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Terry & Maggie prepare T99
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Orages
After yesterday's excitement the forecast
today was for storms over many parts of the Alps and we were all warned to
pay close attention to the build up of any congestus that might block our
route home.
The forecast maximum temperature was 34
Celsius, which is hot enough for most English people. Terry was visibly
melting.
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It was Andy's last day of flying before
returning to England and he joined Ariane and John in a flight to the
Ecrins. High tows to Trainon avoided the need to work hard low down in the
heat, and all three were soon at a more comfortable 8000ft under cumulus.
Today's route was a fairly standard one from Blayeul onto la Blanche,
Dormillouse, Morgon, Guillaume, tête de Vautisse and on to the tête
d'Amont and the glacier blanc. Cloudbase was just above the Barre, a rare
occurrence at this time of year and it was possible to fly right around
the peak.
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The Barre des Ecrins
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Storms to the north and the south prompted
a decision to escape the Ecrins for quieter pastures. A cloudbase of
13,000ft made the trip through the pas de la Cavale (~9000ft) very
stress-free. The glide continued to the north of the pic de Bure and on to
Obiou, where Andy turned for home. After topping up, a long glide led John
and Ariane to
Mont Glandasse, overlooking the town of Die. From there conditions were a
little tricky but all were soon back in the Aspres valley again. John
continued his flight to Aups, south of the Lac Ste Croix (where cloudbase
over the flatlands was still 8000ft) and returned to base via the Vaumuse.
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The storms begin...
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Glandasse, in the Vercors
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Evening at the Lac Ste Croix
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