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Crystal Lake Guard Station

Crystal Lake Guard Station is a paragliding flying site at 2443 m elevation, in the Montana region of the United States. The launch faces S, SE and SW. This page consolidates multi-model weather forecasts, the GO / CAUTION / NO-GO flyability score, the vertical windgram and the thermal emagram so pilots can plan their flight in one place.

Wind and orientation. Crystal Lake Guard Station flies in S, SE and SW winds, meaning the airflow must come head-on into the launch. Any component outside that window triggers CAUTION or NO-GO depending on intensity. The launch is rated safe up to 43 km/h sustained wind, beyond which ParaRidge switches to NO-GO. The hourly forecast table and the vertical windgram both show wind direction and speed at takeoff altitude, hour by hour, for the next five days.

Weather model and forecast. For Crystal Lake Guard Station, ParaRidge auto-selects the best-available model (HRDPS, GDPS or GFS in North America; AROME, ICON-D2 or ECMWF in Europe), then surfaces hourly forecasts for today and the next four days. The windgram stacks the vertical wind profile of every hour into one chart; the emagram reveals cloud base, thermal ceiling and the instability band — the three pieces of information needed to estimate whether the day is flyable and how long the thermals will last.

How to read the GO / CAUTION / NO-GO verdict. ParaRidge cross-references the forecast wind direction against the launch's orientation window, the wind speed against the safety limit, and the gust speed against the maximum threshold. GO means every check passes; CAUTION that at least one threshold is borderline (you stay pilot in command); NO-GO that the direction is wrong or the wind exceeds the window. The reasons are always spelled out — no opaque score, no magic. At Crystal Lake Guard Station as anywhere else, the final go decision remains the pilot's, after local briefing and direct observation.

Current wind at Mike (station 29 km away): 0 km/h N, gusts 0 km/h — read at 03:55 UTC, data by winds.mobi.

Fly your own decision

Spot info is community-sourced and may be outdated. The weather shown is a numerical model, not real-time observed conditions — actual wind on launch can differ. Landing-zone details (surface, obstacles, access, livestock) must be verified locally before every flight. Always cross-check with local clubs and pilots. ParaRidge is not responsible for any incident.

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Crystal Lake Guard Station

2,443 mUnited States›Montana
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Takeoff

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2,443 m · S / SE / SW

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Crystal Lake Guard Station: paragliding site in Montana, USA. Elevation 2443 m.

Forecast · ECMWF

NESW
Takeoff

No flyability data

2,443 m

Live now · station

Model· fine-mesh → global

Scroll → for more days
updating…

Which model should I pick?

Fine-mesh models (1–3 km: HRDPS, AROME, ICON-D2, HRRR) resolve terrain and thermals well, but only reach +1 to +2 days. Use them for the day you actually fly.

Coarse-mesh models (10–25 km: GDPS, ARPEGE, ECMWF, GFS) miss valley detail but reach +3 to +10 days. Use them to scout a window 3+ days out, then re-check on a fine-mesh model the day before.

Advanced analysis
Fine mesh — accurate here · ★ recommendedRegional — trendGlobal — big picture

Day · Windgram / Emagram