MONTANA

Montana Intermountain League Meet 
2010 Fly-In and state record attempt

The Site:
Ellis Peak (Google Maps) is located 35 miles southwest of Dillon, MT. More 100 mile XC hang glider flights have been flown from this site than any other site in Montana. It will soon hold the record for paragliding distance flights as well!

The launch is a drive-up, accessible with a 4WD vehicle. Launch is almost 10,000 ft above sea level and nearly 3,000 ft over the valley floor below. There is ample room for numerous gliders to set up and launch at the same time.

The Flying:
The flying is "big mountain" thermal flying over remote terrain, with cloudbase often exceeding 17,000 ft - similar to King Mountain or Sun Valley. We've found the air to be a bit milder than King or S.V., probably due to the greener, grassier landscape of Montana. There are opportunities for flying north, east and south. Flying in a northeast direction (common with the typical SW flow aloft) will put you in line with Dillon, Virginia City, Ennis, Bozeman, Livingston, Big Timber and Billings. Flying directly east will put you on a course for West Yellowstone and Yellowstone National Park.

XC Mileage From Launch:
Ennis: 75 miles (120 km)
West Yellowstone: 94 miles (151 km)
Bozeman: 115 miles (185 km)
Livingston: 135 miles (217 km) - Would beat current state record of 125 miles!

Where To Meet/Stay:
We will be meeting at 8:30 am on Thursday and Friday at Clark Canyon Reservoir (about 20 miles south of Dillon on I-15). This will also be where we camp during the meet. There is an official campground with bathrooms and drinking water and a reservoir fit for kiteboarding, boating, fishing and all other water activities. Bozeman paragliding will have a towboat available for over-the-water towing. Bring your acro glider!

Other Stuff:
Please bring a SPOT tracking device if you have one, as cell phones may not work in some locations, and set it up to text Bozeman Paragliding (406-581-2955 - Verizon) before you get to the campground (i.e. while you still have internet access). The terrain we will be flying over can be very remote.
We will normally be flying and driving on 151.525 mhz
GPS Coordinates of Launch: 44°44'54.38"N, 112°59'58.06" W
GPS Coordinates of Campground: 44°59'52.77" N, 112°51'22.83" W
The nearest town to any flying or camping activity is 20 miles away (Dillon).

Contact:
Andy Macrae
Cell phone: 406.581.2955
Info at bozemanparagliding dot com