I have never been a big holiday person, but this last week has been full of good times surrounded by the right people. Early morning on Christmas Eve, a few of us jumped in the Delica and off we went up to Sipi River Lodge in eastern Uganda. Our friends cooked up a storm of amazing food and we all had a relaxing Christmas day of eating, drinking, and enjoying each other’s company and the good view of Sipi Falls.
My time at Sipi was also a great opportunity to do some more paragliding. I did some solo flights and more exploring and flying with Steve Fisher after he and Des arrived on Boxing Day. It was great to get up in the sky again and fly around some new terrain. The area has huge potential; I ended up flying at over 5 sites with many more potential spots. The best part of flying at Lower Sipi is the view: once I was up in the air, I was able to enjoy the view of all 3 waterfalls flowing down Mt. Elgon.
I have realized that the hardest part of flying here is finding a landing zone that is not full of kids. As I soared along this ridgeline, I looked down at the roads and goat paths to see tiny creatures running from every direction. I was in farming country, and suddenly, I became the mzungu falling from the sky. There were about 200 people surrounding me at the LZ on the first few days; by day 7, it was maybe down to about 50. Either way, I had plenty of company at launch, landing, and even on the hike out.
Now I am back home in Jinja just in time for New Years. It was good to get away for some good company, flying, and even a little climbing.
My time at Sipi was also a great opportunity to do some more paragliding. I did some solo flights and more exploring and flying with Steve Fisher after he and Des arrived on Boxing Day. It was great to get up in the sky again and fly around some new terrain. The area has huge potential; I ended up flying at over 5 sites with many more potential spots. The best part of flying at Lower Sipi is the view: once I was up in the air, I was able to enjoy the view of all 3 waterfalls flowing down Mt. Elgon. 
I have realized that the hardest part of flying here is finding a landing zone that is not full of kids. As I soared along this ridgeline, I looked down at the roads and goat paths to see tiny creatures running from every direction. I was in farming country, and suddenly, I became the mzungu falling from the sky. There were about 200 people surrounding me at the LZ on the first few days; by day 7, it was maybe down to about 50. Either way, I had plenty of company at launch, landing, and even on the hike out. 
Now I am back home in Jinja just in time for New Years. It was good to get away for some good company, flying, and even a little climbing.
