Portland West

West-facing ridge site · 91 m takeoff

Overview

Portland West is a hill site in Dorset / Wiltshire with a recorded launch elevation of 91 m. It works best in westerly winds, and can also work in north-westerly winds. Pilots fly it for ridge soaring, using foot launch.

Portland West (Wessex HGPG) is a rugged cliff-soaring site on the west cliffs of the Isle of Portland, Dorset, above Chesil Beach and Fortuneswell. It faces W to NW (270° to 315°), 420 ft (131 m) top to bottom.

Local clubs

Wessex Hang Gliding & Paragliding Club

Manages the site

BHPA club. Visitors with third-party insurance may fly Portland West after reading the site guide and getting a briefing from a club coach or committee member. The club's site status board showed Portland West OPEN on 29 Sep 2026.

Website

Source: Wessex HGPG — Visiting pilots, Portland West site guide (Rev. May 2026)

When to go

Flyable days per month in a typical year.

Flyable days for Portland West are on the way. We are scoring ten years of weather for every site, month by month, against this site, its region and the sites around it.

Local weather notes

Lift: ridge, thermal Source: Portland West site guide (Rev. May 2026)
Wind W to NW (270° to 315°); the guide gives best as W (295°). A good site for an expected light W–NW wind: the vertical cliff gives plenty of lift even in light winds, sea thermals can give excellent height gains, and on moderate days… Source: Portland West site guide (Rev. May 2026)

Getting there

Nearest airports

BOH Bournemouth Airport50 km
EXT Exeter International Airport71 km
SOU Southampton Airport88 km

Public transport directions from Bournemouth Airport (Google Maps)All travel options from Bournemouth Airport (Rome2Rio)

Plan to reach the landing field or the nearest town to Portland West; most takeoffs are reached by shuttle, cable car or a ride from a local pilot. Data: © OpenStreetMap contributors

Where to stay

The nearest towns, for a bed, food and a lift to takeoff.

Weymouth6 km awayBooking.com Airbnb
Chickerell9 km awayBooking.com Airbnb
Dorchester18 km awayBooking.com Airbnb

Things to do

For the days the wind is wrong: places worth a visit within 10 km of Portland West.

From Wikipedia, text and photos under their own licences on each article.

Flying nearby

See them on the map

Pilot notes

No notes yet. Flown Portland West? Tell the next pilot what to expect.

Flying Portland West?

Takeoff, landing, rules, the hour by hour forecast and live wind are in the site details on the map.

Open site details

Sources

Portland West site guide (Rev. May 2026) Summarised from the Portland West site guide (Rev. May 2026) (as of 2026-09-29). The club guide is authoritative; always check it before flying.
Letter of Agreement between HeliOperations (Portland Heliport) and Wessex HGPG, Ver 1.2, 1 May 2026 (redacted) Summarised from the Letter of Agreement between HeliOperations (Portland Heliport) and Wessex HGPG, Ver 1.2, 1 May 2026 (redacted) (as of 2026-09-29). The club guide is authoritative; always check it before flying.
Wessex HGPG — Visiting pilots Summarised from the Wessex HGPG — Visiting pilots (as of 2026-09-29). The club guide is authoritative; always check it before flying.
Wessex Hang Gliding and Paragliding Club — club home
ParaglidingEarth site record

Short extracts from Wessex Hang Gliding & Paragliding Club and Wessex Hang Gliding & Paragliding Club / HeliOperations. Read the full guide before you fly.