ONCE MORE INTO THE BREECH

Last Saturday, Sean Eckstein soared to Red Lake, Arizona, 65 miles southwest of Las Vegas. Here’s his synopsis of the flight:I launched just before noon, the thermals in the mountains were topping out around 11K and 12K. Heading towards Las Vegas I had a tail wind ranging from 10 to 19 knots. along with staying between altitudes of 8k to 10k, the miles added up quickly.I got to Clark Mountain expecting to be higher, but I didn't hang around to search for more. From 10.5k I could see some clouds to the east and got a report from my crew, Peter (6PK), who was on Nipon road by Ivanpah dry lake, that there was a shear line with dust devils. He also reported that Nipton road was closed, which forced him to drive all the way to Bolder and take the very, very, long way around. Thanks Peter.I had Triangle airport made with a huge margin, and a shear line on the west side of the river straight ahead on course towards Triangle. This would make my next alternate Red Lake (dry lake) an easy glide.I got to Red lake just in time to witness the last thermal breaking off, I headed for the next mountain range to the east but the air felt calm. I landed on Red Lake and enjoyed the scenery devoid of human life, and had only a 40 minute wait before my crew showed up.Sounds like fun! Thanks Sean.