Flying Rampart Ridge - The story that started when I landed

August 23, 2016Nathanael Mokry

Every once in a while you luck out... Well, that's how it went for me. In the paragliding community, it seems there are two groups: The super experienced pilots who fly Cross Country (XC), and "The Newbs." With only 140 flights under my belt, I would solidly place myself in the "Newbs" category. There is so much to learn in this sport. However, being part of this community is also quite cool at times. This past weekend, one of the more experienced pilots, Owen Shoemaker invited me out to a new site in the back country. Don't get me wrong, flying at Tiger Mtn (my home site) is great, but I've been desiring to fly in the REAL mountains for years. When we arrived at the site, Matty Senior was there and graciously gave us a ride up the bumpy, unkempt & steep old forest road that led up to the launch.

It was a little past noon. The wind felt gentle and in the right direction. The thermals were just starting pop, and after a site introduction, I and a few other newer pilots launched behind the more experienced pilots.

My initial thought was to get high so that I could go explore a bit, so I worked with Jake to find a thermal and did just that! However, I saw Brent in the distance in his red & yellow wing already exploring the ridge below and it made me to wan… — My initial thought was to get high so that I could go explore a bit, so I worked with Jake to find a thermal and did just that! However, I saw Brent in the distance in his red & yellow wing already exploring the ridge below and it made me to want to get over there!

I made it over to the ridge and started gazing at the alpine lakes. However, farther in the distance was my real objective: I wanted to fly over Mt. Alta

8 years ago, I had hiked up Mt. Alta with my buddy Wolt, and now 8 years later, I wanted to FLY over it! It was further into the mountains than I was comfortable with, but I thought I had enough altitude to get there and back to the landing zone....… — 8 years ago, I had hiked up Mt. Alta with my buddy Wolt, and now 8 years later, I wanted to FLY over it! It was further into the mountains than I was comfortable with, but I thought I had enough altitude to get there and back to the landing zone.... At least I HOPED I had enough :-)

I DID finally make it over Mt. Alta, and while this feat may have seemed small & inconsequential to the the more seasoned pilots, I was stoked! The other pilots were already started on their XC routes miles away but I was happy with this... for … — I DID finally make it over Mt. Alta, and while this feat may have seemed small & inconsequential to the the more seasoned pilots, I was stoked! The other pilots were already started on their XC routes miles away but I was happy with this... for now :-)

So my next hope was to gain some more elevation so that I could get on glide and get back to where I hoped to land.

Toes: I know I'm excited & enjoying life when I extend my feet in front of me... This is my happy place... Keep Reading below on to hear the REAL crazy story.

Side Note: This Doarama link above is a SUPER COOL online tool that shows my route in 3D. If you click on it and give it some time to download the satellite images & track, you won't be disappointed. I recommend using full screen. Watching this made me think 2 things: 1.) I seriously need to get better at thermalling. I was sloppy and very lucky that there was lift everywhere. and 2.) People are gonna think I landed in a lake! Just to be clear, I landed safely on dry ground. The lake bed was dry from low water levels.

But HERE's where the crazy story starts:

As soon as I landed, I reached for my phone to text Rachel and let her know I landed safely... However, as I was searching my pant pocket, a feeling of dread came over me... I released a few choice expletives as I realized that my $700 phone had slid out of my pocket during the flight and probably dropped to an untimely death! As soon as I caught up with some friends, I had them us the "Find my iPhone" app in the hope that I had only dropped it at launch.

After inspecting the photo, I thought "Well, S#%T!" I realized that the phone was a goner. It was no where near launch, a dirt road, or even a trail. I wanted to get up that crazy road, but I knew my car was not burly enough to get up there... So, I… — After inspecting the photo, I thought "Well, S#%T!" I realized that the phone was a goner. It was no where near launch, a dirt road, or even a trail. I wanted to get up that crazy road, but I knew my car was not burly enough to get up there... So, I left it and drove the 1.5hrs back to Seattle extremely bummed and feeling stupid for not attaching it to myself better.

The next morning, I sullenly went to the AT&T store and had my service swapped to my fiance's old, small, slow iPhone 4. When the sales person heard about how I had lost my phone, he laughed and said "NO WAY! That's crazy, man!"

In the early afternoon of that same day, I get a leading text fro my buddy Jake Pratt (who happens to own an awesome 4WD vehicle), saying "I think we can find your $700 phone. Want to take a quick evening stroll?"... My response: "Uhhh. yeah!"