I was losing hope that I would have my chance to fly at Rio Vermelho, the best flying site in the island. The right conditions, with easterly winds, don’t happen often and whenever it did I was doing something else. It was very frustating to hear from other pilots how good it was in a given day. Well, God listened to my prayer and I had my chance.

Rio Vermelho is a rural like district, located in the north, settled between a ridge, the dunes and the beach. Its characteristics are simple houses, farm fields with little crops and cows, dirt roads and plenty of landing spots.

What makes Rio Vermelho the best flying site in the region? Answer: Good Thermals + Fantastic views.

Thermals are like ghosts; invisible currents of warm air, which rise from the ground feeding clouds or just dissipating in the sky. Vultures, as well as paragliders, are good indicators of thermals; they circle the thermal pointing where we should go. It requires good skills to climb a thermal efficiently. You need to circle it with the right

angles, making sure not to get out of it as it drifts with the wind.

Thermals feed clouds so you can go as high as the cloud above your head. The challenge is to jump from thermal to thermal in order to make distance flights, the so called cross-country flying.

I was very lucky to get a ride with a beautiful girl to the take off entrance. The day was promising.

There are 2 main take offs. I decided to go for the highest one because the chances of catching a thermal are better. The only problem is that it is a very hard and steep trail. If you make it to the top, you get a nice and rewarding view.

So I took my chance and went into the air. At the very first moments I was a little tense as I didn´t have my emergency parachute (required for thermal flying) and I was also testing a brand new harness. After a while I relaxed and I started looking for some thermals.

There is type of bird with a long red beak, which I always see in company of another bird of the same kind. Probably a couple? I would like to find out.

The day was quite good and many pilots got pretty high going as far as Morro das Aranhas (Aranhas hill). It´s been quite a while since I have flew on thermals so I didn´t manage to get good ones.

It was around 16:00 and the sun started to hide behind the hills, shading the fields bellow and ceasing the thermal activity. But the wind was blowing good enough to create lift on the ridge so I spent an hour soaring and enjoying the magic view.

I landed about 17:00 and although I like to be up there, I really like the moment when I put my feet on the ground. It is a strange feeling because few moments later I want to be up there again.

I packed my wing in the grass, a much better place than the beach sand, had a little chat with friends- all looking happy- and got my way home. I thank God for blessing me with such great moments, hoping there is going to be more.