"Robert Perkins" wrote in message
...
|
| What we *did* get, right abeam the dome and crater of the mountain,
| was my very first strong mountain updraft. We gained 1000 feet in
| *very* short order, and it was astounding how good it felt to ride it.
|
| Of course, upon rounding the mountain we also caught a *down*draft,
| which made me glad I didn't try to control altitude during the
| unintended climb, that 1000 feet was gone just as fast as it came.
|
| I wonder, from anyone who knows the region: is that a characteristic
| of the area? I recall we had a southwesterly flow that day, with winds
| aloft from the south at 20 knots or so. Any way to predict that
| region?
|

If there is an updraft on one side of a mountain, there will usually be a
downdraft on the other side. Approaching the lee side of a mountain range
should be at an angle in order to allow you to turn away quickly to safety
if the downdraft is too strong. St. Helens sits pretty much by itself amid a
lot of lower mountains, so if you want to maintain altitude you should stay
further away from the mountain when you are on the lee side. I fly in kind
of a teardrop, with the point of the tear on the downwind side of the
mountain. That way I can turn away from the mountain to safety any time that
I encounter a strong downdraft.

See any herds of elk?