NEW ZEALAND’S SOUTH ISLAND

Weather systems in New Zealand’s South Island are like nowhere else. One reason is the quickly changing frontal systems, which at these strong wind latitudes travel unobstructed. That is until they meet the New Zealand Alps, which rise to 3,800m. These often block the wind and create Föhn on the other side.

At the same time, thermic activity inland sucks in the air, creating a strong sea-breeze effect around the whole island. That sea breeze can penetrate even the remotest spot on the interior of the island. As a result, flying windows can be short and infrequent.

Thermal flying in the lee is a wellestablished practice here. Queenstown and Wanaka are prime examples, where you fly in a bubbling mass of lee-side thermals that bravely resist the wider over-arching meteorology and wind.

January is regarded as the best month for flying inland. This is early summer in the southern hemisphere, when the air is not too stable and the sun is already strong.

Coronet Peak in Queenstown is New Zealand’s most popular flying spot. It’s partly because Queenstown is the centre of South Island’s outdoor activity tourist scene, and it is also a relatively easy place to fly compared with other places, with paragliding schools and countless tandem operations. Note that airspace rules are tight, with an airport nearby.

Thermals create a microclimate on the west side of Coronet Peak. Even when a clear easterly situation prevails at higher levels you can fly here. Because of the westerly aspect thermals tend to develop later in the day, but they then last a long time. On good days it works everywhere, long into the evening.

The main issue is the sea breeze, which can push in. This can create a large area of good climbs, but also brings with it a strong surface wind that can make landing difficult.

Some 35km northeast of Queenstown the Treble Cone area at Lake Wanaka is the second of South Island’s main flying centres. Bureaucracy for pilots is quite complex, and there is more to it than simply getting your (mandatory) guest membership of the New Zealand Association (nzhgpa.org.nz). So check the Southern Club website (southernclub. co.nz) for the up-to-date rules and regulations and get in touch with local pilots in good time.

When the weather’s flyable there are shuttles that can drive you up, and flying here is special. These mountainsides often lie in the lee of a general west wind, which likes to whistle close over the Harris Mountains. Here you fly in the microclimate built by the strong lee-side thermals.

The thermals usually hug the mountainside, and in unstable conditions they climb up as far as the prevailing wind. It then becomes “bumpy”, and you can clearly notice when you’ve reached the lee effect of the ridge.

Keep your eyes open when you fly here, especially in prevailing westerly conditions where there’s the threat of the sea breeze breaking through the Alpine valleys and spoiling the fun.

Signs are dust clouds lurking behind the mountain ridges. Also watch for swirling dust eddies caused by air flowing along the valley floors. In this case a quick landing is advised. The surface of Lake Wanaka can also give you a hint.

A popular XC flight sets off from Treble Cone towards the south. At the end of this mountain get maximum height for the valley crossing towards the southeast. You can usually find some more luck on the mountainside above Glendhu Bay, and enjoy a fantastic view along the winding extent of the lake.

Mount Cook is New Zealand’s highest peak, and flying a paraglider here is possible. However, Mount Cook is also near the centre of New Zealand’s Southern Alps Mandatory Broadcast Zone. The Southern Alps Mandatory Broadcast Zone stretches from near Lake Ohau to the southwest up to Lake Tekapo in the northeast, right over the Southern Alps to the west coast, an area of around 5,600 square km.

To fly within a Mandatory Broadcast Zone you must have an airband radio, with the appropriate radio user license, and make position reports every five minutes. If you don’t have a license it is possible to get one within New Zealand, with a bit of forward planning. It involves an online theory test and a short practical exam. Note you do have to have reasonably fluent spoken English as all radio communications are in English.

If you’ve got Mount Cook, or vol-biv through the Southern Alps in your sights, check out the advice for visiting pilots online at southernclub.co.nz/visiting-pilots.

The Mount Ida area is actually still an insider’s tip. It’s far away in the Oteake

Conservation Park. The original residents of New Zealand call it Maniototo, “the land of light and space”. The bleak landscape has its own appeal, especially in the evening light. It’s then that the hills cast their interplay of light and shade.

The 300m-high Mount Ida can be reached by 4WD from the road near Idaburn. The mountain lies in front of Hawkdun Range. A big aerial clearly marks the launch spot.

The land is open to the west and therefore exposed to the west wind. Ideally you should fly here in purely thermic conditions in a phase of weak wind. Mount Ida is a thermal oven and in summer the surface is often bone dry. Even in complete shade serious thermals develop. When the ground is partly in shade thermic activity switches on and off like an electric light. Shadow: Off. Sun: On. As simple as that.

The sea breeze can arrive here from all directions because of Mount Ida’s central position in inland South Island. Cloudbanks on the nearby Rock and Pillar Range are a sign of an east wind. The view to the west is unrestricted, so clouds in this direction should be correctly assessed.

Felix Wölk