(Still) Waiting for the Wind

Córdoba province is in the geographical heart of Argentina, surrounded by the central sierras - lovely rocky, green mountains that seem to meander in all directions for miles. Two hours north of Córdoba city is La Cumbre - a funky little town that prides itself on being one of the top spots in the world for para-pente (para-gliding). With this in mind we hopped a minibus from the city and booked a spot with a few of the best pilots around. The first morning we were scheduled to fly, we awoke to thunder and rain - obviously not the best conditions. When the sun came out at noon we prayed for wind, but alas, nothing doing in that department. A little bit of cabalgatas in the mountains took our minds off ´being stuck on earth´ (and our horses were actively interested in galloping whenever you made the notion which was very fun).
Day two and again we awoke early in the morn to bad news - sunshine a plenty, but absolutely no wind to speak of. Damn! Time was getting shorter and we still hadn´t even been to the launch site. This time we spent the day lounging by the backyard pool, sharing maté with vacationing porteños and feasting at a vegetarian-friendly asado with a dozen friends. It was pretty good alright, but we better be gliding tomorrow!
Day three: bad news at 9am but a glimmer of hope for midday. Finally, at noon we were picked up by our pilots, whisked out to Cuchi Corral and watched as one solitary hang-glider took off and quickly floated down to earth in no time at all.



Not good. The wind was changing and pilots were building their wings, when the the flag posts finalized everything. It was gusting - hard - but in the wrong direction. No flying today, and, sadly for us, no flying in Argentina this time round.
We were bummed. Luckily, the town of La Cumbre and the hostel we stayed at made up for this disappointment, and we now have friends in Buenos Aires to visit in a few days. And maybe, we´ll be back one day bringing good luck and fair winds in tow.