hiking in a hang glider easier?
Like the way they do it in Woodstock:
Looks like it might be slung kind of low but I like ready-made solutions.
We decided we're going to try Brace another time later this year. Ellenville might be a good day if you get off the mountain before the winds turn SW in the afternoon.
Mike
Hey, keep us informed the next time you plan to go to Brace Mountain. I would like to join you. I'll carry your glider up. I don't have a 4x4 though. Maybe I can drag Ricardo and Kim along. Ricardo has a Nissan Rogue.
I have a friend in PA who modified a mountain bike to hike gliders up a mountain:
romano
Brace is the Place!!!
I have used that exact Kayak carrier before at Brace. I folded it up, stowed it in the harness and flew it down. I did it once and went back to just carrying it on my shoulder after that. The problem is the last quarter mile is a rocky path that climbs a couple hundred feet. Several pilots have used variations on the bike and the kayak carrier but nothing tried so far was the magic bullet for the last section. It's why so much effort was put into getting the road open again. A few months ago I heard it needs another work party to clean up the downed trees. An early start on a flyable day with some chainsaws and many hands should do the trick.
Ricky Fitz fledglings, should think about offering to carry his gear up there the next good day as a thank you. It's a great site for H2s to get airtime, but IIRC they need a mentor/instructor present, a radio and a FSL signoff.
The Mt Brace Club would love to have HG pilots fly our beautiful site! I think it's been 3 years since the last HG pilot, Eric Kriner, flew the site. Joe Stearn used to fly regularly before that. And of course it was HG pilots who pioneered the site back in the day. At last walking (last week) the back road is currently in good shape for 4x4 vehicles with high clearance, except for one tree down across the way. In other words, one chain saw and a couple of people could shortly make the back road passable for a high clearance 4x4 vehicle. (We cleared the road during a work party last fall but winter happened and the PG pilots rightly couldn't give a f* about stepping over a tree so nobody has rushed to clear it this spring.) Like Tom G says, it's the last 1/4 mile that seems to stop people; it is about a 300ft elevation gain, which is honestly not bad, but maybe y'all aren't getting any younger...;)...Come fly the friendly skies!, Zoe