Went back to the repeater and got a boomer to 10.2k. SD had already went OTB below a cloud street deep over the Sespe. It looked like the best line, but could result in a serious walk-out (days?) in 100+ degree weather if it didn't work. I headed for Thorn Point, planning to land in Rose Valley if necessary. Arrived with 7.5k, then tracked a weak thermal over the top, to 8.5k.
From there skipped downwind across Grade and Lockwood Valleys on a few more weak thermals, never getting more than ~ 8.5k. It would have been better to be deeper, more towards Alamo mountain, but also much more committed. Hit a lot of sink before arriving at Frazier mountain. The north side was shaded in, but I didn't have enough altitude to push around to the south side. Ended up skirting around the north side towards Lake of the Woods. Wind on the ground didn't seem bad, but when I got low, I had very little to no penetration. Came down semi-controlled in chapparal about 1/2 mile from the Lockwood Valley Road. The wing was pretty tangled in the bushes, so I stuffed it in the bag . Eddie was offering retrieve, but before that, someone saw me on the side of the road stopped and offered a ride back to Ojai.
I was happy
to get a flight OTB from the front range. Maybe next time I will come more
prepared to go deeper.