July on Nice Lake, WI

... We're off!

Mark filed an instrument flight plan and at the crack of dawn (ok, 7 AM) on July 17th, we took off... In instrument conditions! The briefer had told me it was low overcast and wouldn't clear til 10 AM, but going northeast like we were planning, it was sure to clear pretty quick and we would be above the clouds in 20 minutes or so. Yep.  All went according to plan.

We were Hayward bound. Headed for the north woods of Wisconsin. For a week of relaxing canoeing, ice cream, hummingbird watching and flying. Oh, and I was ready to celebrate my 40th quietly from cabin in the rustling trees!

Mark and I took turns flying between Longmont and Sioux City - our less-than-planned comfort stop. We taxied up to Landmark FBO and received a red carpet greeting.  An actual red carpet was put down as I stepped off the wing!  It turned out Landmark was a great place to get breakfast too. Kudos to the chef who delivered my eggs benedict with the best Hollandaise sauce I have ever had the pleasure of tasting.

Back up in the air, I flew and Mark tended the radios. Hayward lay beneath us 2 hours later and an uneventful landing preceded 'the great airplane unpack" and a quick ride (thank you Jim!) to Nice Lake, shortly thereafter.

The cabin on the lake welcomed us back.  As sunset approached we made the most of the calm water and waiting canoe. Vacation had definitely started! :-)

After a 5 AM start, flying and several hours on Nice Lake, we were DONE.  Nighty-night.

Lazy Sunday - Wyoming Style

Sunday morning dream-come-true:  Waffles, bacon, coffee... chit chat with the locals and tourists alike. A slow and easy start to the day... Then flying!  Yeah!

Mark flew the local flight from Hot Springs Airport. Taking off with a rush downhill and circling around to overfly the town of Thermopolis so I could take pictures.  The river that winds through town really is at capacity! Reputation has it that Thermopolis is good place to fish, too.

After doing the "downtown circuit" we decided to head east out of town. We had heard about the new airport being built and knowing it was 10 miles away, we guessed east, to the wide open valley in the distance.

There it lay.  So far, just dirt and gravel, but one day in 2015, it will be the airport that all of Thermopolis has dreamed about.  A 7000 foot runway, plenty of parking, FAA funded.
Hmmm... So us and the 2 other general aviation aircraft that visited Hot Springs Airport this Memorial weekend will have somewhere fancier to land!

It was becoming a hot day.  Mid to high 70's, sunshine and not a breath of wind. Pushing the plane back into hanger (A.K.A swallows haven) was the last physical activity we managed before re-grouping at the hotel, diving into a delightful Thai lunch downtown and following it with a butter pecan waffle cone!

Next stop, the Dinosaur Center. Did you know there are still active dig sites?  High in the winding mountains above the Big Horn Basin in Wyoming there are 80 dig sites going in a 500 acre area! At the museum/education center that we visited, there are mounted skeletons, replica's and fossils from as far as China and Scotland too.

Having never counted myself in the high interest group in regard to dinosaurs, I was curious to see the fossils, but not overly excited. Two hours later, I could honestly say it is a fascinating place! Lots to see and learn. One of those experiences where you only realize "you don't know what you don't know" after you open your mind to a new adventure.

I entered with the pre-conception that T-Rex was a hungry, violent, brauny, dummy.
I left with the impression that T-Rex was incredibly smart (by dinosaur standards), a strategic thinker and an attentive parent... While that large vegetarian thing with the long neck and tail, had a brain the size of a kitten!

Time for soak in a mineral spa... Ahhhh.

And then we were off to check out the restaurant that several people around town had recommended. Stone's Throw is located at the golf course, which is also located at the airport, up on that butte above town.  It's comfortable and homey in appearance, so the menu might surprise you. Dishes include scallops, lobster, filet mignon and Rocky Mountain oysters. The wine list is not bad either - with prices that accurately reflect both the location (small town Wyoming) and the offerings.  They seem to have a full bar, but I'm a wine girl and I couldn't even tell you about the other options you might enjoy.

One bacon-wrapped filet mignon (perfectly medium-rare) and one glass of California red, later... I was more than relaxed.

Sunset was almost upon us and a walk down the middle of the runway, beckoned. Since there had only been sightings of 2 other aircraft here all weekend long, it seemed like a low-risk, high-reward, idea.  So we walked!

As with all good ideas, it had to be documented.  First, let's try and capture the slope...
Then maybe a quick selfie (that was anything but quick!)...

Sunset?  Beautiful. Still. Quiet.

Memorial Weekend in Thermopolis, WY

Once upon a time, in a land far away (Boulder, CO) there lived a woman.  This woman, while competent in many things, could not add "doing taxes" to that list, if being honest with herself.

Fortunately, if one finds the perfect accountant, this is not a problem.  So... From February to May, Latino and Associates toiled tirelessly on her behalf.  Always available, full of great advice and working in her best interests.  Eventually winding up a complicated tax year and putting to rest one of my biggest stresses.

I know what you're thinking... What has this got to do with aviation?  I'm getting there.

It was very clear that Chris Latino had worked "unusual" hours, from home and even taking calls on his cell phone during times I knew he was with his family.  So I was very surprised and quite overwhelmed when his invoice didn't reflect the time and effort my business had required and definitely didn't account for the brain damage that I had inflicted.  When I tried to compensate him, he refused!

Instead he said:  "Do me a favor. You and your boyfriend, fly to Thermopolis, WY for a weekend. Check it out for me.  I have heard it's a really cute little town, an easy flight with a great general aviation airport and plenty to do in town."

He was serious, so I agreed... And did what most people might do.  I added it to my bucket list and mentally prepared myself for going to Thermopolis, one day.

A day later, upon telling Mark about this conversation, we Googled Thermopolis, checked the weather and realized that Memorial Weekend was upon us in 2 days.  Could this be any more perfect?  We were overdue a "get-away".

That was Wednesday, May 21st.
By Friday the 23rd, the plane was ready, the weather rechecked, small bag packed, hotel booked and courtesy car (awesome) at Hot Springs Airport reserved.

Wheels were up just after 10am on Saturday morning. The flight plan was as follows:
KLMO-LAR-KTHP
Estimated flight time of just under 2 hours.

Winds aloft were expected to be light and winds on the ground at Thermopolis were expected to be calm... or light and variable.  It was really a gorgeous flight and we took advantage of it to practice some VOR navigation and further test the new navigation app on Mark's mini ipad.

Runway 1/19 was reportedly in poor condition... still blacktop, but sloped with a low point along the way and less well maintained than you might hope for.  It was 4800 feet long, 100 feet wide and was situated on a butte.  Yes, a drop off on each end.  Hmmm... This might be one of the good reasons the FAA is refusing funding and a new airport, with longer, flatter runway, is being built at Thermopolis!

We elected to land on 19, giving ourselves a bit more time to set up for landing.  Runway 19 is also the upslope runway... Nobody wants to overshoot a butte and find themselves downtown a little too quickly!

Once on the ground, we were met by the friendliest FBO manager ever.  Jerry had us in his hanger within minutes and the courtesy car was parked on the ramp all ready for us too.  (Did I mention that upon hearing we were coming in for the weekend, we were offered the airport crew car... for the whole weekend?)

Then it was time to get lunch at the Thermopolis Cafe, book into our hotel (Best Western just inside Hot Springs State Park) and explore the cute little town.

Best Western - Historic, Renovated, Just inside the Hot Springs State Park.
Pretty darn nice... And to top it off, they serve warm chocolate chip cookies in the afternoons.

Saturday was rounded out with a chocolate malt downtown at the appropriately named Needful Things and a soak in the natural mineral pools at Star Plunge. Can anyone say, relaxing?  :-)

Reno Bound - The Christmas Flight

This is not a short story, but as stories go, it's a good one.
If you need a short story, you have come to the wrong blog today.  :-)

Fresh out of annual with new shoulder belts, main gear tires and instrument overhauls, Bonanza 303B was test flown and ready to embark on her next adventure.

Christmas was approaching and the plan was to fly north of Longmont, over the mountains, past Telluride and Salt Lake City... Into Reno, NV.   The day before the flight however, a weather briefing revealed freezing fog around Salt Lake and more cloud coverage that we would have liked.  The decision to fly south, over Monarch Pass and out past Montrose to Canyonlands, was made.  Our first fuel stop was Cedar City, UT.

The dawn was cold.  A hole in the cloud ceiling upwind of runway 29 allowed us to climb above before heading south over Boulder.

Below us, I knew my friends and neighbors were waking to a cloudy day on December 23rd.  I, on the other hand, smiled as I watched the sunrise on the part of the Flatirons protruding through the cloud layer.

  It was gorgeous and peaceful.  We were on our way to Reno!

Once into the mountains, the calm gave way to some mild-moderate turbulence.  I quieted my stomach with coffee from the on board coffee pot while Mark flew us high over the peaks, through the passes, along the valleys and out into the blue day that lay to the west.

About 40 minutes out of Cedar City, a greasy splatter appeared suddenly on the windscreen.  We looked at each other, thinking out loud the possibilities of where it may have come from.  Bonanza 303B sounded normal, was flying well and oil pressure remained constant.  No further splatters appeared.

20 miles out of Cedar City a bang was heard.  From where?  No idea, but it didn't sound good and I know we hadn't hit anything.  Oil pressure still good.  Plane still flying normally.

Mark made the decision to fly the approach high, just in case we lost power.. You know, so we could trade altitude for speed and glide right into Cedar City Regional Airport. On long final the rpms shot up to almost red line.  The landing was uneventful though.  Smooth, safe, right down the center line,   We taxied over to the FBO then the fueling area, and shut her down.  I made a beeline for the bathroom while Mark fueled and checked the plane for damage.

On my return, he informed me we were grounded and showed me the ball bearings and little pieces of torn metal that lay in a tray beneath the the ring gear for the propeller.
As Mark headed for the FBO, a guy arrived to tow us into place for tie down.  Then another truck pulled up.

Out stepped Scott.  As luck would have it, Mark's father had a good friend with a hangar/house at Cedar City Regional Airport!  I had emailed Mark's father to say we were on the ground here and he had called his friend to stop by and visit... No-one knew at the time that we would be "visiting" quite a while.

An hour later we had a plan.  Scott had offered to fly us to Reno in his gorgeous Bellanca and we were packed and taxiing out.  Then the unexpected happened again.  As Bellanca got a little too lean on taxi, her engine quit.  It wouldn't restart.  A new electrical issue appeared to have just surfaced and it thwarted Plan B for getting to Reno on December 23rd.

Plan C:  Scott was going to trouble shoot the electrical stuff and we aimed for a Bellance departure the following morning.  Mark, Scott and I rearranged his hangar so that he could now fit a Bonanza and a Bellanca in there.  Awesome hangar... Super awesome and very generous pilot friend.  Light was fading and it was time for dinner, research and plans for tomorrow to be formulated.
Yes... And a well deserved early night.

As the sun rose over Cedar City, Mark and I emerged from our warm and cozy conference room campsite. We learned that the Bellanca was still grounded and resumed the search for a rental car.  After all, Reno was just a 7-8 hour drive and we could still make it for Xmas. :-)
Plan D was looking grim within the hour though.  Every rental car agency I called had nothing.  Not Cedar City, not St George (45 mins away) and not even Salt Lake City (3 hours away).
Seriously?  Seriously!

I headed to the airport terminal to see if I could actually find a person to talk to.  Enterprise was closed, but the Avis counter sported a sign that said open 8am -6pm.  I had left them a message to call me, 2 hours ago. It was now 10:30am and I had seen an unused rental car parked in spot #2 outside the Avis sign.  I was eager to secure it.  I called the 1 800 number.  Who was the least fortunate?  Me for getting someone who clearly had no power or information to help us... or him, the call center guy who go me on the line, with my demands to know why the Avis employee had not yet shown up for work and request to rent a car that apparently was not coming up in their system?

After struggling to understand why I couldn't get any help and staying on hold more than 20 minutes, I hung up and decided to "help myself".  Now on the other side of the Avis counter, I rifled through the drawers.  Pen and paper was my initial target, but I'll admit that if I found keys to the midsized Chevy outside, this story may have ended differently.  I left the tardy Avis employee a note to call me.

Plan E:  Ok... now back at the hangar, Mark and Scott were dismantling the propeller and the Bonanza was looking less and less airworthy.

I set to work researching flights out of St George and back to Denver. As luck would have it (it's all relative) I found a flight leaving at 1:22pm, direct to Denver.  Yes, it was after 11:30am and St George airport was a 45 minute drive away.

An hour and $500 later we were barreling down the highway towards St George.  About that time, Avis called me back too.  Yes, they had a car (I know!) and no, they couldn't rent it to me due to some system error.

Our flight to Denver was a whirlwind event. Ticket reservations were confirmed enroute, we cleared security and gate-checked our bags.  Quite by chance and good fortune, had a few minutes to breathe before boarding after our United aircraft was a few minutes later in arriving.

We landed in Denver 90 minutes later.  The flight was short and sweet. We diddled with our gadgets all the way home, critiquing the pilot and his skills as all good United passengers do.  :-)

But the day wasn't over...
We had realized on the way to the airport we had issues once on the ground in Colorado again too. Mark left his hangar keys in Utah with the plane.  His car was parked in his hangar in Longmont.  His house keys were in said car.  I had house keys too... but had left them with my car keys in his garage at his locked house!

Once again, friends to the rescue.  I had a friend pick us up from the Park n Ride and drive us 20 mins out to Longmont.  Marks renter left the door open at his house for us. Another guy used a spare key to the hangar to open that for us.  By 6pm Mark was home, I was on my way back to Boulder, just two more stops before home.  My golden retriever, Marley, was going to be picked up so I could spend Xmas with him after all. Then of course, I needed to replenish the refrigerator, which I had emptied in preparation for being away and the stores were all closed tomorrow for Xmas!

King Soopers let me in for a "quick shop" at 7:01pm after they technically closed at 7pm. I emerged victorious from the store with 3 bags of groceries 10 minutes later! :-)

I was home, unpacked, changed and over to my neighbors annual "open house on Christmas Eve" within 5 minutes.  She handed me a glass of wine and a plate of much appreciated holiday food. My day was winding down just the way it was supposed to.

Everyone was safe, comfortable and happy.  Adventure over... for now.

-  Special thanks to Andrew Bobak, Bill Tenore, David Paule and a huge thank you to Scott Johnson.