Skydive Slovenj Gradec is another dropzone in the beautiful Slovenia, but also tends to be the most dangerous one, because of the forest, surrounding it all around. Therefore, there were a few skydivers that landed on trees in the past few years, and the fire brigade had a hard time rescuing them, because the trees where they landed, were hardly accessible – the forest is very thick. Another dangerous thing at this drobzone are the strong winds, which always stalt blowing in the afternoon, and if you are on a bad spot, the winds will take you far away and you will land far out of the dropzone.
Once, it happened to me twice in the same day. Why is it so dangerous to land outside on this dropzone? Because there are several roads with a lot of traffic, there are powerlines, and in summer, there are crops growing, and the plants can grow very high. But the dropzone is still nice. It is situated in the north – west of the country, and when you drive there, you can admire the beautiful landscape.
Besides the dropzone, there is also a huge hangar for storing planes and packing parachutes, a hotel called Vabo Aerodrom, bar Figo, which also serves snacks, two tennis courts and a couple of bunkhouses for skydivers.
What is so special about this dropzone?
For me, this place is special, because I made my first solo jump there. It is located in the region of Slovenia that is known of wine – producing, and therefore, as I have mentioned before, the landscape is very nice. The place is also close to Austria, so you can visit another country in the same day. Other than that, you can spend a few days in the Hotel Vabo Aerodrom at the dropzone, do a skydive or a panoramic flight, and spend the rest of the time exploring the region.
The plane that is used for skydiving there, is either a Pilatus porter, that has a space for ten skydivers, or the Canguro, which can carry up to fifteen skydivers.
