What to Bring and Wear

The day time weather in Bloemfontein will be hot and sunny (temperatures of 30º to 35º C are not uncommon), the evenings will be cooler and there may be the occasional thunderstorm. You need to bring summer clothes, sun hats, a light anorak in case of rain showers, a jersey for the evenings and sun screen.

The sun burn indices are high and you will burn badly if you do not protect your selves. It is also important to keep yourself well hydrated, the dryness of the climate disguises the “sweat rate” and you need to drink at least two litres of water a day and have a litre while you are flying.

If you have a camel pack we suggest that you bring it with you. South Africa has high quality tap water that can be drank without risk, though we also have a large variety of bottled mineral water.

Gliding in South Africa

The average cloud base is in the range 11,000 to 14,000ft AMSl, with the ground elevation being 4,500ft. The mean thermal strengths of 2.5 to 3m/sec. One third of the days are likely to be blue, particularly at the beginning of the season. On above average days, the cloud base may be as high as 18 or 19 thousand feet with rates of climb that exceed 5m/sec.