Flyfunston

Hi,
I am an active and current east coast H3 (flying Sport2 155) that is planning on driving to California for a “flying vacation” the month of June. Arriving in southern California around June 7th , driving north through the state and then heading back east around June 30th . I will be pulling a pop up camper with my Subaru Outback.

I am hoping some of you can help point me in the right direction and would love to fly with you all. Right now the tentative plans are to arrive at Crestline/Marshall on June 7th/8th and hangout/fly there for 4-5 days. After that head north and visit some other sites, eventually maybe making it up to Lakeview, OR and then driving back home. Some sites that are on my radar are:

Crestline/Marshall
Dunlap?
Big Sur/Marina
McClure
Funston
Indian Valley
Hat Creek
Lakeview

Are there sites I am missing that I should not be, or sites that probably won’t be flyable that time of year ?(I hear the coastal sites like Big Sur/Funston may have marine fog issues??). I am hoping to try and find a balance of flying several of your beautiful sites without spending the whole trip driving.

I was also hoping to get some camping/rv site info. Is there anywhere to set the pop up camper up near the Ft. Funston site??? Also any other camping/RV info that you think might be helpful.

I look forward to any info/advice you guys might have. Really looking forward to meeting some of you and checking out your beautiful sites. Thanks in advance for your help. I am also going to post this on the Sonoma Wings and the Crestline/Marshall forums and try to make some contacts there. Any place else you think I should post for the more northern sites like Indian Valley and Hat Creek?

Thanks,
Jon

Hi Jon,

For more info about Hat Creek Rim go to the website at http://www.hatcreek.info Most questions about the site are answered there. You'll find maps, site guide, best time to fly, fuel locations, weather, camping options - some free, upcoming gatherings, etc., etc. If you need more info follow the link at the bottom of the page to club contacts, we'd be glad to help. You'll find pilots there most weekends throughout the summer.

sailin wrote:I am an active and current east coast H3 (flying Sport2 155) that is planning on driving to California for a “flying vacation” the month of June. Arriving in southern California around June 7th ... Are there sites I am missing that I should not be, or sites that probably won’t be flyable that time of year ?

Hi Jon,

I'm from San Diego, but I have really enjoyed the flying (and the club) at Funston. I hope you will too.

Marina, Big Sur, and Lakeview are also excellent. You may especially like Crestline because they have excellent on-site camping arrangements.

You might also add Sylmar and possibly Torrey Pines to the list. It turns out that the Torrey Hawks Hang Gliding Club has a monthly club meeting / fly-in on the Second Sunday of every month with free food and soda. In June, that will be Sunday the 9th. Torrey is an H4 site, but they sometimes allow H3 pilots with sufficient air time to fly. You might also want to check the wind forecast if you're driving out of your way, but it is one of the west coast's hang gliding landmarks.

The Torrey Hawks forum is at http://ushawks.org/forum/viewforum.php.html?f=4, and you're welcome to post there as well.

I have to say that I'm jealous of your trip. It sounds epic, and I'm sure it will generate a lifetime of memories. Best wishes, and fly safely.

Bob Kuczewski

Thank you guys for the info. I will check out the Torrey Pines site.....I have definitely heard of it and would love to see it.

Also going to get connected on the Hat Creek site that was posted. Thanks for the link . Look forward to maybe flying with you guys in another month and some change. Can't wait for this road trip!!!


Jon

Hi Jon

The hatcreek.info site does contain a lot of pertinent and valuable information, but if you want to hook up with locals/regulars/frequent fliers at Hat Creek Rim you need to contact them at

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Cloud_Street_Gang
and
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hatcreekrimpilots

There are quite a few of us that fly midweek when the weather permits. Hope to see you in June.

Roger Jackson

Dont forget to stop at Point of the Mountain in Utah.

Thank you! I just signed up for the Cloud Street Gang yahoo list and will do the same for the Hat Creek yahoo list. I am very happy to hear that you guys have some midweek flyers.....here at home that can be an issue sometimes. Really looking forward to this trip and meeting some of you guys.

I may try to hit Point of the Mountain on the way home if I have time but I think I am probably going to have a hard time leaving the California sites as it is

thanks and see you in June,
Jon

Hi all,

Is there any RV sites with electric, water, and showers that are in a close proximity to the Ft. Funston flying area? I will be bringing my pop up camper. Any info would be appreciated.

thanks,
Jon

sailin wrote:Hi all,

Is there any RV sites with electric, water, and showers that are in a close proximity to the Ft. Funston flying area? I will be bringing my pop up camper. Any info would be appreciated.

thanks,
Jon

http://blog.elmonterv.com/index.php.html/2011/11/ten-outstanding-rv-campgrounds-near-san-francisco/

Hard to bandito with a pop up camper, so yeah, you'll need to find a camping area.

There are a few KOA's, too, that you could Google...

Good luck!

CRV

Thank you for the link. Will check some of those out. Traffic wise, is it better to be coming and going from the north of Funston or from the east? Or does it matter?

thanks,
Jon