Location: 10 miles south of Reno, NV. Drive south on Hwy 395 to Mt Rose Hwy. Drive west on Mt Rose Hwy to the Mt Rose East Bowl ski area turn-off. The setup area is the pull out area right before the ski area.
Launch Direction: E, SE.
Weather at Peak: Links for the weather on top of Slide [1] & RNO NOAA. This weather station is 1,400' higher than the launch.
Seasons: Spring through fall. Winter if the snow on the launches isn’t too deep.
Launch Elevation: 8,200’
LZ Elevation: 5,100’
Pilot Rating: Intermediate (H3), Advanced (H4), with CL, AWCL, & TUR sign-offs. Out-of-area instructors take note - this is not a training site for your H2's.
Type Launch: Steep slope with loose dirt, rocks and sagebrush. You must step over the highway guardrail to reach the launches. Wire help is recommended if there is more than a light breeze. High density altitudes in the summer often exceed 10,000’. All pilots must do a hang check prior to stepping over the guardrail.
LZ Location: East side of Hwy 395, across from the Hwy 395 and Hwy 429 intersection.
Type landing: Very large grassy field with a slight down slope from NW to SE. There are several drainage ditches of various depths crossing the LZ. Most of the large fields in the valley can also be used for landing. Avoid landing near livestock. Wind in the valley can often be a different direction than at launch.
Setup Area: Paved highway pullout area. Leave access open to both launches. Do not set up in the road.
Site Protocol: Don’t block the setup area with vehicles. After unloading gliders please move your vehicle to give other pilots room to unload. Park in the normal traffic direction either north or south of the setup and launch areas. Do not disturb the snow markers on the guardrail, that includes not tying wind indicator ribbons onto them. Controlled airspace lies to the immediate north of the site. Look at a VFR sectional to familiarize yourself with it. Do not cross Hwy 395 at less than 500' agl. If you are low and it would be necessary to cross the road below 500' agl to make it to the regular LZ, land on the west side of the highway.
Launch Access: Paved highway between launch and LZ with a 30 minute turnaround.
Info Contact: Any local pilot. The Reno area soaring forecast is at [2].
Miscellaneous: Excellent high altitude mountain flying and XC site. Strong thermals. The wind on launch can suddenly switch to blowing down very strongly (25+ mph). Watch for dust devils at launch and in the LZ. Summertime density altitude at launch typically exceeds 10,000’ and can sometimes exceed 11,000’.
Coordinates: Launch – N 39° 19.180’ W 119° 52.150’
LZ – N 39° 18.510’ W 119° 49.390’