VERBIER Switzerland

Switzerland was a bit a milestone in my flying abilities. It was the first time that I had been in a flying environment without an instructor present. I read all the information that I could find about the meteorology of mountains and read Dennis Trots articles in Skywings. All I needed was to go and fly in the big mountains to put all the theory to the test.

My wife Caroline and I went by car to Verbier. A ski resort which has two resident famous fliers; Philipe Bernard and Claude Amman, better known as SuperMax and his Instructor.

It took us 8 hours to drive to Verbier from Calais. We went mostly on the toll roads for speed. It cost more but I wanted to get there before it got dark. We actually went on June 21, so being midsummer's day we had a lot of time, finally arriving well ahead of schedule at 16:30 hrs.

We were staying in a chalet which would actually sleep 9. We had the luxury of a live-in housekeeper who got us breakfast, lunch and evening meal. Wine was included with the 3 course meal and all food supplied was inclusive of the accommodation. We booked it through a company who advertised in Skywings, "Activities A La Carte". It was £263 each for 7 nights. We found Switzerland very expensive to eat out, probably a reflection of the exchange rate at the time and their good standard of living. If you do go make sure you buy beer on the boat like we did. Having said that, I didn't drink that much because I was constantly tired. Probably due to being at 5000 feet or above most of the time.

From about 100 miles from the border we were driving in torrential rain, I've never seen the likes of it. By the time we got to Verbier the rain had turned to sleet and the mountains were all covered with cloud. The next day it was just misty everywhere and I was not hopeful of very good holiday. I got a newspaper which had a synoptic chart in it and that told the whole story. A warm front from the south had collided with a cold front from the north right over Switzerland. I kept looking at my watch hoping to see the pressure increasing and it was but ever so slowly.

I went down to see Claude Amman and he gave me a pretty good map of the valley. It showed all the takeoffs and landing places, the whereabouts of rotor, powerlines and that sort of thing. Basically, it was a case of try and land in the designated areas but if you do sink out then just make sure you don't land in a field of uncut grass. The only crop is grass and the Swiss bale lots of it for the cattle in the winter.

Next day was clearer at our level (5000 feet) but still a lot of mist on the mountain. We decided to go snowboarding instead. 2 days after midsummer's day and we were learning to snowboard. This is a lot of fun and is easier than skiing. At 9500 feet the sun was out and we were exhausted. The ski runs were closed at 13:00 and so we came back down the mountain. On the way down the mist was clearing so I got my kit and went back up to Les Ruinettes to have my first fly. After 12:30 paraglider pilots can buy a ticket for the cable cars that will allow them to go up as many times as they want. It cost about £12. Pricey but a long walk without it and good value if all you do is top to bottoms.

I set my self up and sat patiently for a break in the oragraphic cloud. Every now and then I could see the village of Le Chable right down in the valley. Le Chable is 2000 feet lower than Verbier and the takeoff at Les Ruinettes is 2000 feet above Verbier. So there is a 4000 foot top to bottom if I failed to find any lift. There was no cloud out in the valley and so as long as I could launch clear of cloud and maintain sight of the surface there would be no problems. I sat and watched for about 30 minutes and then a break in the cloud came. I then promptly botched the alpine launch and got my canopy cleanly over a 10 foot high post. Luck would have it that the lousy takeoff was witnessed by a couple of Japanese tandem pilots and they helped me get the canopy back over the post. Its the first time I've had a Japanese girl standing on me! I thanked them in my best Japanese, (a leftover from my karate training) and they replied "you're welcome" in English.

I thought about the crap take off and realised that at this altitude perhaps a faster and more committed run would help. I set up again further up the hill and the tandem pilots joined me, then we all sat for an hour waiting for another gap in the clouds. One came along and the tandem launched first. I got off fine the second time and we both helped each other to find the weak lift. This flight only lasted 20 minutes. I flew up the valley and landed at one of the official landing sites at Champsec. The tandem landed nearer to Le Chable, where exactly I don't know. The official landing site down there is by a small white church. I packed up and hitched a ride back to the cable car in Le Chable. The locals are quite used to pilots needing a lift and I got one every time I landed at Champsec. The landing by the church nearer to Le Chable is only a 10 minute walk from the cable car lift. The next flight after a 20 minute ride up the mountain lasted 30 minutes. The sun was obscured by cloud and there was only dynamic lift available. I again landed at Champsec. 8k away.

Next day I went up the mountain early in the morning. First flight was only 15 minutes. It was all sink. I landed by the church. Second flight, the wind had picked up sufficient for a reverse launch. I flew to Les Planches 5k away. There were small thermals but not particularly good. Third flight was another 15 minute one, I landed in the field used by Claude Amman's school, which is in Verbier and so I just walked back to the chalet. Not a good day at all but at least I flew.

Next day was a little better, I managed one and a half hours airtime and 1000 feet height gain. The last flight was a 5 minute one, I took off and headed straight for the schools field as it looked like rain was imminent. It was a little too imminent, I got absolutely drenched. I pulled big ears to get down quickly and landed. A small lake appeared on my canopy whilst I was trying to fold it up. I had to dry it out on the lawn later that day.

The weather gradually improved day by day and the cloud base went up. I decided to try and cross the valley and then get back again. I had a good look at the map and the plan was to fly up the valley towards the dam and cross it at the narrow end, then fly back down the valley on the other side and cross again at the wider part. If I don't get across, the landing field would be below me. I took off again at Les Ruinettes and lost 500 feet on getting the 4.5k up the valley. I couldn't quite see the dam but didn't go any closer to it as the valley narrows right down and there were massive power lines taking up most of the room on the valley floor. I decided to cross and due to the valley wind I had to put on the speed bar and set my trimmers to fast. I lost 2000 feet in the crossing but managed to get it all back by scratching around on the edge of a wooded area. The thermals got stronger, as expected, the further up the side of the mountain I went. Unfortunately the side I was thermalling on sloped away from my intended direction. The thermals started getting rough and so I headed off down the valley. I was now in sink in the shadow of the next mountain so I had to get round it. More sink followed and I started to get very low. I turned right and headed out into the valley away from the slope of the mountains. I picked up a few little thermals and got over the landing field. Between me and the original mountain I left from was the mega power lines and it was going to be touch and go as to whether I would make it over them. As I could not guarantee the possibility of sink I could not commit myself. The flight ended in the landing field by the church,14k in total.

The next day the weather was getting much better. I took of and immediately went 2150 feet above takeoff. I had to leave the thermal due to a cloud sitting at the top of it. I used this height to go to Croix de Coeur, which makes up part of the bowl that Verbier is located in. The thermals were 8-10 ups and very rough, the roughest air I had ever been in. Having spent 1 hour at +1000 feet above takeoff I was very cold and so had to land.

Next day I video recorded the flight from Les Ruinettes to Le Chable. I had a few flights that were quite difficult to stay up. The last flight of the day the wind was picking up more than it had been. I got to the top of the cable car lift and found some pilots all set up ready launch slightly further down the hill from where I had been launching from. I decided to join them, that way I wouldn't be launching over the top of them. I checked the wind speed and it was doing about 11mph. Perfect for reverse launching. I got my kit out and began to set up, just as the other pilots started to pack up. I noticed that they were already to go but set up for alpine launches. The wind speed wasn't low enough for this type of launch and so I guess they didn't know the reverse technique. I launched anyway and flew down to the school landing site as it was gone 17:00hrs and the lift had now stopped running. I then only had a 10 minute walk back to the chalet.

The last day in Verbier was quite eventful. I met two other pilots going up the mountain and they were locals. I decided to tag along with them since they would know the mountain and the best takeoffs and thermal trigger areas. We walked slightly higher up the mountain after getting out of the lift and set up on a grassy outcrop very close to a small drag ski lift. The two locals stood around talking in a language that I didn't understand and looking concerned. Perhaps they knew something I didn't so I checked the wind speed with my skywatch. It was high enough for a reverse launch and so I got set up ready to go. I was clipped in and built a wall to sort the lines out and to test the wind . The two locals were still faffing around and so I waited for a slight pick up in the wind and launched. I received a round of applause and was convinced that here was another two pilots who can't reverse launch. I had gone out about 20m when I found the thermal. I took it to 1300 feet ato. I flew up the valley and finally got to see the dam. I went all the way up the valley above the snowline which was now about 9000 feet up, a far cry from when we first arrived. On the way back down the valley towards where quite a few gliders were now circling, I had a massive collapse. I was full on the speed bar and had the risers in the fast position. As I went over a quite sharp ridge at right angles to the prevailing wind there was a loud bang as the entire right side of my wing was turned into the proverbial bag of washing. I immediately got off the speed bar and control handled left to maintain course so as not to get turned into the mountain. One good pump with the right control handle and the wing was complete again. I was impressed with the lack of turn towards the collapsed side and the speed and ease with which it all came out. The literature said the Samba was a stable wing and I now believed it. I got back on the speed bar and made it back to the takeoff area having lost 1000 feet from the launch area. I slowly worked the thermals and eventually regained my height to +1820. So that was almost the magic 3000 foot height gain required for one of the tasks for the silver FAI badge. I presume it would not have counted though since I couldn't have proved it without a barograph.

I spent quite a while flying round the mountains that form the bowl that Verbier is in. I was in a group of gliders all looking for the same lift when there was this very loud whoosh noise. I looked up and was surprised to find a sailplane hacking past us all, so close that we felt the wash from it. I looked around to see if any others were coming and by the time I looked back the original one was gone. It quite put the frighteners on me. By this time I was getting cold again and so I flew out and headed for the school landing field. I managed to talk to my wife over the radio who was at the chalet at the time and told her I was heading off in the schools direction. She got the cam -corder out and took a video of me in the distance doing wingovers. I think the feeling in the stomach when you drop is great.

All in all I managed 8.5 hrs and learned a lot. I recommend the place as somewhere to have good flying but the cost of living/enjoying yourself is high. One last note, the use of radio's is prohibited and if the police catch you they will confiscate your equipment and give you a hefty fine. Everyone seems to use them though and I found no interference on 143.75mhz.

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