Here I am at Bunyan, in a howling gale.
Jan went off to a conference in Perth, so I decided to go along to a Wave Camp hosted by Canberra Gliding club at their airfield at Bunyan near Cooma.
It’s called a wave camp because at this time of year (late September), a strong westerly wind flow over the Great Dividing Range creates a standing wave in the air above and downwind of the Snowy Mountains in southern New South Wales. The upgoing part of this wave can be used by gliders to soar to great heights – the Australian height record of 33,000 feet was set near here.
I had two flights yesterday in a two-seat glider with a very nice instructor who introduced me to the area and to the delights of wave soaring. The wave was a bit weak and broken up so we only climbed to 9500 feet – but that’s a personal best for me! The wind is strong and gusty low down which makes aero tows very challenging and landings even more challenging!
The scenery is spectacular with views out to the snow-capped peaks to the west and to the sea to the east in clear country air.
Unfortunately today was a no-flying day because the wind on the ground was just too gusty and strong for safety – gusts to 35 knots. So we went to look at the Snowy Mountains Scheme exhibit in Cooma, an interesting little centre with models, films and exhibits showing how the snowy mountains Hydro-electric scheme was built and how it all works. Then back to the clubhouse for lots of glider talk.
We hope there will be flying tomorrow.
