Krygyzstan Part 3.2 - Krygyz Ata

18/07/18

Feeling better but still recovering, I was up at 6.30 to beat the sun but my new pal from up the road turned up as I was packing away with a thermos of chai. I think he just wanted to look at more photos so I duly let him while i sorted my stuff. I started a slow but steady ascent of the pass, making good time until I was called over for more chai and the usual spread of bread, cream and kafir. I tried to explain my stomach issues before the old guy spread the bread but he wasn't having it. A very cheery family - it was a nice stop.

No more distractions after that and I reached the top of the pass at 3200m by midday, definitely feeling the lack of oxygen. The day was on though. Nice cu's were popping off from the bigger mountains to the north and I watched a few gaggles of vultures climb out just over the pass. There was a bit of a breeze from the west which made it slightly tricky given I wanted to go over the east side, and the wind was swirling around the small summit with a few dusties around (which were heard more than seen!)

Top of the pass, looking back west

The view to the east

There was a nice grassy patch on the north side however which, lower down, had the wind on and gave me a nice run out to a sunny ridge over the pass. It all came together and with a clean launch I soon found myself in a good climb all the way to base around 4200m. Stunning views all round, with the range of 4000+ peaks to the north and a glimpse of the bigger 5000+ ranges behind. Serious stuff!

It'd taken me a while to work out which valley I needed to head down with a way out to Osh (not the more tempting one that headed south instead!) but I found myself following the south side of the next valley anyway which had the bigger, more interesting mountains. I tentatively explored some of the side valleys looking for lift and had to beat a retreat more than once! So much to learn about flying in big mountains. There are some fantastic twisted stratas in the rock and splitting the two valleys, some spectacular deep rusty red mountains streaked with yellows and orange - quite similar to places in the Huayhash (Peru).

Crossing into the next valley

I decided to go and explore the north side of the valley as that had always been my original plan so without too much thought just went on a long glide to cross. It was pretty sinky but I had lots of height and there were a few clouds popping off some small ridges leading into the middle of the valley. I almost ignored them and kept going for the main face, but a few vultures tempted me over. I wasn't expecting what hit me though: WHAM! I shot up in a super strong thermal, peaking at 11 or 12 m/s as I hung on, the glider pitching and surging above me, all the way up to 4700m. Very nice! Id already reached my target goal of the day but with the comfort of height and the sky looking good, I tried to work out which valleys led where for a more ambitious route. It wasn't any near as obvious however and the valleys were much narrower and with out many escape options. Still, I thought I'd go and investigate and cruised along to a big rocky face on the far side of the main north-south rift, basking in sunshine (but with no clouds above it - a clue perhaps?), messing around with photos and videos on the glide.

A foolish, naive move... I did not think about the valley breeze! Or rather, just thought I had plenty of height to not worry about it.

Wrong.

I found myself caught in the midst of it, and it was strong! Persevering for too long to reach the far side, I turned tail and ran with the wind back to a side valley to try and escape. I'd lost a lot of height and although there were thermals they were wind blown and scrappy. Things got a bit spicy for the next wee while (with one huge surge and pitch back which got my pulse racing) as I tried to gain enough height to escape the wind. I got out the initial narrow valley I was getting blown down (which didn't have too many landing options) and into the valley I'd come down earlier. By this point I was looking for a spot to land, wanting to stay high so as to avoid the valley wind and hopefully have a fly down in the morning. I crossed back to the north side, under some promising looking clouds but they didn't offer much. On the far side I got a bit of a surprise; there was a strong wind coming down the valley! It was pretty rough and sinky but fortunately there were some large grassy slopes to aim for and I  came down without much headway below a cluster of shacks and animals out for pasture.

[Explanation? All I can think of is that the valley is shaped like a large bowl with steep sides all around. The wind coming up the valley with the main valley flow has nowhere to go and given the round shape at the end must just follow the land and get sent back down the other side, in a large eddy. That would explain the convergence clouds I was looking at.]

Which way?!

Not that way

I landed on the left (north) side of this valley

A cluster of excited kids arrived for the show and I had to hike back up the hill for the obligatory chai. I wanted a little solitude for camping so headed down the hill a bit, with a a spot in mind I'd eyed from above. I hadn't appreciated the real estate value of flat ground however and ended up camping out on the pasture in front of another shack. The 2 women present seemed to enjoy watching me put my tent up. I have a new found appreciation of a cows relentless feeding regime and how noisy their breathing is while they simultaneously bite and chew.

The character of this valley is quite different to the one I started in. More agriculture on the valley floor and proper houses... So surely there'll be "machinas" to get me back to Osh!

19/07/18

My very limited goal of the day was to get back to Osh and I hiked up to find a takeoff with only an extended glide down to the valley floor in mind. With that in mind, I only put my jacket on over my tshirt and my light gloves. With nice cycles already coming up the slope at 10.30 though I should have known better!

There were lots of early thermals around and I steadily gained height, working the lift with the numerous vultures cruising about. It didn't take long before I was up above the main ridge and on my way to 5000m. I belatedly realised the day was on and I was not dressed for the occasion! Still, even with my light attire it wasn't unbearable. With so much height I was only a long glide away from the direct route all the way back to Nookat.

Strong inversion over the flats to the north

With a bit of thought I could have gone XC but I was more than happy cruising around and enjoying the views. My hands were cold though so I targeted a high top landing spot. The downside of my chosen grassy area was the crag in front of it and sure enough there were plenty of thermals popping off in front. Either too high or too low it took me 4 or 5 attempts before I eventually came in low, but rode a thermal up to clear the top then had a slightly dodgy landing in some swirly air as I tried to escape the thermal. All good practice!

Adorned with some more appropriate clothing, I was soon back at 5k and crossed over the valley for a look. Some ominous clouds were starting to build though (around 1pm?) so I thought it time to head for town. Back on the other side, it got a bit rough for a while as I headed west along the ridge, trying to gain height for my glide out of there. The picture in the mountains changed rapidly, from blue skies and all right looking cu's to overdevelopment and rain within an hour, probably less. I'm glad I got out when I did! I had a loooong glide out all the way to Nookat and arrived with tons of height, needing to wash off a good 1000m to get down.

Time to leave

A substantial and excited landing party soon gathered and I was invited for some food, which thankfully was just put on for me in a casual manner and didn't involve the full spread. I suspect I was being good naturededly mocked by one particularly vociferous woman, and from what I could guess they seemed to be offering the children for sale for my dollar. Who knows, it was amusing even if I was the joke! A fun game of football followed that and then it was back to Osh for my rendezvous with Seb.

My flights:

Top landing to put more clothes on!