Flight

The wind was gusting up the slope when we arrived on top at noon. Small and flat cu were continually forming out front but drifting southerly parallel to the ridge. Every now and then a nice size wispy-bit would form and draw overhead from the NE. Around 3pm, the wind up the slope died off in cycles until it eased to light. Maybe 8 of us (including Alison and Steve Newcombe) took off, and headed out to the foot of the spurs (the benefit of watching pilots over the last 2hrs) and found great climbs. Above the ridge there must have been 4 or 6 cores combining, including leeside thermals, and we were all circling over a masive area. Climbing with a slow but steady drift, the thermal took us to the inversion around 3200ft, where the gagle broke up under a blue sky. I followed what lift I could and headed for the downwind side of Ledbury~ a mass of brown roof-tops and tarmac, and found a good climb. Steve joined me, and we got to base around 3700ft, by this time it was cloud (there seemed to be a much colder and wetter layer of about 500ft under base). Alison's track brought her over quite late and couldn't connect below and glided off downwind. I drifted at base for a while. Steve went off on a more southerly glide and managed to stay under some wispy bits. I made a run to the next cloud, under which another pilot was climbing, and joined him at base. Again I dropped out of that 500ft, and went off on a final glide towards Ross-on-Wye under blue skys. It had been well worth the waiting on take-off for. I landed by a parish church, where a little old lady from nearby drove over to ask if I was OK and new where I had landed~ Bridstow. She must have had simillar visitations. Steve had landed nearby and a retrieve was already underway. Perfect.