If you cannot see the contents of this email, please click here.

  Parahawking Logo and header  

PARAHAWKING NEWS - March 2009


Scott and Kevin The season so far

We are now approaching the end of a very busy but successful Parahawking season. It's actually amazing how quickly time has passed since the last newsletter I wrote back in August. I could come up with several excuses such as the usual lack of electricity and internet that we seem to be experiencing more of year by year. But the reality is that we have been snowed under with birds and flying since September.

I did however get a chance to update my blog on the Parahawking website, so that's a good a place to start to catch up on events here in Nepal. Click here to go to the Blog.

Since September we have trained 2 new birds, flown over 200 Parahawking tandems and rescued and released several injured birds. Thanks to all those who chose to do a Parahawking tandem flight, I hope it was one of the highlights of your trip to Nepal.

Thanks also to those who have helped out this year, the staff and the sponsors, we couldn't have done it without you.

But the season isn't quite over yet...




HIMALAYAN RAPTOR RESCUE
Raptor Re-homing Scheme - Donations Needed!

Scott and Kevin

Help us build a new rehabilitaion aviary and help a local Nepali family!

We have rescued several birds this season. I have started a section on the website which tells their story, how they came to be with us, and also update you on their progress and their prospects. We are now at bursting point with too many birds and not enough aviary space.

We are currently looking for donations and sponsors to fund the building of a new rehabilitation aviary. This aviary will form part of a new project called the Raptor Re-homing scheme.

We are looking to raise €1000 initially to cover the cost of building materials. Every penny you contribute will make a huge difference to us, so please help by making a small donation.

Our goal when we take in a rescue bird is to release the bird back to the wild as soon as possible. But quite often birds are brought in to us with injuries so severe that releasing them is not an option. The best option for these birds is a life in captivity. Often these birds had suffered an injury at the hands of humans. We want to educate local people about the importance of birds of prey preservation and to have more respect for them.

In addition, there are many people in rural Nepal living well below the poverty line where even a regular water supply and basic education is a luxury many simply can't afford.

Himalayan Raptor Rescue will re-home birds that are brought in to us by renting small patches of land from local families. Aviaries will be built to house the birds and training and supervision will be provided to care for the birds to our high standards. The rent we will pay for the land will go directly to the family.

We need your support to help get this scheme off the ground.

Please make a donation to help fund the first aviary and the ongoing land rental costs.

Remember, land rental money will go directly to the family.

Scott and KevinThe first aviary:
For those of you that have been to our place in Nepal, you may remember a young lad named Kieran who helps out with the birds and packs Paragliders for pocket money. Kieran is one of three brothers, his father left home when he was little so was raised by his mum under difficult circumstances. Kieran has always shown an interest in the birds so it seems fitting that the first aviary will be at his home which is conveniently situated a couple of hundred yards behind Maya Devi. The monthly rent will surely help Kieran's mum with the costs of bringing up 3 teenage boys as a single parent.

To make a donation Click Here






NEW BIRDS

solo parahawking We've taken in a few new birds this season, 3 of which could not be released for various reasons so they will be trained to fly with the gliders. The first was Bob, a young male Egyptian vulture. He came to us a young chick no more than about 3 weeks old. He was reared by us until he could fly then training began. He was trained in record time and was taking his 1st thermalling lesson from Kevin in no less than a few weeks. Since then his progress has been phenomenal and even though Kevin and Bob are the same species, they have very different personalities. Bob is more domineering, he will try to take food from Kevin and even chased off a Boneli's Eagle during a flight a few weeks ago. Watch out Kevin, Bob could be the next star.

For information on Holly, a young female Black Kite and Clive, a rescued Male Steppe Eagle with a broken wing click here




SKY SAFARI

wall of support screen shot Due to the continued popularity of the Parahawking tandem flights, we've added a new Parahawking adventure, the Sky Safari. Now you can spend an entire day flying with our birds.

A Sky Safari involves 3 very different Parahawking tandem flights with 3 of our birds.

The morning flight will be with Brad, our energetic little male Black Kite. He will tie us up in knots as we chase him around the sky while the sun rises over the Himalayas.

The second flight will be with... Kevin, our cross country hero. Kevin will guide us to the best thermals and take us on a Parahawking adventure like you would never imagine.

Last but not least, the third and final flight of the day will be with Bob, our young Egyptian vulture. We will soar together over the calm waters of Lake Fewa as the sun drops behind the mountains. Then we land right outside Maya Devi, the home and birth place of Parahawking.

For more information or to book your Sky Safari experience click here




VULTURE RESTAURANT - SHARE THE SKY

Scott and Kevin You may have heard the term Vulture Restaurant before, but for many people, A Vulture Restaurant is a confusing and misleading term. Vulture restaurants are essentially safe feeding zones for Vultures. Sick and Dying cattle that hasn't been treated with Diclofenac, the drug that's lethal to the Vultures, is bought from local farmers. It is then put out to pasture and left to live out it's natural life. When the animal dies, the carcass's are put out for the Vultures . This attracts hundred of vultures from far and wide to feed from safe food, they will even set up breeding colonies around these areas. There are two such places in Nepal and since there formation 2 years ago, both have shown increased numbers of vultures and breeding pairs in the region. This is significant as it is the only place in the whole of Asia where numbers have actually increased, whereas everywhere else they have continued to decline.

We are looking to help set up a "Vulture Restaurant" in the Pokhara valley. Pokhara is still one of the premier places in the world where Paragliders can fly with these majestic birds of prey, but with the vultures still declining at an alarming rate 50% per year, it is estimated that some vulture species will be functionally extinct in no less then 5 years.

Share the Sky is a campaign to appeal to the international flying community to help save the vultures of the Pokhara Valley. We need to raise money to help set up Pokhara's "Vulture Restaurant" and to save the vultures from extinction. Then one day, when you come back here in 5 -10 years time, you will still be able to share the sky with these majestic birds of prey.

For more information on how you can help, please email me




GIN GLIDERS

Scott and KevinGin has been a loyal supporter of the Parahawking project for a number of years now and has agreed to send me a new Tandem Be Cool to replace my trusted Beetle. In addition he is also sending me the long awaited Sprint 1/2 when it is finished.

I was lucky enough to fly one of the early prototypes of the Sprint back in December 2008 so I'm very excited about the immanent release of this much talked about glider from the Gin camp.





WORK OPPORTUNITIES


Once again, it's that time of the year when we start looking for potential candidates for our volunteer positions.

If you have some experience with handling birds or are a Paraglider looking to do something a little bit different for a season, then please contact me.




NEPAL - NOT JUST ABOUT PARAHAWKING

 

GO TREKKING WITH HIMALAYAN FRONTIERS

HF logoHimalayan Frontiers
are a specialist trekking and adventure company with both offices in the UK and in Nepal. Their experience, local knowledge and expertise is unrivalled.

To reserve your place or to find out more go to - www.himalayanfrontiers.co.uk


GO PARAGLIDING WITH FRONTIERS PARAGLIDING

frontiers logo
Frontiers Paragliding are the Pioneers of Paragliding in Nepal. Run by Adam Hill, Frontiers Paragliding have been providing Paragliding holidays in Nepal for the past 13 years and are unrivalled in their knowledge of paragliding conditions, sites and local cultures.

If you are looking to learn to fly then in my opinion there is no better place to learn than in Nepal and no better company to learn with than with Frontiers Paragliding.

To find out more about the courses or the other paragliding holidays they offer go to - www.himalayan-paragliding.com




SPONSORS

Gin Rebelgin logoGIN Gliders - You can probably tell from the logo on Brad's hood that GIN has been the main sponsor of Parahawking for the last few years.

Over the years, they have supplied me with the latest gliders, harness' and clothing and without this level of support, I would simply not be able to continue. So I'd like to take this opportunity to thank GIN for their support and I hope it may continue.

Gin don't just sell Gliders and Harness', they sell a superb range of clothing too.

Visit the Gin website go to- www.gingliders.com


ben long logoBen Long Falconry - Modern Falconry practice requires modern falconry equipment and Ben Long has been leading the field in the manufacture of Falconry furniture for as long as i've been practicing the sport.

Ben, who knows all about flying being a qualified pilot himself, has provided us with some valuable pieces of kit, much of which we cannot get in Nepal. Thanks Ben!

To visit the Ben Long Falconry website go to - www.benlongfalconry.com


ben long logoACME FlycamOne - We had been dreaming of puting a camera onto our birds for years, we tried a number of different devices but the results were poor. Then came along the FlycamOne V2 from ACME and everything changed. Now thousands of people from all over the world have watched the Kev cam footage on YouTube.

Thanks for the cameras ACME, we couldn't have done it without you.

To visit the FlycamOne website go to - www.flycamone.com


Tiny loc receivertinyloc logoTinyloc - TinyLoc is a technological company manufacturing digital telemetry and radio tracking for animals. Their products are successfully used worldwide in different fields such as falconry and hawking, hunting with dogs and wildlife preservation.

Tinyloc produce one of the smallest and best telemetry systems in the world which makes it absolutely perfect for our needs. When you lose a bird in the Himalayas, you want to know that your system is not going to let you down. The Tinlyloc system is tiny so we can now operate the devise whilst flying which will enable us to track the birds from the air. Brilliant!

So with all this in mind Tinyloc have offered to provide us with their very latest kit and become a sponsor of the Parahawking project.

To visit the Tinyloc website go to - www.tinyloc.com


skycontrol logoSky Control.net - Skycontrol is an international aviation news web magazine, providing up-to-date information on all major aeronautical and aerospace subjects. It has regular contributions from most of the leading aviation companies in the world, including the top Paragliding manufacturers. Sky Control have given the Parahawking project a huge amount of exposure on it's popular website. Thanks guys

To visit the Sky Control website go to - www.skycontrol.net


Vestergaard Frandsen SA logo Vestergaard Frandsen SA - The Vestergaard Frandsen Group is an international company founded in Denmark in 1957. They specialise in complex emergency response and disease control textiles, with clients all over the world. Vanderstaard Frandsen support a variety of projects all over the world so I am delighted they have decided to provide financial support to the Himalayan Raptor Rescue Project.

To find out more about them and the incredible work that they do go to - www.vestergaard-frandsen.com

If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the Parahawking project please contact me




www.parahawking.com


Maya Devi Village
Kapaundi
Lakeside
Pokhara
Nepal
E-mail: info@parahawking.com
Telephone: 00977 061 523 650
 
You are receiving this newsletter because you have enquired about Parahawking or travel to Nepal I apologise if you have received this in error, if you no longer wish to receive Parahawking news please click here

Remove me from this list

Please do not reply to this email - for all enquiries click here

Scott Mason's Parahawking - www.parahawking.com - info@parahawking.com

*|REWARDS|*