Anybody flying this site? I was talking to one of my customers, he told me there a couple of guys that fly sailplanes there in the afternoon, Went to check it out. I started at River Blvd and Panorama and drove West. It looks like there is a face that could work for every wind direction from West to East. South winds would be out of the question. I was there in the early morning, very calm...was not going to throw anything, but just wait until my next trip. I will plan on being there in the afternoon when the winds kick up and will report back.

Kirk

Looks promising!!
T

What was kinda interesting was the there are multiple possible flying sites heading west for at least a mile.

Here are a few shots from Google Earth....

Kirk

I flew all along the ridge in the 70's the landings were hard due to the rotor.
With todays foam planes this would not be a problem.
We flew mostly at hang glider hill just west of hart park and I hear it is closed now, to bad as it was a great slope.
Woody

Thanks Woody,

It has turned into a nice park with grass between the road and the slope, looks like a walking/running trail/walkway along the length. I will make sure I bring some foam on the next trip down there...looks like two weeks from now. Will update this post then...

Kirk

Kirkgh:
Yep. flew there alot last fall/winter when the winds were NNW primarily. We call it the "Cemetary Bluffs". In your third pic, just to the Left of the "X" at River and Panorama, where the grass is very light yellow is where we flew mostly. I maidened my V-2 there. If the wind was due North we went a little ways further East and flew there. The landing zone is narrower between cliff and road but it's very doable especially with a foamy.

Now we fly mostly at "Hang Glider Hill" as Woody mentioned, just about two and a half to three miles East of the bluffs there by the cemetary above the same Kern River and overlooking the soccer fields and "C.A.L.M" (Calif. Living Museum"). It's just East of Hart park and West of lake Ming. It has a better slope shape and lets us do some DSing frequently. Also the LZ is way better. Yesterday I caught my 2.8M NYX F3F racing plane loaded down with 2/3 of total ballast.
Google earth calls it "Ant Hill". Look for the tallest knob along the bluffs 2 1/2 to 3 miles or so East of town that faces NNW It belongs to the City of Bakersfield and is technically off limits with "No Trespassing" signs is some spots. But that is to deterr the Motorcycles. It is O.K. for hikers, Mtn bikers, and the local Paraglider club, so we've kinda unofficially shirt-tailed onto the Paraglider club's obeiscence.
Let us know when you're comming down. We'd love to show you around.

Woody: neener, neener, neener. But really, do come back for a naustalgia flying day and be sure to let us know when you're comming.
Lotsa lift,
Marlan

Hey Marlan,

Thanks for the info...would love to catch up with you for the tour... the way things look right now, I should be heading down on Oct. 3rd or 4th...should know which day by the end of the week. Just enough time to get down and back so I can turn around and head for Fall Fest in Visalia. Will PM you with finalized date and my contact info.

Thanks Again,

Kirk

Kirk, I'll be "on call" at the hospital where I work, but I may be out at the hill some each day. John and Keith may be around to meet up with too.
I went to Fall Fest last year in Visalia. May go again.
I'll PM you my phone #.
Mar

Hey Marlan,

Looks like things have firmed up...will be there on Tuesday afternoon. I have two meetings one down on Panama Lane and the other at Greenlawn next to the bluffs. After that I can fly until dark if the winds are working. Will shoot you a call when I get to town.

Thanks....Kirk

Well I made it back down to Bakersfield and caught up with Marlan. We headed ou to "Ant Hill", the old "Hanglider Hill". A few of the other flyers met us up there. It was extremely calm when we arrived, however, it picked up just before dark, but still not enough for slope...had to bring out the DLG's. Got a few shots of Marlan's Encore.

Thanks to Marlan, John, Keith and Tim for showing me around. I will plan on stopping by whenever I get to town. Next time we will have some decent wind...Thanks again guys.

Kirk