We wander slowly through the msasa trees in the pickup, crunching over the dry rocky ground, overflowing with gliders, eager students and plenty of excited chatter. Around us, the twittering of birds provides an audio backdrop that matches the spectacular beauty of the African bush. A small herd of zebra meanders off the road and merges into the shadows. The thick red dust is everywhere, drying our mouths, making us feel dehydrated before we start. It’s a relief to pull onto the runway. A light heat haze shimmers the air, and as we watch impalas bouncing away through the long dry, yellow grass we spot another group of zebra in the distance.
The atmosphere changes, the light-hearted banter falling away as students begin laying out their gliders. A couple of students are grouped around the instructor in the shade of a Blahblah tree. For them, today is day three of their SIV course, and they recap the planned manoeuvres.
It’s only 9 am, but the sun has been beating down mercilessly for hours already. It bakes the rocky red soil, and rapidly heats the granite outcrops. Even amongst the bush, there is little relief. The wind flicks direction as a small dust devil kicks off, whipping its way across the runway. Overhead, the mournful cry of a Fish Eagle attracts everyone’s attention. It soars gracefully upwards through the clear morning air. Further down the runway, beyond the zebras, a crowned eagle is also turning its way heavenward. Students grin, each picturing themselves joining a thermal with some of the many wild birds of prey in the region.
Student after student launches, each keen to soar through the limitless blue sky. The winching crew is kept busy, the instructor calmly talking students through asymmetrics and big ears when they cant find thermals. To a beginner the thought of deliberately collapsing half of the glider is as ridiculous as it is scary, but they progressively work up to it and quickly learn that its not so bad.
Late in the morning, and the SIV students are thermalling overhead. High over the lake, a mere hundred metres from the runway, a glider begins to behave like a demented demon as the pilot enters a negative spin, then stalls to recover. The exit is smooth, and the pilots’ grin is huge as he lands. Perched on a rock by the barbeque area, their instructor guides the SIV students through accelerated tucks, stalls and spins. The rescue boat is standing by, fishing for bass and bream while watching the antics overhead. After each set of manoeuvres is completed, the pilots glide down and land amongst the animals on the lakeshore and are debriefed by the instructor.
The beginners watch each advanced manoeuvre with awe before turning back to their ground handling. They are working hard to perfect their techniques, each aware that soon they will be flying from the spectacular Zambezi Escarpment.
By four o’clock, the parched dry ground is gently releasing the heat that it has been forced to endure throughout the day. The air becomes incredibly buoyant with widespread smoothly lifting air. It isn’t strong enough to climb in, but students are now being towed to heights of 400–600m, with long peaceful glides. No instructions and exercises now, just a chance to do their own thing, and enjoy the peace and tranquility of the wild blue sky over a rugged and beautiful countryside.