The drought is hard to imagine, as it rained so much in January. Suddenly everything was green. Sinks and pans overflowed. The grass shot up. And that is now the problem, it is now everywhere as hay on the stalk. When there is a thunderstorm, lightning sets it on fire. Driving cars off the beaten track is forbidden. Hot catalysts can easily ignite the dried out stalks.
Areas around Bitterwasser and the neighboring village of Hochanas have also been colored black. Luck for Bitterwasser, the fire around the mast of the directional antenna near Hochanas spared the mast itself. If it had been flared, there would be no telephone and no internet in the lodge.
In early September, the containers holding the gliders for the 2026/27 season were loaded in Waghäusel. Transported by trailer, truck, and cargo ship, the gliders are now on their long journey to Namibia, to the Bitterwasser Flying Lodge.
The Bitterwasser Flying Lodge was the main sponsor of the Junior World Gliding Championships, where from August 2 to 17, 2026, around 80 pilots from 22 nations competed for the titles in the Standard and Club classes. The grand prize for the JWGC winners was a one-week stay at the lodge, including travel and an airplane.