North Carolina Vacation

Day 1 Friday

With a plan to get up early and bug out of town dashed by IMC forecasts in North Carolina, we slowed the pace down and enjoyed our first day off. The schedule of events was a short list at best; drop off the Maggie muffin (our dog) and then make a stop at Mom and Pop's (Marys Parents). My call to 1-800-wx-brief confirmed what I picked up on my latest morning brief of conditions. The Carolina forecast was opening up and should be clearing around noon with intermittent showers still predicted. Mary and I finally made it to the airport around 11am and I pre-flighted 679er. We loaded up our luggage, set out our headsets, placed my flight bag on the back seat along with a few other odds and ends to complete the loading process. Aeroways arrived to top off the tanks and I sumpped as the last item on my pre-flight check list was now completed.

Wilmington Tower directed us to taxi to runway one nine at Kilo, hold short. As I approached one nine I was asked to position on taxiway Mike to allow another aircraft to exit the runway. No big deal, I acknowledged and did my run up on Mike. We were ready to go and received clearance to take off. 679er was on the roll, eating up the center line stripes and climbing out on the runway heading. I was asked to sidestep east to allow for traffic inbound on the runway one ILS. I had the traffic in sight, it was no factor. After we passed I was directed to resume own navigation. As we crossed the C&D canal I flipped over to Dover Approach and picked up flight following. Mary was already nodding off so I switched to isolate in order for her to have some quiet nap time and help ease her sinus headache.

The ride was smooth and visibility good as I cruised along past Dover, Georgetown (KGED), Salisbury (KSBY)and Newport News (KPHF). Once south of Newport News and working my way towards First Flight (KFFA) the clouds really made their presence known. The cloud layers were at 1200-1500 scattered and 6000 overcast as we continued south of the Chesapeake Bay. I requested to go off frequency for a weather update and Norfolk acknowledged. Flight watch returned my call quickly and the update confirmed what this mornings report had forecast it also matched what I was looking at. Norfolk approach handed me off to Oceania then in turn to Washington center. The scattered layer was now around 1200 with good ground contact along the coast. I didn't see First Flight but did see Manteo in the distance as it started to rain. A Mooney canceled IFR that was heading into Dare County (KMQI) and I followed suit cancelling flight following. I switched over to MQI's CTAF and heard the Mooney report his position, I was a few miles behind him. I made my position calls and entered the left down wind for runway five at midfield. Base to final over the water and now aligned for landing I noticed I had some geese waddling across the approach end of the runway. As I passed over the shore line Mary was my bird watcher and I decided on landing a tad long to add some safety factor. Smooth landing, geese no factor and a easy taxi to our tie down. I called on unicom for our rental car then shut 679er down for the weekend. Our car was at the plane before we could climb out, that's good service.

With 679er covered and secured at her home away from home, our vacation was officially underway! First order of business was to get my bearings squared away and give the map a quick review. Ah, piece of cake, we headed out of the airport noting the Aquarium location and reading all the local historic attraction signs along our route. It was less then ten miles to the hotel as we traveled through Manteo to the "big road" Rt 64/264, made a left turn and headed over the Washington Baum Bridge,one of the many area bridges we would cross on our vacation excursions. Mary and I both noted places of interest and local stores enroute to the Surfside Hotel. Mary also noted the outlet shops, she was looking for the Coach store (handbags for all the men reading). Sure enough before we got to our turn off there it was, calling her name, Mary...come shop here...Mary.... (more on this later).

Check in was quick and the folks at the desk were very nice. I asked for a lunch recommendation and they quickly said to try Sugar Creek and try the shrimp special. I schlepped the bags to our room, we freshened up and headed out. The restaurant was one we had passed on our way in and it didn't seem to busy this time of the afternoon. We were quickly seated and I immediately order a tall sweet tea, ahhhh, my favorite southern specialty. Mary had an extra dirty martini and we placed our orders. Calamari for starters, the shrimp special for me and an oyster sandwich for my Bride. The food was excellent and the service just as good. We rounded out day one by scouting out the area and planning the weekends adventures. We both agreed to pass on dinner since our lunch was late and filled us both up. However, we did make a late run to the Dairy Queen just across the highway for a snack!

Day 2 Saturday

We had hoped to get some beach time in then fly to Ocracoke for lunch but the weather was cloudy and windy. Instead, we decided to do the complimentary continental breakfast and get out and about. I wanted to check on the plane after such a windy night to ensure it was still under cover and that worked out since a good many attractions were on Roanoke Island. The day was busy with stops at the Elizabethan Gardens, North Carolina Aquarium and Fort Raleigh. Our lunch stop was at Darrell's, a great place with excellent service and the food fantastic. Of course I had a big ole sweet tea and Mary a Blue Moon Beer as we checked out the menu. I ordered up the lunch special, flounder and shrimp with mashed potatoes and a side of coleslaw. Mary had oysters and hush puppies, I am starting to notice a pattern here. We really love seafood so this vacation would be nothing but. It was getting on in time and we wanted to get back and relax for a few. After taking naps (hey, we're on vacation) we freshened up and headed out for a more intense scouting mission, this time to the north (I was trying to stay clear of the outlets). We made it up to Kill Devil Hills as we extended our search area for pottery shops. We found one, and it was just ok at best. We saddled back up and headed south towards Nags Head. We did decide on a quick dinner even though it was getting late and we should have passed on the thought for the evening. Who could resist a stop at Sonic? We didn't, so a chili dog and cheese burger later we were headed back to our room full tummy's and ready to sleep, like puppies.

Day 3 Sunday

Sunday started out the same as Saturday with cloudy and windy conditions. Mary and I still were in search of pottery so that became the mission for the day. We found a few places listed that were in Manteo, how did we miss these places I'll never know. We passed on the hotel breakfast and instead went to Grits and Grill. Good food and service again and the grits were perfect, I really miss southern food, cooking and that accent.......Hmmm, Mary is looking at me funny, y'all. We did meet a couple from Dover Delaware so that was pretty neat and a local lady introduced herself and struck up a conversation about homes, vacation, food, cooking and just about anything you can imagine, you just can't make this stuff up.

Tummy's full we were now on a mission to Manteo. We followed signs to the Festival Park, sort of a picnic park is how I would describe it. The key here is all the shops and galleries within a few blocks of the park. It reminded us of the waterfront at Block Island. We had a blast walking around meeting the shop owners and all the local cats that the shops take care of. A great adventure today and a fun time just spending it together with my Bride. It was time to head back since the sun was peeking out and the thought of beach time was looking good. Once back at the Surfside we noticed the wind was still kicking pretty good so Mary passed on the beach and instead laid out on the balcony of our room. While the Bride worked on her tan I took a nap, typed on the blog and watched football games. When the sun finally fell out of sight Mary and I got showered up and headed out for dinner. Tonight's choice was the Penguin Isle. When we walked in there were two wedding parties getting underway, I figured the food and service must be good. Mary commented that this place is also open all year round so that must say something good too. We were seated upstairs and glanced over the menu's. I knew what I wanted, surf and turf, Mary followed suit. What a nice quiet dinner for the two of us on our last night of vacation, we really enjoyed ourselves.

Day 4 Monday

Almost impossible to top last nights dinner but we thought we would give it a shot at Howard's pub in Ocracoke. Of course today's weather was perfect, bright sunshine hardly a cloud in the sky and no wind to speak of. Mary put in a few hours of tan time while I worked on finishing up my flight plans for the hop to Ocracoke and then from there back home to Wilmington. We did detour on the way to the airport for one picture that Mary wanted to take of a little kitty at one of the shops we visited. This little girl was so cute and so petite one could not help but love the lil' thing. Back my to planning, winds favored the short hop for lunch but it looked like a good head wind the whole way home. I decided that we would top off and make the run to both locations with a non-stop home. All my calculations pointed to 11 gallons remaining upon arrival at Wilmington (ILG).

We had already gassed up the rental, taken the extra pictures and now headed to the airport. I worked on my pre-flight inspection and Mary returned the car and also reminded the line guys we needed to be topped off. The fuel truck was out to meet me as I finished up, only needing to sump the tanks. Bags were packed, car returned and 679er ready to go. I taxied out to runway five and did my run up followed by my departure and climb out to 3000'. Washington Center did not have radar contact but did hand me off to Cherry Point as I crossed Billy Mitchell Field (KHSE). I rode along with approach for a few minutes then cancelled when I had W95 in sight. I announced on CTAF my position and intentions as we entered the left down wind for runway six. Base to final now feeling the winds off the ocean push us around as I make my way to short final. A bit of rockin' and rollin' and some throttle work has us descending below the dunes and setting down for a nice landing. Once below the dunes the torture of the wind isn't that bad at all. The airport has tie downs and I did notice plenty of ropes provided. I called For a ride on unicom and Howard's Pub sent out a six seat golf cart to pick us up. Our Driver pictured minus the golf cart.

Lunch was excellent at the Pub. I had sweet tea, of course, along with scallops, shrimp and coleslaw. Mary had a dozen of clams and you guessed it, oysters and hush puppies. I bet this place is packed on weekends, it just has that look and feel. It reminded us of a local favorite at home Stanley's tavern, sports oriented, great food and service. We each purchased shirts as a souvenir of our stop for lunch. Ocracoke has been on my to do list since I became a pilot, today, mission accomplished.

We saddled up for home and launched off of runway six climbing out to 5500'. Mary snapped a few pictures along the way and I added to the in-flight video collection. Cherry point handed us off to Washington center, Norfolk twice then to oceania and patuxent followed by Dover as we neared the end of our journey. The flight home was again smooth as could be, very relaxing and a perfect end to a great vacation. 6.1 hours of flight time over the last 4 days and plenty of good experience. How did the fuel work out you ask? I was hitting my checkpoints plus or minus two to three minutes, getting better as we headed north. I passed Salisbury seven minutes ahead of schedule overall running about five ahead.

I made my last tank switch about fifteen miles out of ILG, I was changing on a thirty minute schedule religiously. I know my left tank gauge reads more then whats in the tank but the right side is really pretty close. The right side read ten gallons and the left, when I switched, was bouncing between five and ten. Once on the ground I called for fuel and topped off exactly where I initially had been filled. Right tank took 17.3 and the left tank took 20 for a total of 37.3 gallons. A 48 gallon usable and some basic math tells me I had 10.7 gallons left. I was happy to see my calculations and trip times were on the money especially with the constant headwind all the way home but I rather make my stops and keep more fuel in the tanks.

Vacation completed it's now time to finish my IR. With my test complete, I hope to be finished up with the check ride this month.

Test Completed!

What a day this started out to be. I was sick last week, actually forced to crawl into bed and curl up wondering if I was indeed hit by a truck or just really sick. I rummaged through the medicine cabinet and found a few pills from my last bout with sore throat and bronchitis. Ahhh...relief in the way of antibiotics, Avelox down the hatch. I may as well add here that I HATE taking pills and would much rather a shot any day, go ahead, make your funny comment, I've heard them all.

Anywho, I took the remaining pills and called it a night. I woke up feeling better, needing a shower since sweating through my fever but overall able to stand without getting lightheaded and swallow without the broken glass in my throat feeling. I decided to head into work, I figured if I was busy enough I wouldn't feel to bad. Yes, I actually think like this, you can ask my Bride. I only was under the weather for two days and didn't miss any work time. Now, fast forward to Tuesday of this week. Hmmm, the right side of my throat is now sore and the fever along with body ache is back. Mary put in a call to the family doc and he called in my antibiotic that I normally take, since I exhausted what I had in reserves. I know, take the complete prescription even after you feel better. Yeah, yeah, ok next time. I did make a full day at work Wednesday and came home only to crawl in bed and get in some review for my IR written. Are you wondering how I did.....I must keep the suspense going (evil sinister laugh inserted here).

I was up and running at 7 am this fine Thursday morning. On tap today is my IR written scheduled for 9am, receiving a furniture delivery for our den and living room between 9:30 and 12:30. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see the schedule conflicts we are faced with. Mary has a meeting with one of her clients at 10am so she is scratched off, I'm out from 9-11am but my brother Joe volunteers to cover from 9:30ish through 11am. Hmmm, this went pretty good. As I am making my way to TAS Flight School my cell phone rings, the delivery guy said he will be at the house at 9am!!! Crap! I am not missing my test, Joe has a client at 9am and Mary is now the primary go to gal. I give her a call and she steps in to save the day, I can hear the frustration in her voice but she takes one for the team.

I check in at the school providing my ID, log book sign off and autograph the required forms for the test. The school provides a book with all the IR test figures along with a protective plastic cover so I can use a dry erase on those figures in the book, pretty cool idea. I have two pieces of scrap paper two pencils and two pens as my backup along with an electronic E6B (that the proctor removed my batteries and reinstalled). I verify all the info and advise ready to begin. I jotted down a few notes to help me on the scrap paper and clicked away. I finished up my test with more then an hour to spare and decided to 'review' questions I marked and anything I may have missed. On my PPL test I changed five answerers and yes, changed them wrong, not this time. I did answer two questions that I marked and one answer I did convince myself to change. I clicked on the finish tab, confirmed I was finished and then the score was in...I PASSED with an 87%.

I am so glad that is over! I called Mary but she was still in her meeting so I headed home making only one stop for a celebratory cheese steak, chips and a Fanta orange soda. Mary finally calls back and I invite her to join me for lunch and add that I'll share my steak and chips. Mary walks in and we both comment on how nice the new leather furniture looks in the den and the brick around the fireplace completes the scene. Most of the living room furniture is in except for a special order leather love seat that should be here in 2 months. We sat down to eat and I have to say I was ready to explode if she didn't ask my score on the test. Between furniture conversations she stops and realizes she didn't ask......"well, how did you do on your test?" it just burst out of me.....I passed!!! Great!, how much longer until this is over ? (insert air escaping from balloon noise) well hon, I'll need an oral and check ride prep and that should do it. Hrrruuummmmphhhh.....At least she asked and I did pass.

I'm off to flight plan for north carolina tomorrow, needing to tie in my wx watch all week and pick a course for a back up if weatehr gets ugly along the coast.

The Time Has Come

I traded email's with my instructor today and agreed to meet this Saturday around 8 am so he can sign me off for my instrument test. Yes, I am finally going to get it taken care of. Not taking flight lessons through the month of September in order to force myself to study and ultimately take the test seems to have worked. Well, I should say it worked to get me motivated to study and test but will cost me a few more dollars to shake any rust off once back under the hood.

I have been flying in September, maybe a total of 8 hours, but no hood work. I have also taken the time to fly approaches on Flight Sim while tooling along in the online aviation world of VatSim. I at least got some good practice time and it's free, requiring no fuel burn in the wallet. I will post my IR written passing news next week after sitting through the test session. Any readers that believe in the power of prayer, now is a good time to add me to your list.

The plan as discussed with Brian is to knock out the test and hopefully finish up my oral and check ride prep this month and take the check ride in early November. Mary and I will be taking a week off mid October to enjoy some 'us' time in Nags Head, N.C. We hope mother nature is in a good mood so all will go well with our flight and some possible beach/pool time (strictly to work on the tan).

W05 - Kim's Road Trip

Today I bagged a day of work to meet Purple Board for Pilots forum creator and fellow pilot, Kim (4763E). I asked my co-worker Joe to join me on a lunch run to Gettysburg, PA and meet up with fellow pilots Rick (chekout my six or sixie as Kim calls him), Tim (TMetzinger) and his co-pilot for today Paul.

Kim was planning a solo road trip from Jacksonville, FL to Biddeford Pool, ME starting on September 22nd. Kim and Phil are attending their best friends' son's wedding in Jacksonville on September 20, so she convinced her husband, (also a pilot) that it would really be cool if they drove to Jacksonville. After the wedding Kim Dropped Phil off at Jacksonville Airport on Sunday afternoon so he could fly back home, then she will start her "road trip".

Just from reading her posts and all the comments associated with it, her trip is more then just "a road trip". I have followed along Kim's blog and listened to the comments she made today while enjoying lunch at Gettysburg. Yes, the trip has a purpose and as all destinations, a reason for taking place. I have always said in sports, which always seems to carry over as a life lesson, it's the journey we should enjoy and savor, it fills our memories and gives meaning to the ultimate destination. I would say we all had a fun day today, laughing and trading stories, learning about unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and sharing good company. It's always nice to put a face with those you share time with in the online world of flying, pilots and forums.

Today's trip started out a bit behind schedule since my flight briefing called out Instrument Flight Rule conditions (IFR) around Gettysburg, York and Hagerstown. Not a problem, Joe and I headed to the local Wawa for some cold water and I had to have something for breakfast so I picked up a rice pudding. We returned and made a second call to 1-800-WX-BRIEF and I asked for an abbreviated wx brief with a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) update. The wx was now Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and only getting better as the day would go on. TFR's were non-existent in my planned route of flight with the biggie R-4009, P-40 (Camp David) not expanded. Joe and I saddled up and taxied for departure from Wilmington.

The tower alerted us to a Falcon jet departing behind us and climbing through 4000' so I offered to hold my altitude at 3000' and with that was no factor for the jet. I was soon cleared to climb at my discretion, it's always nice to help the folks in the tower when I can. It was hazy as usual but Joe managed some photo's along the way. We made good time looking at ground speeds of 125kts (144mph) most of the way out. I did not see the Gettysburg airport at first so I held 500' above the pattern altitude as I crossed midfield (obviously having spotted the runway). I made the call crossing midfield to enter left down wind for runway six and started an immediate descent. I watched Tim turn base and final then set the Diamond down and taxi out to the ramp. I was next, now on short final and adding rudder as needed. The winds were light and I set 679er down with a good bit of stall horn which means a no flat landing. I retracted the flaps and taxied clear of the runway.

Rick (check out my six) provided transportation, and the group loaded up for Herr's tavern. Herr's is not open until 11:30 (lesson learned from our last trip) but today the sign read "closed on Tuesdays". I'm beginning to think this place has a thing for pilots and screwing with our plans. We all loaded up and Rick had us heading into downtown Gettysburg to find some eats. The Farnsworth House Inn was the choice. The service was good and the food was fine by me. I had the open face hot roast beef that came with mashed potatoes. I saw some garden salads with chicken served and everyone seems to enjoy their lunch. We sat and chatted, Kim revealing she had control issues, I acknowledged that is the first step in recovery, recognizing the issue. She was quick with the comeback asking if I was a psychiatrist, we all had a good laugh. The talk turned to airplanes of course and drifted to the UAV's as mentioned above.

As I have stated before and I will again, time with friends, especially those we share time in the sky with passes by way too fast. Pictured on the left is Kim, Paul and Rick. It was time to head back to the airport and head east for home. We said our good byes and everyone wished Kim a safe road trip on the rest of her journey. Joe and I saddled up once I completed a walk around and checked our fuel. 679er came to life and we taxied out for departure. I watched the winds favor both runways and as the windsock/airplane looked to be a steady crosswind I decided on runway two four for departure. I announced our intentions and was on the roll when Joe said the windsock changed to a tailwind, I had already decided on two notches of flaps for the warm temps, 41 gallon fuel load and our full tummy's. 679er climbed out with no problems and we turned cross wind and downwind prior to departing briefly to the south for some pictures of the battlefield. We heard Tim departing from runway six and watched him take off. The ride home was about an hour and we returned via runway one entering on a left base. I kept it close, turning a base to final and landing a bit long to save taxi time. Another good landing in a 22kt gust heard the stall horn moan and ever so gentle chirps.

2.0 hours in the book, a good lunch and fun flight. I was happy to share some flight time with Joe and chit chat along the way. It was nice to meet Kim, Rick, Tim and Paul. We hope to take a road trip (by air) some day and bounce around and meet fellow pilots and explore this great country. Mary and I often talk about taking off and flying until we feel like stopping for the night and exploring everything that destination has to offer. We would get up the next day and repeat the previous plan. All in good time....

Safe travels Kim! Enjoy Bloomsburg, the road trip and friends along the way. Take time to enjoy the sights, recharge the soul and clear the mind. Blue Skies!!

Wheels & Warbirds Airshow

I had four tickets to the airshow and could not find a single person to go. Mary was enjoying her weekend get away with the girls in Ocean City Maryland and the others I asked had a change in plans. I even posted on all three forums, POA, AOPA, Purple Board for pilots and the Cherokee Chat page. Hmmm, well I guess I'm solo....no pun intended.

The weather was perfect even though some clouds followed me into Millville. I did find an officer where I work that was looking for three tickets so I got up early to drop them off at the police dispatch at work, I hope his family enjoyed the show. I hustled back over to Red Eagle, uncovered 679er and completed my preflight. I helped a ramp neighbor push back his Cessna and we stood around and chit chatted for a short time. I finally climbed aboard 679er and called clear prop!

I was instructed to taxi to runway one hold short at taxiway Kilo. No problem, I completed my run up and made the call to the tower letting them know I was ready to go. I was cleared to back taxi on runway one and cleared for my southeast departure. I responded, repeating the information back to the controller. 679er climbed into the cool air this morning like her hair was on fire. We screamed out at over a thousand feet a minute and I made a quick call to inform the tower that 679er was turning on course to the southeast. It was a nice smooth flight over the twin bridges and over top of New Jersey. I made my call to Millville at fifteen, ten and five miles out to advise of position and intentions. I followed a flight of two RV's that were ahead of me.

I could not park where I wanted today instead I followed the direction of the CAP youth and was marshalled into a nice spot in front of my friends at Big Sky Aviation. I made the rounds saying hello and then went about taking pictures of the aircraft that I was interested in as I strolled along the nice neat lines. The aircraft were grouped how they would fly and with like aircraft. I really like the P-47's and the B-25's and......well if they fly I like em'.

My Camera work is really bad, I forgot my tripod. Try to enjoy the aircraft and the video, if you need something for the motion sickness.....well, your on your own.

Did I mention I had the BEST seat in the house? I decided not to enter the race track area, instead I would ride along with our operations folks. I jumped in with Joe C. and I helped set out the big yellow X's to designate the runway is closed. There is a NOTAM out for the show with a 5000' ceiling and if I remember from this mornings briefing it was a 3 mile radius. As you could see by the video's I was very close to the active runway and show center (which was runway 10-28).

I hope you enjoyed the video's and photo's as much as I did taking them. It was a great day to be around airplanes, the airport, pilots and crew that keep these pieces of our aviation history flying.

A Sample of Joe's Aviation Photo work.

N31 - Kutztown for Dinner

Rob (Rob's Flying Adventures) posted on the AOPA and POA forum about a dinner flight to Kutztown Airport. The FBO there recently closed and had a huge sale. This is not a good sign for the folks flying out of this facility. The airport hosts gliders, parachute training and flight lessons. At the end of the runway there is the Airport Diner, great place and good food.

The plan was for Mary and I to meet up with the few pilots that planned on attending. I rushed home to take care of the beast (Maggie) and pick up a change of clothes and shoes for the Bride. I scooted back to ILG and preflight 679er, waiting on fuel to top of my tanks. I was ready to fire up the minute Mary came through the gate. Well, at 5:15 the Bride called and said she was stuck at work, go on without her. If I hadn't finished the preflight I might have cancelled but I was at the starting blocks waiting to turn the key. I decided to go.

I was cleared to taxi to and hold short of runway 1-19. There was a flight of two Air National Guard C-130's setting up for a low pass. They broke the low pass off early turning out to the east, I was now cleared to back taxi on runway one. I made my turn around at the three thousand foot marker, added a notch of flaps and launched into the cool evening sky. The flight was about 30 minutes and 50 miles, good for cross country time. I punched in N31 on the GPS for a direct flight and also set up the nav 2 for the East Texas (ETX) VOR on the 234* radial. This would be my indicator when I arrived, or so I thought.

Yes, I almost missed the airport. I think this was a carryover from my first PPL XC. I missed the same airport as my checkpoint. I had the East Texas VOR dialed in (234* radial, can't remember) as the needle moved to center I knew I was there just didn’t see it, the airport. Off my left side just behind the wing, I have a visual. I started to circle to enter the downwind for 35 and Bob came on and said you missed us or it or something. I started to laugh and (I know I won't live that one down) entered the pattern.

Nice airport and a great little diner. Let's hope it all stays there. They had a very good turnout for the airport meeting, that's a good sign. As always the time with friends when flying is too short. It was great to catch up with Rob, Bob and meet Eric.

We all saddled up for home and I followed Rob and Bob out to runway 17. We were both off and heading south. The high wingers turned southeast and I stayed on my 180* heading. Did I mention how dark it got? Whew, it was dark out there. Great ride home as I picked out the airport beacons for MQS and OQN. I made my call to ILG tower and was instructed straight in runway one nine, report 4 mile final. No problem, I pass by the Rollins building and have Wilmington off to my left. The twin bridges are in view but no runway in that big black hole where the airport should be. I could not even see the airport beacon. At five out I call and ask for lights since I have no runway (or airport) in sight. The tower lights the place up, it looked great and I was aligned as I should be now on short final. I ask them to bring the light back down and made a nice landing needing to add power to make it to the first right turn on to Kilo. When I did taxi clear of one nine I then asked the tower if anyone else has complained about not seeing the beacon. He said yes and another pilot based at ILG said if I didn't ask for the lights to be brought up he would have flown over the airport too. At least it wasn't just me.

Thanks Rob for the great photos!

As a side note to my flight I wanted to add that I passed two hot air balloons. The flight of two passed between me and the Pottstown nuclear plant cooling towers. I was maybe 15 miles west at the time heading north and the balloons were heading south. The lead balloon was maybe 2000-2500 feet and the second about 1500 feet. They were beautiful as they floated south. I mention this because earlier this month a former club member that flew 679er was lost in a balloon accident. This man was a very good pilot and instructor. Blue Skies Earl, gone but not forgotten.

Written Frustration

I was scoring in the mid to upper 80's a few weeks back and put off taking my IR written, now I am frustrated and scoring in low 70's and can't seem to break out of the rut. I am ready for my checkride but of course must complete the written test first. I'm frustrated and ready to burn my books and use the DVDs for Frisbee's. Ok, well not to those extremes yet but I may get there very soon.

I am thinking of taking a week off then a sort of start over by reviewing the King DVDs cleared for the approach and the instrument knowledge courses. Time for two Advil's with dinner and cool compress for my vapor locked brain.

Thanks to all who responded to my post on the Pilots Of America forum, your wisdom and support help take the edge off my test taking issues.

Elusive River Tour

Today started out with the best of intentions, I know, famous last words. Airmet IFR warnings covered my general area of flight but it looks to be burning off around 10:00 am or 1400 Zulu. Not a big deal, I was in no rush and just wanted to enjoy the day. I made a change to my flight plan and decided that since it was a later start I would fly direct to Wilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley (KWBW), use the crew car or rent for transportation and take care of my parents grave site, the reason for the WBW stop. Mom loved geraniums so Mary and I planted them for memorial day. They are still blooming and doing fine and needed only a drink to make 'me' feel better.

I still miss my folks so much, Mom always the tough one and Dad the teacher and best friend. I miss his words of wisdom and all his quick come backs, I guess I got them honestly. I visited where my Grandparents are buried and most of my Aunts and Uncles, their generation is almost gone. It's kind of scary, the place I called home really doesn't have a lot of family left, just great memories of times gone by. I had to stop by and say a prayer for my dad's sister Rita, who always had a smile to share, her husband Joe and one of my favorite Aunts (really like a second mom) Josephine and her husband "Murph". Murph passed a month after my Mom in November 2003, he was awarded a bronze star and a purple heart during his military service. He and I really got along well, all the time. Between my Dad and Murph's construction stories it doesn't take much to understand why I do what I do for a living.

Back to the flight to get here....

679er ran great as she always does. It was a smooth flight north in decent time and flight following provided the extra eyes. I was kicked around by Philly approach, handed off to another section, then kicked to Potomac, then to Harrisburg, I was starting to get a complex. Finally I called Allentown and they said I had about ten miles until their area. Great, I respond that I'll ride along this frequency, 679er. Sure enough in just a few minutes Allentown contacts me with a squawk and I'm on my way. I flipped frequencies so many times in that short span I think I have a blister!

Once on the ground Ed from Valley Aviation met me with chocks and I shut down where I was instructed to park. No crew car so I had to call Enterprise. They showed up and gave me a lift to their office (paperwork) then I was free to roam. I made the rounds as noted above, made a quick stop for lunch at Burger King and wandered my way back to the car rental office. I had a short wait for a ride back to the airport and was soon playing counselor with the young driver. I must be getting old. We talked about work, dealing with the boss and job prospects in Delaware. He was a nice young man, fresh out of college with a biology degree.

Finally back to my plane! I hang out with Ed for a few talking about how much the area has changed since I was a teenager and places of interest for future travel and the latest update how his family was doing. Well, there is not a lot of traffic today so instead of playing airport bum any longer I decided to tour the river. On departure after contacting Wilkes-Barre Approach I flew south and really had a hard time picking out the mountains that lined my path. I climbed to 6,500 and the haze was still covering the valley. I decided it would not be fun slow and low having to pick my way and the camera shots would really look crappy so I turned for home. I advised approach that I was changing my final destination to ILG, India Lima Golf, Wilmington, Delaware the controller thanked me. Once south of Blue mountain I dropped down to 4500 and rode that until Reading Approach couldn't get me handed off to Philly. Not a problem, I continued down to 3000 ans monitored approach until needing to contact ILG. I picked up the ATIS and called Wilmington at 11 miles out. An easy straight in for runway one nine with a five mile call on final.

Not exactly the day I had planned but a good day for my heart and soul none the less. I just needed to get north and recharge, reconnect with the area and my family. I feel better, I still have the tour to complete and I had fun just flying with nothing to think about but "flying the plane".

RERUN, Susquehanna Tour

I dusted this flight plan off (October 2007) and decided to take a day and make it happen. The original plan for tomorrow was for Mary and I to fly to Nags Head, NC for a short get away vacation. Due to the Tropical storm Hanna heading our way I thought it best to cancel. No, not permanently, we rescheduled that trip for October 10th - 13th.

Instead I revisited this trip "back home", to the place my family is from, Wilkes-Barre, PA. I have made this trip many times by land and air but never once following the Mighty Susquehanna River. I have been toying around with a few stops and planning a flight for a clear sunny day. I plan on heading west towards the Maryland Pennsylvania border then turning north to follow the river. I guess my inspiration is from reading about the Citabria gang , aka the Trunk Monkeys, fun days of slow and low over the tri-state area and forging lasting friendships.

The Susquehanna River (originally "Sasquesahanough" per the 1612 John Smith map)the longest river on the east coast winds its way south from Otsego Lake near Cooperstown, New York, through the northern and central ranges of the Appalachian Mountains in Pennsylvania. By the time it meets the Chesapeake Bay, the Susquehanna River has flowed 444 miles. With an average daily rush of 22 billion gallons of water, the Susquehanna is the largest contributor of freshwater to the Bay.

In the mid-Atlantic states, it's called the "Mighty Susquehanna." It's the largest river lying entirely within the United States that drains into the Atlantic Ocean and the 16th largest river in the United States. The River's 27,500-square-mile watershed covers parts of Maryland, Pennsylvania and New York. This is about 43 percent of the Bay's 64,000 square miles of drainage basin.. I have listed the airports I would like to visit along my proposed route.

Donegal Springs Airpark (N71)MOUNT JOY/MARIETTA, PA

Elevation: 458 MSL

Traffic Pattern: All Aircraft: 1258 MSL

Runways: (10-28) 3250X50; asphalt

Penn Valley (SEG)SELINSGROVE, PA

Elevation: 450 MSL

Traffic Pattern Light Aircraft 1500 MSL

Runways: (17-35) 3800X75; asphalt

Bloomsburg Municipal (N13)BLOOMSBURG, PA

Elevation: 481 MSL

Traffic Pattern: All Aircraft: 1410 MSL

Runways: (8-26) 2800X50; asphalt

Wilkes-Barre Wyoming Valley (WBW) WILKES-BARRE, PA

Elevation: 545 MSL

Traffic Pattern: All Aircraft: 1546 MSL

Runways: (7-25) 3376X75; asphalt; (9-27) 2200X100; turf

Total flight time non-stop to KWBW is 1.5 hours and along the flight plan pictured about 165 miles. I hope to make a day of it with the above mentioned airports for stops. I hope to post a video when completed.