HANG - GLIDING A hang-glider is quite heavy (almost 55 kg in weight), bulky, and much complicated object. It takes around half of an hour to open the glider and almost the same time to pack it. The technicalities are more complex than, say, a para-glider and the risks more. But, then, what is in adventure if some element of risk is not involved? This is the only reason that this game is still quite popular despite so many new versions coming out. The joy of flying in the sky just like a bird is unparalleled and enormous. When in flight the perspective is of the snow-capped mountain ranges of the greater Himalayas. So close by that they catch a flier's immediate attention. He becomes aware of the amphitheatric setting of mountain ranges that from below had appeared a single monotonous looking but captivating range. The foot-hills that one had walked a little while ago now appear to be images from an artist's canvas. Surreal views of blue smoke curling up from a dark greenish valley, slate-roofed house tops and the zig-zag running streams sparkling in the sunshine. One can feel the upward movement of a morning pall hanging over the horizon as the sun heated earth creates thermals to push it up. This can be best experienced through hang gliding. The exhilarating fun of fly-by-feel aviation available at costs that are more affordable has reached the Himalayas, but it only for those who have the drive, discipline and dedication. Since the successful climbing of Mt. Everest in the early 50s, the Himalayas have been explored by many adventurers. Trekkers have trekked almost all possible routes along the length and breadth of this mountain range with passes over 20000 feet. Runners have spanned the total length east to west in as many as 101 days. After the cyclist and the motor-cyclist riding the length of the Himalayas, car rallies were introduced. And now a new mode of reaching the unexplored heights has been developed - hang gliding. You travel in the truest sense when you travel by air only the flier knows it. The advent of free-flight is seen as a means of travel which provides a stunning bird's eye view of the unclimbed mountain. It also offers ample opportunity to explore the inaccessible countryside. The weight-shift hang glider will continue to flourish in its own right in the Himayalas like elsewhere because it will almost certainly remain the simplest and cheapest soaring vehicle. The running costs of a hang glider in comparison to any other flying machine are negligible. more on this...