Mount Pleasant, SC #39

I knocked another one off the list today without even trying.  Had been en-route 2.5 hours and even though I had enough gas to make the destination 1.5 hours down the airway, we decided to tank up and stretch our legs.

I landed at KLRO, Mount Pleasant.  I had last landed there about 23 years ago.  I was a co-owner of a Mooney and the engine had a cracked cylinder.  There was no local mechanic at the time so the plane was stuck.  Our mechanic agreed to fly down and repair it.  We ordered a new cylinder and loaded the mechanic, tools, and the other owner into a C-182 and flew down early Saturday morning.

We parked the  C-182 so the wing gave us some shade.  The mechanic spread out his tools and the manual and went to work.  Step by step the broken cylinder came off and the new one went on.  Everything tested well and we flew both planes home that afternoon.

The place is much busier now and gas is more expensive but I could still see the part of the ramp where we had set up our maintenance operation.

CC was not with me so technically she will be one short.  Ironically she was in South Carolina.  On the way in I flew past Fort Sumter and Fort Multrie.  Nice views of both and Charleston Harbor.

The long road home (#41 and #40 done)

Theoretically we were already closer to home than our first destination in Colorado.  We had come 1290 miles and only had 1182 to get home.  Coming out our detour had added some extra miles and I was hoping that we could avoid that heading back.  I planned the straight route with stops in Missouri, Tennessee and Alabama for fuel.

I woke up early to look at how the weather was developing and tossed plan A and went to plan B.  Storms were in our direct path and we would need to head South at least through Texas before turning the corner.  The weather in the Southeast was good in the early morning hours but predicted to deteriorate and it did not disappoint.

Our first stop was GBD, Great Bend where we had fueled before.  This was an easy leg, good tailwinds and clear weather.  It was not a far hop but let me begin the more intensive portion with full tanks and more fuel means more options.  We flew 282 miles and only got 198 miles closer to home, 84 wasted miles.

Leaving GBD, We still had a line of storms to pass.  We turned the corner over Oklahoma city and headed for Mount Pleasant Texas (OSA) to refuel and regroup for the push home.  Once we passed the front we picked up a undercast but the cloud bases were about 2500 so our arrival in Texas was easy.  I had requested the instrument approach but was descended beneath the clouds before commencing the procedure and was able to aquire the field for an easy visual approach.We flew 377 miles and got 277 miles closer to home.  100 wasted miles, 707 remaining.

We had left Valentine with 50 degree temperatures and arrived in Texas to mid 80s.  We shed our jackets and warm pants for shorts.  When you fly you always want to wear clothe that you can survive in in the event of an off airport landing.  When your cutting across the country this often means extra clothe and we had planned for the heat by placing a change in a bag on top of the luggage.

Suitably attired, we headed for Meridian Mississippi 318 miles down the road.  The rain and bad weather was just past Meridian so the plan was to land, snack and figure out if we could go all the way home.  As we climbed to 9000 to get a better view, cooler air and avoid some of the bumps, we watch more storms start to build in Mississippi.  The controllers were very accommodating and allowed us to deviate left and right of course to avoid the many showers popping up.    Passing Jackson, we dropped down to 3000 as the clouds had become too dense and I was concerned we might wander into some weather.

At 3000 we were below the clouds and could clearly see the increasingly dense rain shafts.  The radar was saying that Meridian had a severe storm with several more heading that way.  Time for plan C.  Always have a C, D, E, etc.  We turned North where it was sunny and landed in Philadelphia, Mississippi 34 miles Northwest of Meridian.  It was a decent stop, full serve fuel but a $1 a gallon more than Meridian.  When I have clear weather and lots of gas left, I opt for the better priced gas but when you are dealing with weather, you take the safest option.

When we were approaching Meridian and I saw the storms building I had taken a path North of course as it looked like the best chance of getting in and it had a great escape path North which we ended up using.  This was all great but to continue on we needed to get South and I had just put us on the wrong side of the weather.

As the plane was getting fueled and I was checking things over and I reminded myself that it is much better to be on the ground wishing I was in the air than to be in the air wishing I was on the ground.  Once the plane was fueled, I did all my checks so we could load up and go without delay.

I then went inside to enjoy the air conditioning, free WiFi, and picked up some ice cold water.  The initial look at the weather made me think we would be there a few hours and maybe need to come up with an overnight plan but as I watched the weather unfold I saw that the coast was cleaning up, if I could get 150 miles south, we should have an easy ride home.

The trick was the first 80 miles had a pretty good concentration of rain.  I started by studying the route and looking at all the possible airports where I could divert if the weather intensified. I then called flight service and painfully went through my list of 20 airports to check for any notices to airmen.  By this time a window had opened, we could fly Southwest (yes this was a bit away from home and get behind a small line of storms and then it looked like we could head Southeast to the coast.

Previously we had been IFR which let us zip through the clouds but on an IFR flight it is easy to get into the clouds and then not be able to avoid the weather.  There are two types of radar widely used.  On-board radar like the airliners use is real time but requires some big heavy equipment.  While some small planes have this technology, we don't.

We rely on data link radar which is sent to the plane via transmitters.  It shows us the Nexrad weather radar but there is delay of minutes from when the image is created, transmitted and displayed.  With storms moving up to 60 miles and hour, changing rapidly and us zipping along at 200 mph it is not safe to use it for close in tactical decisions.  It is great for watching the trend and helping you see farther out than your eyes but not much more.

We launched VFR and picked up flight following.  My initial plan was to stay at 3000 and get around the rain.  It was working well and we were soon around the rain by Meridian.  The downside of 3000 is that our fuel burn is higher down low, our speed is about 15 knots slower and we had no tailwind.  We were running the Air conditioner to stay cool which further slows us and we were in consistent light turbulence.   South of Meridian I saw a pretty wide gap and decided it was time to go up.

Heading up has it's pros and cons.  If we could stay on top of everything it would solve a host of problems but since we were VFR we need to maintain mandated clearance from all clouds so we might expend a lot of time and gas and soon find that we needed to circle back down but it was worth a try.  To give us the best chance of a clear path home, I took us up to 11,500.

This turned out to be a great decision.  Up high we could clearly see the storms and there was clear air between them.  Our tailwind returned and we were soon seeing ground speeds in the 185-195 range.  No need for air conditioning, the ride was smooth and we were running 2 gallons an hour less through the engine.  Life was good.

Up high we easily navigated around the large showers and were well above some minor rain below.  Things were looking good as we worked our way North of Mobile, AL and then past Pensacola.  Just when you think you are home free nature throws another curve ball.  A line of storms appeared over Tallahassee and then a second over Jacksonville.  Now the entire way the ATC controllers were very helpful and you could tell they were also watching out for us as they can also display some weather on their scopes.

The Controller was making sure we had a good plan for Tallahassee and suggested a number of fixes to slide through.   Looking ahead it seemed possible but South of Tallahassee was looking clear so we headed that way and had a smooth ride.  I was thinking we might end up landing at Lake City because it was currently pouring at our airport.  The weather cleared at Cecil field so we kept on heading in figuring we could make Jacksonville even if it was at a different airport.  About 20 minutes out the storms broke in two with half the rain heading for Brunswick and half to Saint Augustine.

We were able to make a straight in approach to runway 14 and avoid the rain.  The runway was nice and wet which usually makes the landing a bit smoother but also throws up a bunch of dirt under the wing which I got to scrub off the next day.  We taxied in and pushed the plane back into the hangar.  It is not over until the plane is secured.

In the end the trip home was closer to 1450 miles or an extra 270 miles to get home.  The last leg being the most challenging one.  Though we pushed a bit to get around the weather we never put ourselves in a situation without several escape routes.

We had a total engine run time of 25 hours for the trip and covered 3600 miles for an average speed of 144 knots (166 mph).  Not bad as this includes all the time warming up and taxiing.  Oh and we also ticked off Texas #41 and Mississippi #40.

Open Spaces

We slept in for our last sightseeing day in Valentine.  Our first stop of the day was Smith Falls.  The falls are in a state park about 20 West of Valentine.  The road out was a normal highway but turning off for the park we had another 5 miles of gravel road with the associated dust.  We soon found the ranger station and paid our out of state park fees.  It was $8 for us, Nebraskans get a $1 discount per person.

We did not know it at the time but our permit would come in handy later in the day.  They said it was a hike down to the Falls but it was really a short walk.  When we arrived we had the falls to ourselves which was rather nice.  As we were leaving a bunch of people showed up so our timing was good.

The park had a nice historic bridge that crossed the Niobrara river.  We first flew over the river on the way to South Dakota and it was fitting that we were ending our trip crossing it again.

After the falls it was lunch time.  CC had seen a Frosty Drive In which she remembered from her childhood (I won't make any comments on this).  Looking at the menu CC was surprised they served Oysters in such an inland location.  What she did not initially see is that they were the mountain variety (I'll wait while you Google Mountain Oysters).  She decided to go with the ice cream sundae and skip the oysters.  It was a drive in so I went with a chili dog.  They brought the food to the car and hung a tray on the window.  It was so 1950s.

Our next stop was 60 miles down the road as in highway 20.  We passed through several towns such as Kilgore (Pop 78), Nenzel (Pop 20), Cody (Pop 155) and Merriman (Pop 129).  The area is called the Sandhills and while it is suitable for cattle it has a lower nutritional density so while other places may need 2 acres per cow, they need about 24 acres per cow.  You see cows all along the route but not huge herds.

Our destination was the Bowring Ranch.  The Ranch was founded in 1894 and when the rancher's first wife died in childbirth, he later remarried.  His wife became the first female US senator and held a variety of important positions.  She passed in 1985 at the age of 93.  She willed the Ranch to the state to become a working monument and to preserve an example of ranch life.

Upon arrival, we paid the $2 per person tour fee and since we already had purchased a state park pass for the day, we did not need to buy a second.  They have a visitor center that has a nice movie and artifacts.  We then had a guide take us on a personal tour of her house.  She was friend with President Ike and her walls were covered with pictures of influential people she knew like Nixon, Kennedy, J. Edgar Hoover and many more.

She loved china, glass and silver and had an extensive collection.  Part of the tour is a bit creepy, she and the first wife died in the house on their respective beds and the beds are preserved with the same linens from that time.  There is even the book she was reading before she fell asleep for the final time.

There is a sod house which is a replica of the original ranch house. While it has been rebuilt, it contains artifacts from the late 1800s.  Oh and the ranch had a gravel road for the approach as well.  In between all this sightseeing I was studying the weather.  I had been watching it all week and I was a bit unhappy as I was predicting a hard time getting home or possibly having to overnight somewhere en-route.

I didn't let the pending weather spoil the fun though and after returning to Valentine we decided to try a local place for dinner.  We had prime rib, baked potato and salad.  They know there beef and potatoes but the salad was basically iceberg, a cucumber slice and a few pretzel sticks on top.  We guessed they ran out of croutons or maybe they don't exist in Nebraska.  Luckily they were pretty expert in the beef department.

We filled our car with gas in anticipation of an early departure.  Surprisingly the town has 3 gas stations.  I guess the highway 20 traffic supports it as there was only one other station  in the 60 miles we drove to the West.

Valentine Nebraska #42

Our next stop was Valentine Nebraska.  Valentine is located on the Northern border of Nebraska about in the middle of the state.  Why go to Valentine?  I have never toured Nebraska and when I started looking at possible places to visit I did not find that much.  We could have visited Warren Buffett in Omaha but he never answered my calls.  I did find a neat walking trail and a a converted railroad bridge.  I also figured it would be cool to see some more rural destinations.  Valentine, population 2785, would be my Nebraska.

We were in no rush this time and slept in.  Then it was off to the airport.  I had called ahead and the friendly folks at WestJet had our plane right out front.  This time our clearance was a direct climb to our requested altitude and direct to destination.  Does not get better than that.  The weather was also perfect with a bit of tailwind giving us 187 knot ground speed (215 mph).  This was a short hop at around 45 minutes.

Landing at Valentine we taxied up to the self serve pumps and the local staff came to meet us and help us fuel.  Parking was close so rather than starting the plane and maneuvering about, he helped me push the plane to its spot.  Pushing planes is pretty normal, I carry a bar that attached to the nose wheel so we can steer the plane as we push.  It weighs about 2700 pounds gassed up without people and luggage.  It is a bit of a chore to push solo especially since I bought my latest tire.  I splurged and got the high end ones with Kevlar belts.  They are excellent tires but stiffer and makes it hard to get rolling.  Once moving they ride well though.

After getting the plane chained down.  Yes chained, many places have ropes but some use metal chains.  I prefer ropes as they do not damage the paint if they flap up again st the bottom of the plane while attaching and removing.  Ropes are also easier to secure and have a bit of stretch.  Plane secured now to get our rental car.  In larger cities, you can call Avis, Hertz, Enterprise but at smaller spots you need to be more creative.

In Valentine you call the local Ford dealer.  Pat took my info over the phone and I emailed her my insurance and drivers license.  She left us a nice Ford Taurus parked at the airport with the keys tucked under the drivers visor.  I must admit, I asked the airport operator if he had the keys and he just smiled and said to check the car.  I looked in the car and could not find the keys but a quick call to Pat solved this.  Who leaves a nice car with the Keys in the visor, not us big city folks.

We headed over to our hotel which was rather close to the airport.  It was the first hotel I stayed in where I could see my plane from the hotel room.  No Marriott for us this time, the The Niobrara Lodge was the best the town had to offer.  To be fair it was equivalent to a Fairfield Inn.  The staff was friendly and they had our room ready even though we were a bit early for check in.

Our first stop was downtown where we walked the entire main street, it was not a long walk.  The biggest store was Youngs Western Wear that took up an entire block.  In addition to clothe you could get saddles and all manner of horse tack and ropes.  CC did find a cool T-shirt.

We then dropped by the Bunkhouse restaurant for lunch.  It was a local place and the menu reminded me of food from my childhood.  I had the open face hot roast beef sandwich, CC the grilled cheese and we split a slice of blueberry pie.  Not the healthiest but pretty good.

Our next goal was the cowboy trail.  Wikipedia describes it as "a rail trail in northern Nebraska. It is a multi-use recreational trail suitable for bicycling, walking and horseback riding. It occupies an abandoned Chicago and North Western Railway corridor."  The trail will eventually be about 320 miles long but currently about 200 miles are done stretching between Valentine and Norfolk (I'll wait a bit while you pull out Google maps).

The star of the trail is the old 148 foot tall railroad bridge.  Our hotel was near the trail and we could have walked a few miles to get to the bridge but we took the easy route and drove down to the river where they have a nice parking lot that gets you about a mile from the bridge.  We walked the bridge end to end and the views were good. except you can't really capture the bridge.  We headed back to the highway to really get a sense of the structure.

The next stop was the Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge and a Park ranger had suggested going later in the day as you were more likely to see the animals.  Valentine is at the extreme edge of Central time and sunset is not until 9:30 PM.   This gave us plenty of time to rest up for our American safari.

Around 7 PM we headed out and quickly arrived.  They have conveniently located the reserve about 5 miles from town.  Unlike Custer where we search for bison for hours, we pretty much came upon them in the first 5 minutes.  Bison are big and dangerous so we did all our watching from inside the car.  While Custer had been pretty busy and there were more people than wildlife, we were finally outnumbered and we saw a herd.  Not sure what the minimum count is to officially be a herd but 30+ was good enough for me.

The bison are spectacular and while we mostly sat and watched, we did initially position so that the Bison were on CCs side and then drove down another mile and reversed so that the Bison were on my side.  After we were bison-ed out  we drove by some prairie dogs and went to see another waterfall.  Oh and the whole time we were back on dirt roads, another dirty car.

After the waterfall we drove back to the Niobrara river launch ramp and took in the nature.  We then had the difficult decision regarding dinner.  There is not a lot in Valentine.  Valentine does have a McDonald's but we opted for Pizza Hut.  Even though we were in the wilderness, I was able to pull off the road and using an ancient 3G cell signal, order some pizza and pasta.

We picnicked in our room and I watched some TV for the first time  since beginning the trip.