Loma Bola

Loma Bola sits above Yerba Buena in Tucumán, Argentina, with a pleasant grassy takeoff field big enough for a good number of gliders and the comfort of an on-site bar and toilets. Local pilots pay a small annual fee to use the site, but visitors are generally not charged. The usual routine is to meet other pilots at a bar known as Km. 12, at the foot of the hill, and share a taxi up to Loma Bola or the nearby Los Pinos launch, a kilometre before it on the same road — meeting time tends to fall between midday and 2 p.m., though it's worth checking ahead since it isn't fixed. The site faces roughly east, but the wind that actually dominates here blows from the south, and when that south wind picks up, the terrain turns turbulent — rotor forms off the west-east spines running down from the main north-south ridge. Pilots can top-land at Loma Bola itself or at Los Pinos, or descend to land in one of several open fields on the valley floor below.

Launch & conditions

A grassy takeoff field with room for a good number of gliders, plus an on-site bar and toilets; shares its access road with the nearby Los Pinos launch, a kilometre before it.

Getting there & local rules

Pilots typically meet at a bar called Km. 12, at the foot of the hill just past the roundabout where the road climbs from Yerba Buena, and share a taxi up (usual meeting window is midday–2 p.m., but check first). Bus 102 or 118 from Tucumán, marked "Pie de monte", reaches the roundabout.

Check conditions before you fly

A forecast for the valley is not a forecast for the launch. Before heading to Loma Bola, 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 Loma Bola with a 7-day forecast built from high-resolution weather models, see who else has been flying, and get there with offline maps.