[US: PA/VA] North Mountain

[Papa3]

Has anyone flown North Mountain (on the PA/VA border just SW of the
Potomac and downwind (on a NW day) from Sleepy Creek Mountain? Looks
pretty marginal from topo maps and Google Earth, but thought I'd ask.
The point at Frog Hollow would work very nicely for a task I have in
mind. Any of you MASA-chists or Ridge Soaring types been there, done
that, got the T-Shirt?

Thanks in advance,

Erik Mann
LS8-18 (P3)

[Lew Hartswick]

Papa3 wrote:
> Has anyone flown North Mountain (on the PA/VA border just SW of the
> Potomac and downwind (on a NW day) from Sleepy Creek Mountain? Looks
> pretty marginal from topo maps and Google Earth, but thought I'd ask.
> The point at Frog Hollow would work very nicely for a task I have in
> mind. Any of you MASA-chists or Ridge Soaring types been there, done
> that, got the T-Shirt?
>
> Thanks in advance,
>
> Erik Mann
> LS8-18 (P3)
>
Last time I checked a map, PA did not touch VA.
I think MD is inbetween. :-) I'll admit I can
just about hold my breath during the transit
of MD at one point. (that is in a car ) :-)
...lew...

[Papa3]

Lew Hartswick wrote:
> Papa3 wrote:
> > Has anyone flown North Mountain (on the PA/VA border just SW of the
> > Potomac and downwind (on a NW day) from Sleepy Creek Mountain? Looks
> > pretty marginal from topo maps and Google Earth, but thought I'd ask.
> > The point at Frog Hollow would work very nicely for a task I have in
> > mind. Any of you MASA-chists or Ridge Soaring types been there, done
> > that, got the T-Shirt?
> >
> > Thanks in advance,
> >
> > Erik Mann
> > LS8-18 (P3)
> >
> Last time I checked a map, PA did not touch VA.
> I think MD is inbetween. :-) I'll admit I can
> just about hold my breath during the transit
> of MD at one point. (that is in a car ) :-)
> ...lew...

Boy is my face red... Never really paid much attention to the fact tha
PA/MD/VA/WV all come together in that one little part of the world.
So, for those of you (and there were several) who pointed out my error,
let me clarify: Frog Hollow (or the town of Green Spring, VA) is right
on the border of VA/WV slightly south and east of the "neck" in MD
where it borders WV and PA. The mountain in question would be
reached by flying either to the end of the Tuscarora (at the Potomac)
and dropping SE or to Bear Pond Mountain (also at the Potomac) and
dropping S. To put it another way, it's the first ridge west of
Martinsburg, WV.

Anyway, there's no great reason for most people to fly it, as it
doesn't really lead anywhere and it's not really in the contest area
for Mifflin or MASA. Just hoping someone has been down there, maybe
making a transition from the Front Royal area into ridge country...

P3

[user]

Eric,

Your email filter has a short memory, so if you don't get my last email,
here's the continuation of the discussion.

There's always a secret. The wave at Thompsontown comes down pretty low.
I've made very easy transitions there. Problem is, when you make the death
dive from the Mantango, you're payback is the 70 or so miles on the ridge
down to Lockings (end of the McC ridge). So most pilots don't stop to
explore. There's an entry at Roxbury as well, where the valley widens out
behind Tuscarora, but this is less certain and requires a downwind dash on
faith that you'll get into the wave on the next downwind bar. Unfortunately,
the primary falls apart here, so it's tough to go straight into wave on the
Tuscarora at this point. It's not a big time risk. You can run the back
ridge with only a few minutes lost at McC to transition back upwind. But
you'll have lost the 5 or 10 minutes for your searching climb. If wave is
evident, it could make your trip to Martinsburg and back to Lockings much,
much quicker, and far easier on the nervous system. Once you're into the
wave, you'll see the bars in the Hagerstown valley. These are much easier to
navigate than the upwind bars, which tend to get confused.

If you have dependable lift and cloud bases above 4000 msl, you can probably
make the tp and back, but I caution you about the Potomac valley. Coming
back against a NW wind and low, you could easily find your flight ending
there.

About going east...

The three bars in the Hagerstown Valley are consistent. I can typically get
from bar to bar upwind with a loss of no more than 1500 feet. If you were to
exit the McC ridge at Lockings and go straight downwind to High Rock, you
have a reasonable (but far from perfect) ridge running south. If you could
use Mason Dixon or Greenbriar Lake, those would be even better. Thermal
transitions back to Lockings are easier from High Rock. We do this
regularly. One can typically find at least 3 good upwind streets between
High Rock and Five Lakes. The wave is also accessible from High Rock if
you're mixing media.

Now that I know what you're after, I'll explore the next time I have a
chance. Chances are you'll be waiting 'til spring, but hopefully I've given
you something to think about if the day comes sooner.

OC

"Papa3" > wrote in message
ps.com...
> Has anyone flown North Mountain (on the PA/VA border just SW of the
> Potomac and downwind (on a NW day) from Sleepy Creek Mountain? Looks
> pretty marginal from topo maps and Google Earth, but thought I'd ask.
> The point at Frog Hollow would work very nicely for a task I have in
> mind. Any of you MASA-chists or Ridge Soaring types been there, done
> that, got the T-Shirt?
>
> Thanks in advance,
>
> Erik Mann
> LS8-18 (P3)
>