3 Hang-Gliding Opportunities to Try

Hang gliding helps reconnect with the natural world, providing an exhilarating respite from daily life and the sensation of becoming a bird

Take to the air with these hang-gliding opportunities in Florida. Photo courtesy of the Florida Ridge Airsports Park
Take to the air with these hang-gliding opportunities in Florida. Photo courtesy of the Florida Ridge Airsports Park

Ever wanted to escape it all and fly away like a bird? You can in a hang glider—and you may find a new sense of calm and connection to nature along the way. “For a lot of people, it’s pretty spiritual to be up there, just floating around on the currents,” explains James Tindle, owner and instructor at the Florida Ridge Airsports Park in Clewiston. Hang gliders don’t have engines and remain aloft by circling in columns of warm rising air, like birds do. At 2,000 feet above ground, Tindle adds, “You don’t have any real outside noises—you don’t have the motor, you don’t have the stereo—just the sound of the wind and the smell of the different citrus blossoms.”

If you want to reconnect to the natural world from the sky, the Florida Ridge Airsports Park makes for a good day or weekend trip. Tindle started his hang-gliding operation in 1988 in Miami but has been based at the current location for the past 15 years. There are no mountains around, but that’s no barrier as the hang gliders tow up behind a small plane.

Photo by Erika Klein
Photo by Erika Klein

The Florida Ridge offers tandem flights to give you the experience alongside a certified instructor. Or, lessons are available for those working toward becoming a pilot and flying on their own. Anyone can learn; Tindle has taught 12-year-old kids through adults in their 80s. He’s even done tandem flights with people older than 100 and has completed tens of thousands of tandems throughout his time in the business. Launching and landing on wheels across wide grassy fields makes hang gliding in Florida accessible for all. And when you’re done flying, camp or stay in a rental cabin on-site and reconnect with your surroundings on the ground through hiking or swimming.

Wallaby Ranch. Photo by Erika Klein
Wallaby Ranch. Photo by Erika Klein

If you choose to learn to fly, the sky becomes not only your sanctuary but also your playground. Solo pilots can often fly for over an hour depending on the weather. The records at the Florida Ridge, according to Tindle, are just under 8 hours for flight duration and more than 200 miles for distance. Personal reactions to hang gliding have kept him in the sport for decades. “People get off the glider and come over and hug me,” he says. “I hear them say, ‘I’ve never done anything like this. This is one of the most amazing things I’ve ever done.’”

If summer plans are taking you to the Orlando area, there’s two flight parks nearby to tap. Paradise Airsports allows adventure seekers to fly tandem or take lessons (to hang glide solo) from Wilotree Park in Groveland. The park also offers camping, swimming, and kayaking in a small lake, as well as other activities. Founded in 1991, Wallaby Ranch is another option providing tandem hang gliding and instruction. This site, located about 30 minutes from Orlando, also offers camping, hiking, and additional amenities.

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