Potential new site west of Hancock

[Richard Hays]

An old MHGA member and pilot ( Jim McKinny ) stopped into my insurance agency the other day. He had some pictures of an overlook that he came across while doing the 4x4 thing in the mountains. The pictures looked pretty damn good. It was right on a rual mountain road, an area to setup and an LZ out in front. Ridge appears to be about 500' A little "trimming" of sapplings and minor brush would be needed but nothing major. Jim said turn-around time was short. Looks like a Bills Hill kinda place without the long glide out to the LZ.

The notes I took on how to get there are kinda sketchy but...for someone adventerous....here goes. Maybe you can google it or something.

Overlook name: Log Roll
Approx. Location: West of Hancock, Md.
Location: Green Ridge Rd. / Kirk Road Off of 15 mile Creek Road. Make left onto Green Ridge Road?

I know the directions suck but probably do-able on a Sunday drive kinda day when nothing else is happening. Jim said he spoke with somebody in the LZ ( cattle pasture ) but they weren't 100% receptive to the idea. But...maybe with the right PR guy going up there with some club info in hand ( insurance stuff, etc. ) they might be more receptive?

Rich Hays
MHGA

[hang_pilot]

Looks purty.

Put this in google maps:
Green Ridge Rd SE & Kirk Rd
MD 21555

Happy Friday,
Daniel

[davidtheamazing1]

2.5 hrs away from my house... looks like it could be another W-NW facing ridge? Anyone know how to find out who owns the launch?

[hang_pilot]

Looking online, it might be the State of MD Department of Natural Resources:
http://sdatcert3.resiusa.org/rp_rewrite ... =02+016508

...or ask around.

~Daniel

[theflyingdude]

This potential flying site is pretty much in my backyard. I've flown over it a handful of times going OTB from the Cumberland sites and I've landed in a field very near the proposed LZ on one short x-c of about 12 miles from High Point. The main reason we (the Mountaineer HGA) haven't tried to do anything to develop this site is b/c it faces westerly and is only 500'. We already have three westerly-facing sites just a short distance upwind (Zirks, High Point, and Fairgrounds) that are significantly higher and way more convenient. If this little ridge faced a different direction (NE/SW or N/S), we would have tried to gain access to it a long time ago. I would suggest that if you're willing to go that far to fly a 500' west-facing ridge, you might as well drive the same length of time and fly the Cumberland sites, instead.

JR

[brianvh]

Good point JR. The cumberland sites are extremely well maintained and no further than driving to Jack's or Daniel's, depending on where you are coming from. They provide a nice counterpoint to the more local sites, and I could never understand why they are completely off so many people's radar screens. At least give'em a try during the fair.

[bustedwing2]

They're off my radar screen because Pulpit,Bills.and High Rock are all so close.Landing in a parking lot with auto traffic is also not in my agenda.Maybe after retirement with time on my hands I'll get out that way. RichB

[Dan T]

I think High Point may well be the most interesting technical XC site we have within 3 hours of DC. If you are an XC pilot and you haven't tried it, you don't know what you are missing. Zirks, which is a very short drive away has a landing field right out front that makes the Woodstock LZ look like a postage stamp. On any soarable day you can reach the Zirks LZ from the High Point launch.

Flying any of those sites requires some coordination. If you plan to go contact JR first and bring a 4wd if you can and ideally a driver. He will give you details.

Who will be the next to fly from Highpoint to the Woodstock LZ or the first to fly to Blue Sky? Bun, I think you name is on this one!

Dan T,
almost out of Baghdad

[lplehmann]

I too would like to encourage pilots to fly the excellent Cumberland sites.

While I understand that the sites are bit far for pilots from the DC area, they offer useful options that merit consideration. On light NW days High Point is an alternative to the Pulpit where right crosses don't work well. The High Point ridge has multiple faces which provide much more flexibility than does an essentially straight ridge like the Pulpit (or Woodstock). Its launch (and that of nearby Zirks) is far less tricky and demanding of wire assists than the Pulpit. The over the back potential is, while potentially complicated for some retrieves, exceptionally good, with many 100+ milers including Tony Smolder's legendary 157 miler. Unlike the Pulpit where pilots essentially fly one xc route, the Cumberland sites seem to permit a far wider range of route choices. Bill Bennett once flew to the Pulpit (070 degrees), and last spring Eric Shiever flew to New Market, 175 degrees from launch. These are extremes to be sure, but they are indications of the rewards open to creative xc pilots flying from Cumberland. Furthermore, one can use the ridge(s) to go places. The primary ridge (Knobly Mountain) has been flown over 25 miles to the south, while pilots have twice hopped forward to the next ridge (Wills Mt.) and flown north 35 miles to Bedford, PA.

Finally, to address concerns about the infamous Fairgrounds lz. I will concede it is not my Regional favorite, however it is far from the worst. Unlike, for example, the Pulpit's rolling, sloping lz, the Fairgrounds is flat, and plenty large. The fear of dodging cars is, for the most part, an absurd exaggeration. Only rarely, during specific events, is it a factor. The lz's principal concern on light days is that it can be switchy, while on very strong days it's turbulent. However, if it's strong one simply goes and lands elsewhere, at either the gigantic Zirks or Bartons lzs. I realize that a number of years ago an inexperienced CHGPA pilot slammed into the lz. However, from what I read at the time on this server, it was simply a case of an inexperienced pilot botching a landing at a new lz. It is simply not that difficult of an lz for a pilot possessing H3 landing skills.

[XCanytime]

Pete,
Thanks for the background on the Cumberland sites. I have only flown once (Zirks in July 1994) locally. I intend to change that this spring. Is High Point south of the Fairgrounds launch?

Bacil

[RedBaron]

I want to fly there, too. Please keep me in the loop whenever you're heading that way. Thanks.

[lplehmann]

Bacil,
The High Point launch is located about 1.25 miles south of the Fairgrounds launch, at the highest point on the ridge. If you go to Google Earth and type in Seymour, MD launch is located almost due east of there, on the ridge. However, launch is a bit difficult to discern in the GE image as the grass, etc was very green when the picture was taken.