Sunny Soaring Sessions in Santiago

After we got mugged on a viewpoint in Valparaiso we returned to Santiago. We just didn’t feel safe in Valpo any longer. Fortunately we could stay in a nice house in Santiago with the lovely Luana and Juan Carlos which we met in Pucon.

We did some sightseeing in the city centre but most of the time we slept long, chilled by the pool in the morning and in the afternoons we went flying at the “Black’s Park” flying site that is near the city. It was very easy for us to get there. Just take the subway and then a bus then walk 500 meters and you are at the landing site. The site is private and you need to ask Mauricio the owner before you fly there. He makes tandem flights and is there almost every day. Sometimes we could go the 200 meters up to launch with him in his car, other times we walked.

The flying there is mostly soaring with very strong winds. You really need good groundhandling skills and need to be comfortable with top landings. Once in the air we could go along the hills for some kilometers in both directions. Most of the time we flew until after sunset and could enjoy the view of the city’s lights glowing before we landed, when the wind was getting weaker.