Lauf / Sodkopf

Lauf/Sodkopf is a traditional hang-gliding site in the Black Forest, opened up for paragliders in 1996 and flown regularly by the local club. The launch sits in the forest on the Sodkopf, a proper lane start, and is reachable only by a club shuttle — pilots without that access tend to use the easier-to-reach alternative site, Omerskopf, instead. Landing inside the inner protection zone of the Au-Quellen drinking-water reserve is allowed only in a genuine emergency. Access roads to the launch are for active pilots' vehicles only, and nobody parks on them. A flight log records every flight, and the permit holder proposes an air-surveillance contact to the DHV. Training flights need an instructor at the landing field guiding each student in by radio, and launching a student needs a second instructor at the launch too, only in light wind under 10 km/h from a west to west-northwest headwind, given the lane-start conditions here.

Launch & conditions

A forest lane launch on the Sodkopf, reachable only by a club shuttle — the easier-to-reach alternative, Omerskopf, is used by pilots without that access. Training launches need a second instructor present, only in light wind under 10 km/h from a west to west-northwest headwind.

Local rules & hazards

Landing inside the inner protection zone of the Au-Quellen drinking-water reserve is allowed only in a genuine emergency. Access roads to the launch are for active pilots' vehicles only, with no parking on them. A flight log is kept for every flight. Training flights need an instructor at the landing field guiding each student in by radio.

Check conditions before you fly

A forecast for the valley is not a forecast for the launch. Before heading to Lauf / Sodkopf, read the wind and thermals for the site itself, confirm the day's rules with the local club, and remember the standing rule — when in doubt, don't launch. In the free OutDare app you can open Lauf / Sodkopf with a 7-day forecast built from high-resolution weather models, see who else has been flying, and get there with offline maps.