Soaring with Hawks

[Michael]

Today I had a nice 2 hour glider flight. Winds were weak but perfectly aligned for flying along our local mountain ridge and in thermals. Basically when the wind blows perpendicular to the line of the Kittattiny (Apalchian) mountain range, the mountains bend the wind upward creating an area of rising air through which a sailplane can be flown without an engine and without losing altitude.

I had flown past many soaring birds of prey. Besides the common/uninteresting turkey vultures, I also flew with other less common birds. One that particularly stood out was an enormous Red Tailed Hawk. I didn't realize why they call them a red tailed hawk till today. Usually I've seen them in a tree or from the ground and their tail is difficult to see. However, today I flew over one and from the top you can definitely see the redness of the tail when it is fanned out.

Also flew past a trio of Black Vultures playing with each other mid flight. It's kind of amazing being able to fly up from behind a bird, catch up, and pass it but at a slow enough speed to be able to experience the chase. On another pass of the ridge the red tailed hawk seemed to be coming straight for my glider with legs raised and talons open. I made a slight evasive turn, not fearful of being attacked but rather making a large dent in one of my wings.

All in all an excellent day of soaring. Sorry, no pictures/video.

[Nathaniel]

Sounds fun, but I would much rather be under the birds, better yet under the water

[lainmai]

Gliding must be so much fun! My father was a pilot (can't fly now due to health issues, can't renew his license) and I went up with him a few times but alas, I get VERY sick in planes, much more so the smaller they are sadly so not too much enjoyment out of that feeling!

The hawk really must of been something to see!

[bmsweb]

On another pass of the ridge the red tailed hawk seemed to be coming straight for my glider with legs raised and talons open.

I've had a eagle take out my RC glider, snapped the wing in half! I guess he didn't like sharing a thermal with a Red Sailplane

[HyperD]

That sounds like a great thing to do... Although some pictures would have been nice for the us unlucky ones who wont get that opportunity