Utah Paragliding and Hang Gliding Handbook
Updated by Stacy Whitmore (Nov. 2008)
stacy@cuasa.com

Let’s imagine. Let’s fantasize about the perfect paragliding launch.
First let’s visualize a place that is soarable in both morning and evening, with consistently smooth winds and easy access as well as forgiving ground characteristics. Can such a place really exist?
Now let’s dream of a perfect mountain flying site with 2 wheel drive access no more than a half hour’s drive but over 3000 feet above a mile wide LZ. It must have a nice flat top but good slope after launch and access to at least 270 degrees of launching directions. It must be soarable and have the option of climbing higher in soarable winds. Say 3000 feet higher. It must have excellent cross-country potential and just because we are dreaming let’s imagine it has a NOAA weather site right on launch, so we can check soaring conditions before leaving home.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Utah. Paragliding Paradise. Home of the Wasatch Front Mountain range that creates consistent coast like conditions almost every day of the year.
Welcome to Point of the Mountain.
Welcome to Utah. Home of Cove Mountain, where a ridge finger extends miles out into and 3300 feet above the Sevier Valley, and creates a soarable launch in three different directions. Where you can climb in evening ridge lift up over 3000 feet and look down on mountain lakes and streams along with 3000 foot shear cliffs and the panorama of Color Country. Where thermals can carry you to the Wasatch Plateau and you can thermal above Skyline Drive, a mountain ridge road that runs 60 miles between Sanpete and Carbon Valley’s, and seldom dips below 10,000 feet. From there you can Thermal right into the Uinta Mountains and on to Wyoming if you want to.
Welcome to Utah. Home of the Parker Ridge - 30 miles of unbroken soarable ridge line, with roads at the top and the bottom, Where else can you get a 6000 ft sled ride in baby butt smooth early morning air from Monroe Mountain or a 5000 foot sunset flight while watching the sun immerse itself in the Great Salt Lake in Glass Off conditions from Francis Peak. Or take the thermal elevator from Inspo over the top of Mt.Nebo or from Hancock Launch and cruise the Fish Lake Hightop Plateau. If you are World Class take the tram at Snowbird and launch in gnarly terrain for a shot at world record flight distances.
Whether you are a beginner or a master, or somewhere in between you can find it in Utah.

The following list of Utah launches is a work in progress, and not meant to be a complete list by any means. It should give you a place to start and an idea of what is out there. Just because you know how to get to a site doesn’t make flying it a great idea. Always fly with a buddy and contact the locals who understand the site specific details. Always think safety first and approach each new launch site and conditions with the “launching is optional, landing is required” mindset. Have fun, live large, and enjoy a long lifetime of freedom, and victory over earth bound existence.
After the name of the launch is the launch altitude followed by the landing altitude, then the GPS coordinates. If you have access to Google Earth you can just put in the coordinates and have fairly good look at how to get there and what is available. Where available I have listed the nearest town or some landmark after the GPS coordinates. Then accessibility, reasons you would want to fly there, some directions, and comments about the site. Send any comments, corrections additions, and snide remarks to stacy@cuasa.com

Utah Paragliding Launches

Randolph (Crawford) launch 7700ft/2347m Land 6450ft/1966m GPS 41 40’17”N. 111 05’46” W. Randolph 2whdr up West facing ridge. 10 miles soarable. consistent winds, very reliable launch for evening ridge soaring.

Strawberry Launch 8700ft/2652m Land 7800ft/2377m GPS 40 05’44”N 111 07’23”W. 2whdr up. West facing ridge. 2 miles soarable. Take Provo Canyon to highway 40- S on strawberry Rd. E on Big springs Rd. turns into Forest Rd. Beautiful views overlooking strawberry reservoir.

Francis Peak Launch 9200ft/2804m Land 4300ft/1310m GPS 41 01’38”N. 111 50’17”W. Farmington. 2whdr up. West facing launch in a nice meadow. Sometimes soarable Take Shepard Lane just past Lagoon- 45 minute dirt road. 9600 ft ceiling because of air traffic. (Bummer) Nearly 5000 ft vert- fantastic view over the Great Salt Lake. (Note- Watching the sun sink into the Great Salt Lake while you are soaring in glass off conditions. 4000 feet above the Lagoon Amusement Park changes your attitude about what fun is.)

The V Bountiful Launch 6341ft/1933m Land 4600ft/1402m GPS 40 54’40” N. 111 50’44”W. 2whdr up. W. facing launch. P-2 when conditions are right. One of the easier mountain sites.

Big Beacon (Mt Wire) Launch7047ft/2148m Land 5100ft/1555m GPS 40 46’15”N. 111 47’58”W. Immigration Canyon,Hike up site. Nice multi directional launch.

The H (Highland) Launch 5474ft/1660m Land 5150ft/1570m GPS 40 43’48”N. 111 48’36”W. Foothill Dr. 2100 S. SLC Hike up site sometimes soarable. P-3

Grandeur Peak Launch 5900ft/1798m Land 5100ft/1555m GPS 40 42’1”N. 111 47’01”W. Salt Lake City straight up from 33rd south 800 foot vert maybe a fly to the point on the right day thermal site.

Olympus Launch 5524ft/1684m Land 4900ft/1494m GPS 40 39’40”N. 111 47’56”W. Salt Lake City. Short hike up 300 ft vert. Thermal site, The“cool guys” fly Olympus to the point. It’s a right of passage thing. Wasatch blvd- E on Fortuna Dr. S on Mile High Dr. P-4 only- Lousy postage stamp LZ (But who wants to use it anyway)

Jupiter Launch 9920ft/3024m Land 9000ft/2743m GPS 40 36’ 45”N. 111 32’30 ‘W Brighton ski resort. Late morning site. Thermal potential - Big air- gnarly mountain site.

Snow bird Launch 10980ft/3347m Land 8000ft/2438m GPS 40 33’38”N. 111 38’43”W. Little Cottonwood Canyon Take the Tram up- Great Thermal potential P-4 and by invitation only. Home of the North American foot launch cross-country record. 154 miles - 2001 - Bill Belcourt.

The B Launch 5700ft/1737m Land 5200ft/1585m GPS 40 36’34” N 111 47’08 ‘W Butler area SLC Another hike up and fly to the point thermal site. Small LZ. Not recommended. If you are going to fly this site - get away from terrain quickly and be willing to hike back up if you sink out.

Stockton Bar Launch 5176ft/1578m Land 4950ft/1509m GPS 40 27’ 48” N 112 22’28”W Tooele Mile long North facing ridge P- 2 site. It's like a North facing South side of the point, evening soaring site. Meso-west weather station on launch

Mt. Ibepah Launch 11960ft/3646m Land 4470ft/1363m GPS 39 49'39"N 113 55' 11.6"W Calleo. Utah’s 2nd highest launch and biggest vert at nearly 7500 feet. That is a record unlikely to be bested, because nowhere else in Utah is a mountain that high next to a flat that low. Mt Ibepah is the highest mountain in the Deep Creek range. It’s a six hour hike, but absolutely breath-taking. When we launched the temperature was about 40 degrees and on landing it was in the 80's.

Point of the Mountain- World famous flying site because of consistent airflow- South in the morning, North in the evening. The Banks of the ancient Lake Bonneville left very smooth sand ridges on a Mountain finger that runs perpendicular to the air flow- providing smooth soarable conditions almost every day.
South side Launch 5150ft/1570m Land 4850ft/1478m GPS 40 27’24”N 111 54’06”W Great training hill. Consistent morning soaring.
North side Launch 5100ft/1555m Land 4800ft/1463m GPS 40 28’29”N 111 53’30”W Consistent evening soaring. The north side provides an opportunity to bench up and soar the 2 mile long mountain behind launch. One of three paved to launch sites in Utah.

Inspo Launch 6650ft/2027m Land 4850ft/1478m GPS 40 18’04”N 111 27’32”W Orem East on Prove Canyon Rd South on Squaw peak Rd. Very high cross-country potential, many flights over 50 miles. 97 miles from Inspo on a paraglider July 11,2007 small LZ P-4 or instructor supervision recommended. One of three paved to launch sites in Utah.

Y Mountain Launch 6270ft/1911m Land 4900ft/1494m GPS 40 14’53”N 111 37’12”W Provo Take 820 E. to Oak Cliff Dr. Hike up site, good thermal trigger.

West Mountain Launch 6764ft/2062m Land 4550ft/1387m GPS 40 05’20”N 111 49’37”W Payson 2 wheel drive high clearance drive to East facing launch take the Benjamin exit, go W on 7300 S to 5300W go North around the turn and follow the road up to the towers. Good first time mountain site. Easy slope launch and open LZ. Morning thermals. Don’t land in the fields with animals and don’t block off access to gates with vehicles parked in the LZ. Some Cross Country potential.

Lake Mountain Launch 7602ft/2317m Land 4900ft?1493m GPS 40 16'49.1"N 111 56'06.7W Saratoga Springs. Morning thermal site, very rough road -not bumpy- just rocky- hard on tires.

Fire Hazard @ Lake Mountain Launch 5600ft/1707m. Land 4600ft/1402m GPS 40 14’ 22”N 111 53’04”W. Saratoga Springs 4wheel drive up East facing launch. 25 minute drive from the point. Very soarable when it’s East cross at the point. Good soaring and training site with N. and S. facing training hills. Same type of sandy benches from lake Bonneville as you find at point of the mountain.

Mt Nebo Launch 11870ft/3618m Land Mona City Park 4962ft/1512m GPS 39 49' 19.1"N 111 45'38" W Nephi (the highest peak in the Wasatch mountain range). Utah’s third highest launch ever and 2nd biggest vert.(6909 ft) 3.5 hour hike up and lousy loose rock launch area. (bring a tarp) a launch from the saddle 1500 feet lower is recommended

Horse Heaven Launch8036 ft/2461m Land 5060ft/1542mGPS34 29'26.2"N111 49'56.1W 2 wheel drive up thermal site. Southeast and west launch options. Wide open LZ

Broken Arrow Ridge Launch 5600ft/1707m Land 5240ft/1597m GPS 39 09'07.7"N 111 46'24.9"W Gunnison NE facing, morning soaring site with wide open LZ. 4 wheel drive up launch.

Venice “V” Launch 6410ft/1954m Land 5285ft/1611 GPS 38 48’15”N 111 58’01”W Richfield Short hike (400ft vert) - but a true 360 degree launch. P-2 site. Easy launches in all four directions. Soarable in three directions (If an east wind in these parts is strong enough to be soarable you don’t want to be flying. I tried it once – it wasn’t fun.)

12 minute Launch 5733ft/1747m Land 5280ft/1609m GPS 38 45’32”N 112 00’53”W Richfield.4whdr up site. West side is P-2. East side is P-3. Nice grassy LZ’s both sides. East side is very soarable in a South- Down the valley wind that happens often in the spring. Easy 4 stage bench up 1200 ft. West side is a good training hill with a quick turn around time.

Hepler's ridge Launch 6137ft/1871m Land 5280ft/1609m GPS 38 44’19”N 112 01’21”W Richfield. 4whdr up site. West and North faces – soarable. Nice grassy LZ. Steep drop off on launch - probably a P-3 site, although you seldom get to the edge before being lifted.

Cove Launch 8731ft/2661m Land 5360ft/1634m GPS 38 38’03”N 112 03’39”W Annabella. The Ultimate Mountain Flying Site. 2 wheel drive up High clearance site. South ,West, and North soarable faces. Wide open lay out area, and literally a mile wide LZ. (O.K. mile long, only a half mile wide). Opportunity to bench up over 3000 feet, just on ridge lift. Most summer evenings provide smooth ridge lift right up til sunset and then the glass off soar out to the LZ is a 20 minute hands off glide that is awesome. There is also huge cross-country potential – an excellent thermal generator. To the South is The Sevier Plateau. To the West is the Fish Lake High Top Plateau and to the North is the Wasatch plateau. Meso-west weather station on launch.

Monroe Peak launch 11171ft/3405m Land 5447ft/1691m GPS 38 32’29”N 112 04’24WMonroe 2whdr up site. Very clean easy West facing launch. From Monroe head up the canyon and follow the signs. Utah’s 3rd highest drive up launch, and biggest vert for a drive up launch, nearly 6000 ft. 5 mile wide LZ. The glide is similar to Francis Peak, there is awesome cross country potential with afternoon and evening thermals. P-2 launch in the right conditions.

Hancock Launch 9359ft/2853m Land 7000ft/2134m GPS 38 33’32”N 111 48’13”W Koosherem Reservoir. Mostly 2whdr up (except the last 50 yards) West facing launch. Excellent Thermal and cross-country site with a straight shot to the Fish Lake High Top Plateau.

Fish lake High Top Launch 11,500ft/3506m Land 7000ft/2134m GPS 38 37'06.3"N 111 44'01"W Fish Lake 4 wheel drive up site. West facing launch with a ten mile soarable ridge, in front of a nearly flat table top at 11,400 feet. Utah's second highest drive up launch (actually because of changes in the forest service accesss laws you have to walk the last half mile, but it's flat)

Parker Launch 8440ft/2573m land 6781ft/2067m GPS 38 24’57”N. 111 52’02”W. Koosherem Excellent first mountain flying site. Easy west facing launch. 30 miles of evening soarable ridge. Excellent afternoon thermal potential (I caught my first thermal here as a P1 - it was pure luck. My instructor was on the radio saying, “just stay in that circle” and the truck starting to look like a hot-wheels model, the air getting cold. (You gotta love this sport.)

Mt Edna Launch 11,730ft Landing 6100ft GPS 38 23'08.7"N 112 20'12.8"W Marysvale 2 wheel drive up site, true 360 degree launch. Morning thermal site. Beautiful high mountain meadow easy lay out. Home of Mid Utah radio transmission tower the highest commercial radio tower in the world. (Yes I said world). Utah's highest drive up launch, highest Hang-glider launch and highest Tandem paraglider launch. Weather station on launch (http://edna.midutahradio.com)

Alunite Peak Launch 11,987ft/3654m Land 6100ft/1859m GPS 38 22'35.4"N 112 21' 8.3"W Utah highest launch ever. One mile up the ridge from Mt Edna (Probably not worth the hike because the thermals I found were right in front of Mt. Edna anyway but worth mentioning because it is the highest launch ever in Utah)

Frisco Peak Launch 9620ft/2932m Land 5200ft/1585m GPS 38 31’13”N 113 17’13”W Milford.. Drive up site. Big air!!!

Cedar City C Good west facing mountain launch. Accessible in the winter. Cedar City The Highest of the three paved to launch sites in Utah. The C Launch 8201ft/2500m Land 6000ft/1829m GPS 37 38’33”N 113 02’06”W Higher Launch 9046ft/2746m Land 6000ft/1829m GPS 37 37’32”N 113 00’46”W

Powell Point Launch 10,200ft/3109m Land 7000ft/2134m GPS 37 41' 16.5"N. 111 54' 09.2"W. Tropic. (Bryce canyon) Utah's most scenic launch. Incredible views of all colors of the rainbow spires and sheer rock formations. West facing launch. Evening thermals triggered from the hoodoo's and spires create consistent but strong lift. Short hike in long hike out. Lousy LZ. Long turn around time.

Panguitch Training Hills Launch 6852ft/2089m Land 6730ft/2051m GPS 37 46'42.7"N 112 23'6.8"W. Panguitch. Although it is only a little over 100 feet a sandy perfect for training slope along with both North and South facing options perpendicular to the valley air flow. Soaring is amazingly doable for such small hill with a half mile soarable ridge flat on top similar to the south side of the Point.

Molly’s Nipple 4510ft/1375m Land 3300ft/1006m GPS 37 07’ 40”N 113 17’53”W Hurricane Thirty mile long - West facing ridge. 2 wheel drive up site. Good winter site because of the warmer weather, besides it is often blown out in the summer. Long turn around time! Over an hour.

Honeymoon 4300ft/1372m Land 3520ft/1073m GPS 37 00’77” N. 113 17’55”W Hurricane. 10 miles down the same ridge from Molly’s but a much faster turn around time. Four wheel drive up site 10 minute turn around.

Usual Launch 3356ft/1023m Landing 2860ft/872m GPS 37 02’50”N 113 28’34”W St George. Mile long soarable ridge. 4 wheel drive up site - short turn around time. I’d call it a P-3 site because of the cliff like drop off and the brush and mesquite covered landing zone. This ridge was custom made for the SW winds coming up from Vegas in Early spring and Late fall. Glass smooth soaring conditions in warm shirt sleeve conditions when Salt Lake is still frigid.

Launches I am still looking for info on
South Mountain
Commodore
Heber Launch 8600 3000 ft vert, the gnarly cross- country king before Snowbird
Oakley