Polk County is a hot spot for hang gliders. The Wallaby Ranch in the Green Swamp is the creation of hang gliding legend Malcolm Jones.
Jones bought several hundred acres in the early '90s to see his vision of a hang gliding haven come to life. "Just kind of bought this pasture out in the swamp and took a chance. Of course, everybody thought I was crazy, and I guess I am, but it's worked," he said. "We have taught thousands of people how to fly."
Wallaby Ranch uses small ultralight planes to tow hang gliders several thousand feet into the air and then the gliders fly on their own. An experienced pilot can take people for rides in a tandem glider.
People interested in solo flying can take lessons in a tandem glider with an instructor.
Teaching people to fly brings back the thrill of his first flight to Jones. "Because there is always somebody that it's their first time, you know? It rubs off. It's really neat," he said.
An instructional flight might last for about 15 minutes. But on a good day an experience glider like Jones can stay in the air for hours at a time by taking advantage of updrafts. "Later in the day the sun has heated up the ground and the ground has heated up the air near the surface and it starts to rise up in a big bubble you can't see," said Jones.
About 200 people store their hang gliders at the ranch, and some members of the Wallaby Ranch Hang Gliding Club actually live on facility property. They often eat meals together prepared by a chef.
Carolina Castro is lives at the ranch part time. "We usually say it's not like the real world because it doesn't feel like it."