Hang Gliding at Lookout Mountain

Hang gliding has been on my bucket list ever since watching the 2011 movie Rio. The first weekend of October was warm and beautiful, so I booked a tandem flight at Lookout Mountain Flight Park.

The view from Lookout Mountain overlooking the grass strip

I played at the Murfreesboro Saturday Market that morning and then drove straight over to Chattanooga. Andrew was waiting for me at Lookout Mountain.

Andrew at Lookout Mountain

My heart beat faster as our group watched the instructional video. I met a lady named Paula who was also new to hang gliding. She loved horses, and we became friends.

Gliders

Before I knew it, I was stepping into the harness. Dalton, the glider pilot, showed me how to shift forward and back to accelerate or decelerate. He told me where to hold on, and off we went!

About to take off

As the plane towed us up, the trees got smaller and smaller. I had to shout to hear myself talk. When we reached 1900 feet, we released from the plane. Suddenly everything went quiet, and I could use my regular speaking voice again. I could see miniature kayakers on the creek below us.

As we soared above the rippling mountains, I got to turn left and right and do a few easy stalls. I felt just like a bird.

Made it!

All too soon, it was time to land. We made a sharp turn and landed neatly on the grass strip. Oh, what joy!