Winds from the south tend to be fast in this region and often cross the speed of 20m/s. Those experienced with local conditions glide on winds up to 15m/s and even paragliders will not let themselves be deterred by winds of 10m/s. Currents off the ocean don't flow around any barriers and so the wind is without mechanical turbulence. We were even eyewitness to a hangglider taking off into an 18m/s wind. He'd had enough though after about 20 minutes and landed back on the take-off place.



    "Forget about convection!", said those familiar with local conditions and added that to turn around 500m above start was an exceptional event worthy of a banquet. I remembered their words when following my first take off from Tinasoria I flew a dramatic six-meter, in whose narrow core the whole scale of Flytec disappeared behind a border of 8m/s. Bases were unfortunately that day only at 340m above start, but what can you expect from air that has a stable humidity of 80%? Risers around 4m/s came almost all afternoon that day.

    Thermal currents on Lanzarote come from black fields covered with ground lava. Onions and grape vines are grown in these fields, seriously. The ground lava absorbs moisture during the day and tranfers it to the soil at night. "Rabbiters", as the local inhabitants are called certainly aren't fools ...




Prices on Lanzarote
    The currency on the Canary islands is the Spanish Peseto (PTS) and prices are very similar to ours. Electronics and optics are even cheaper. Just for information, the pilot's favorite camera Olympus mju:II comes to 20,000 PTS.

Some important prices:
    1 litre wine from 100PTS
    0.5 litre beer from 110PTS
    1 litre milk from 120PTS
    1 litre gas 75PTS
    5 litre drinking water 175PTS

    Drinking water may seem a strange item on the list, but it is a necessity as all of the water on the island comes from de-salinated seawater and has a horrid taste. Further there is the chance that those with weaker stomachs will end up flying elsewhere than above the cliffs.

    The biggest expense for a pilot will be car rental, without which moving around the island and flying is impossible. An Opel Corsa comes to about 20,000 PTS a week, and of course you must add in the cost of gas. Beware of travel agencies offering car rentals with delivery to the airport as the prices are double. But then you are sure to really have the car.



    The roads on the island are good, but orientation is a hardship. The roundabouts, strange sinage and disrespect of Stop signs necessarily leads to a confused crossing of the small island during the first few days.

    A GPS proves very useful on the island, especially in combination with a co-ordinate map. Surprisingly such a map can be bought at every hotel reception desk. Locating take-off places without GPS is difficult and sometimes impossible.

Mirador de Haria
    is a nice but relatively little frequented runway in the northeast part of the island at the position N29°07.678' W013°30.768', with an over height of about 350m. Take off is right next to a pub called Helechos facing East into a long valley sloping down to the sea. The pub is found on the farthest end of this valley about 3km from shore. Because both sides of the valley are formed by walls the same height as the runway, wind directions of only 70-110 degrees are recommended.





    You can land anywhere on the floor of the valley but only on the black crushed lava surface. Other colors indicate cactuses, tourists or other objects that would prevent a smooth landing.

Throw Your Cell Phones Into the Sea ?
    There are two mobile phone service providers on Lanzarote, and their prices are dramatically different. Automatic searching fixes onto the more expensive one. The best thing to do is to manually select the Movistar network, which allows you to call local numbers for the same price as a local call. In light of the small area of the island the signal is good all over.

Las Nieves
    is one of the most beautiful terrains on the island. The runway is located on the northeast side of the island on the crest above the beaches of Famara at co-ordinates N29°060.522' W013°31.602', with an overheight of about 580m. We're talking mainly about seashore cliffs dropping steeply to the beaches of Famara and accessible wind directions are about 280-350 degrees.





    Landing is possible on the beach at N29°06.979' W013°32.925', very close to the end of the road, or anywhere on the beach which is several kilometers long.

Girls
    Spanish girls are beautiful and very well developed, especially at the ages under 20. Their strong Romany character gives them an air of the exotic. They are friendly and pleasant, but speak little english. A quick course in Spanish is therefore recommended before taking off for the Canary Islands.

    Girls of ill repute offering their doubtful services come to about 6,000 PTS, but you can successfully talk them down to an affordable 3,500 PTS, especially if you show them your valid pilot's licence.