Escape From The LCR

We often see the clouds where we aren't. We are always out in the Blue Hole known as the Little Colorado River Valley or LCR. The crux to many a cross country flight from The Craters is escaping and getting to a place that is working better. Today I managed to get out. I've tried this route many times and only made it once before. Two years ago I got out after taking a frisbee thermal over the back of Merriam and blundered into a real thermal out in the middle of nowhere that got me up high enough to make the jump to Anderson Mesa and into the Rim Country. I managed 40 miles before getting shut down by shade frome the clouds and the activity quit for the day. Today was a much different set up. I launched went right to 8,000 ft and punched back out front for another that booted me up too 11,200. I headed down wind and crossed some real estate fast but got no love from the flats and hoped for some lift at Rattlesnake Crater. No dice. Getting low I edged toward I-40 in hopes of either getting up or making my retrive easier on Paul. I was just about to tell him to come and get me when I started to get worked. Getting worked on the flats is OK it usually means your in the right place and I was. This nasty little thermal was all I could hang on to so I did. It beat me up pretty good but I was getting higher. I was now a thermal away from making the jump up onto the Mesa yet I was commited to a really long walk as the last thermal had drifted me miles from any road and it didn't get me all that high only 9,000ft. Not alot considering when you jump onto the Mesa you loose a thousand feet. I headed for the Mesa in hopes of getting up on the rim. No need as I lucked into a 2000 ft per minute monster that had all the turbulance you would expect to have from a beast that strong in the month of May. Meanwhile conditions all around me were starting to change, my ground speed was near 60 mph and thermals were getting really strong and voilent. The clouds I had worked so hard to get to where changing shape from cotton candy to more flattend and shredded. I had escaped the LCR yet it seemed that the day had bigger plans. I have flown in the Owens and the supper ratty, strong air of King Mountain Idaho but I felt that at this point I was at my max. OK so just land. Normally landing this time of day would not be advised. Remember the air has never hurt anyone! But the ground has pretty much got us all at one point in or lives. However once you get up on the Mesa you are in a whole new world. On most days a better world as there is green grass and lakes every where so instead of heading off to the first cloud of my flight I called it quits and set up to land down wind of a couple small lake's that together were about a mile long. I turned into the wind and parked it straight down if not a little backwards in smooth wind off of the lake and put it away in the grass. Paul was there in no time with a cold beer. It was a fun flight but more stress than I like to fly with. Next time if the weather allows I'll see you in Showlow.