Bird’s eye view of God’s Own Country …..

Dilip Kotecha

An invitation from Gopa and Vinyl for a paragliding festival in God’s own country got my imagination going. Thoughts of Jirisan mountain region and the thickly forested Korean countryside where we flew in the last Asian championships reminded me about those precise landings in rare riverside beaches or narrow roads. Yet the possibility of flying in a new site was challenging and offered me a break after a mundane period of six months of no competitions nor any cross country flights worth mentioning.After two weeks of frequent phone calls and follow-ups we were able to organize a group of 16 pilots to leave on the 4th April and return on 9th April. On the 2nd evening after the flying at Kamshet DC broke the bad news that Gopal was in Vagamon and no flying was happening since 5 days, only clouds and rain. The news had the potential of sabotaging our trip but some checking of weather prediction sites and a report from the Indian army weatherman revealed a not so bad weather prediction for the week. With the thoughts of dark clouds and raging thunderstorms weighing heavily on my mind I left on the journey. But the group of pilots was a wonderful mix and the best recipe for laughter and fun. A short Mumbai Pune flight and four long hours later we ere at Vagamon.