We're now on tour, away from our hang gliding base at Stanwell Tops, Australia.

Well....our European hang gliding/honeymoon is going great!

Below: Three days ago, at the main take-off area, Laragne-Chabre, FRANCE, for the upcoming 2009 Hang Gliding World Championships

BELOW: 80 kilometers later, at Monts du Chaval Blanc, very incredible.

While at Chavel du Blanc (above), I saw a few sailplanes pass-by on some mountains deeper to the east, and a paraglider pilot jelly-fishing along. I was glad to be in my hang glider today, as the lift was strong with a bit of turbulence.

Not long after, I hit some shade and sink and was on the deck (see pic below) in a small village tucked away in a canyon.  The village, Prads-Haute-Bléone, is place that I may never have visited otherwise.  I felt lucky to be experiencing this place after "dropping in".

Below:  My own backyard airstrip.  I just got my money's worth (again) from my drouge-chute.  

Leaving France and going back in time to a couple of weeks ago...

Ludesch Open, the Austrian Nationals:

We had one-half day of classic weather, before a storm came in.
I finished slow on the day, but had a great flight, and snapped some good pics (see below). The next day was a spot landing contest which I won and took $100 Euros. I hope the tax department isn't reading this (shouldn't flatter myself), as the money is long gone already. 

Below: 10,000 feet high at the Ludesch Open, Austria

After the Ludesch Open, Michi, Louise, Christian, Raymond, and I traveled to Laveno, Italy.

Michi spent some time at the Icaro Factory while Louise and I took the "lift" up the mountain.  It's an adventure riding the lift up with your glider.  You run (with your glider), jump on, and balance your glider on the rail. -actually, not too hard, but different!

Below: Louise and I riding the lift up at Laveno.

We've been having a blast. Our near-daily routine is to buy some fresh bread and salad and picnic somewhere new or scenic. We'll visit the odd cafe for a coffee or hot chocolate.
Overall, the Australian dollar doesn't' too well against the Euro, but we're stoked that there's cheap camping at all of the the hang gliding destinations so far. Also, Michi has been incredibly generous with sharing the use of his car.

We feel very fortunate to be missing the low-season in Australia and flying some world-class sites, here in Europe.

Our campsite, here at Laragne, France, has good wireless internet, and plenty of cherry trees, so we'll continue to publish the blog from HERE over the next 4 weeks.

Note:  Lachlan is still running the office and phone in Stanwell Park, Australia.  He be reached on the mobile, and everyone is also contactable via email.  Contact us.

Also, if interested, we're still shipping the sweet World Champs shirts... Buy online