Day 5: Tuesday. Losing track of time, what day is it? Life is different out here in western NSW. Last night in the pub we saw a guy riding a horse down the main street in Forbes. You don’t see that much in Concord! I had a rest day yesterday.
The soaring forecast is not terrific so I plan a modest 180 k task Forbes – Grenfell – Parkes-Forbes in the DG303. There are shifting winds aloft and the thermals are rough and the lift is broken up. There aren’t any clouds to show up the thermals or give shade from the scorching sun.
Grenfell.
I struggle down to Grenfell getting banged around in rough thermals and jolted up and down in gusts. This is not for wimps! Grenfell looks good and gives me a terrific thermal up to nearly 9000 feet.
I head north to Parkes, shifting my course to pass near Forbes in case the lift runs out. I make it past Parkes airfield – one I know well having flown many aerobatic competitions there in the past.
I face a headwind on my return to Forbes and the lift is weak, so I struggle for a while and contemplate a landing at Parkes. Then, thank goodness, a decent thermal gives me the height to get back to Forbes. A tough flight but a good experience. Dinner and three schooners in the pub. Tooheys Old!
