On my ABC (Argentina, Brazil, Chile) trip in 1991 – my first visit to Argentina or Brazil – I stopped with my wife Catherine in Mendoza, Argentina. This city at the edge of the western Pampas, at the foot of the Andes, and thanks to irrigation and fertile soil is the heart of the countries wine-growing district. Naturally, we did sample the local product, but also I wanted to sample the local flying conditions by making my way to the top of the hill overlooking the town.
On recommendation of a local hang glider pilot that I had met years earlier in Venezuela, Tato Vargas, I went to a local motorcycle shop and hired the owner Coco Ruiz to take me up the hill on his motorbike, with my paraglider on my back. Good thing we used a dirt-bike, and not a car, because the route up was fairly rough. But he did get me to the summit where there was a wind streamer showing me a light but gusty uphill breeze. Trying to launch in the lulls, I aborted my first two attempts, but got away on the third try around 14:30 after untangling lines that got caught in bushes.
Being on my own as a pilot, and never having flown near the Andes, I was vigilant in assessing possible risks. I flew along the ridge, not finding much left as I headed off the north end of it towards a dry river bed where I planned to land. I then found a bit of an updraft which I started to circle in, but soon got scared off by a bit of turbulence. Not only that, but I did not know what kind of atmospheric dragons lurked in these mountains, and I didn’t want to find out. So I left that area and soon landed down below, where there was quite a strong wind blowing up toward the mountain. But I was not disappointed, as it was mission accomplished: my very first flight in Argentina! 13.5 minutes for the logbook. That may not seem like much of an accomplishment, but at the time I only had One full year of flying experience with paragliders, and was still leery of them. I went on to fly them for another 20 years.
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