Gliding Over Poland

Harness. Check. Helmet. Check. Sturdy shoes with laces tied. Check. Huge electric motor. Check. Paraglider? Confirmative. And with that, I was in business…

I’ve often thought, if I had to choose one superpower what it would be. Sure invisibility would have its perks and who wouldn’t want to breathe underwater? But when all’s said and done, I’d have to choose the power of flight - if only to soar over all the frustrated commuters in London’s frantic rush hour. Something which would leave me not only incredibly smug but also allow me to get to places very few others could access…

Indeed, to see a city, country, landscape or ocean from above is, in my humble opinion, worth every effort one can throw at it. Be it climbing 752 steps up a bell tower, jumping into a shaky helicopter above a canyon or trekking 4 days up a mountain. Great view points are rarely discovered at the top of a lift. I say this not to do an injustice to those sights where an elevator proves crucial (the Empire State Building say, with its 102 floors…) but merely to point out the sheer brilliance of a view few others have persevered to procure.  

It is with both this eagerness to escape the masses and penchant for a pair of wings that I found myself in Poland’s Tatra Mountains. At around an hour’s drive from  the weather proved somewhat windier than in the city centre. This, I naively assumed was a blessing, in fact (as seasoned paragliders will affirm) strong winds are not the gliders best friend. After a tense two hour wait (and some tasty oscypki cheese from a local mountain seller residing in a rather rustic looking wooden hut) the conditions looked promising. Another half hour and we would have been too late. Persistence, as is often the case, pays off when chasing the perfect viewpoint… sunset included.