Flying, driving or commercial

I had planned a day off for an activity that fell through so we all of a sudden had a long weekend. We discussed some options and in the end settled on a quick visit to Rachel in Virginia. 

Now the big question, how to travel. Yes you know the answer, this is an airplane blog.  We flew.  I do get asked is that practical?  I'll lay it out and let you decide.  First off, the equipment we have is very capable and can do a lot but it has its limits.  Thus even if you plan to fly, you might end up driving if you have to get there on a certain schedule.

Serious rain, thunderstorms and ice are a no go. Also, I am risk averse so while I can fly in the clouds when they are very low, this creates a higher risk in the event of a failure so my personal minimums are much higher than what is legal. This can mean waiting for weather to clear out or diverting around weather enroute. 

That said my last 2 airline trips had 9 hours total delay due to weather so it's not just our equipment. 

So the real factors are cost and time.  Driving is the cheapest by far. Round trip would be about 1200 miles.  Most car costs are sunk such as insurance but wear and tear on the car and tires is pretty direct as is gas.   Figure 20 cents a mile plus 48 gallons. It works out to $384. It also takes 22 hours time for door to door and is a bit exhausting. Note with the recent flooding it might be an hour or two more.  The car lets you carry a lot and weight is not a factor so pack it in.

Commercial airline service is pretty to Virginia.  Door to door it is about 7.5 hours so 15 total. Prices range from $350-$950. I am guessing we could have gotten 2 tickets for about $600 each.  Add in $50 for a bag 2 ways as we hauled some stuff up here.  You also need a rental car which Avis provided for $80 with all fees and taxes. Weight and bulk are an issue on the airlines so pack wisely.  Total cost $1330. 

So now to the Airplane.  Travel time door to door 5 hours with fuel/rest stop included. Can be done in a bit less, we clocked 4.5 on the way home but did not dally as we were watching building weather.  See all that rain we skirted around above.  Round trip works out to 10 hours total.  The plane is a sunk cost and much like a car I will pay for hangar and insurance regardless.  Fuel and engine reserve are the bulk of the expenses.  We will burn 90 gallons round trip. That and $25 per hour will cover the eventual engine and prop overhaul as well as wear and tear.  This works out to $510.  Throw in the rental car and aircraft parking at $80 and $50 and the total price is $640.   As for hauling stuff, We can carry close to 400 pounds in addition to ourselves and full fuel.  We need to be a bit strategic as to how we distribute the weight but I have a program for that.

In the end driving will always be the cheapest option but for a weekend visit, not so practical to spend  over a third of your time driving. Also you won't make it home till late Sunday. Commercial is reliable but with 2 people gets expensive fast.  Also you can't change your schedule without a big penalty and throw in a third person and it gets out of hand fast.  

Now this assumes you have a plane just sitting around but if you do, then the choice is easy.   Ohhhh and the purpose of the trip.  We had a great visit.   CC and I went off for a nice hike at a nature area while Rachel did her work and we did a bunch of other fun stuff.  You may have noticed some pictures above.

We used signature again, they are the only choice and while they are a bit pricey, the service is excellent. On arrival, before I could get the plane cleaned up, they had our car by the plane and the luggage loaded for us.  This morning they had the plane literally at the front door.  

Busted Forecast

I always wanted to be a weatherman.  Mostly because it seems like one job where you can be wrong a lot and still have a job.  To be fair the aviation forecasters are right most of the time and do an excellent job.  Yesterday they missed it.

I had to fly to Charleston and then on to Myrtle Beach in the morning.  My return was later afternoon over the same route.  Forecast called for some showers over Northern Florida mid day but otherwise, good VFR weather along the route.

On the way North there were some showers and a lot of un-forecast clouds along the coast.  My strategy was to go high and it worked.  Went up to 9,500 and was over all of it.

The Charleston weather said clear so I was pretty sure it would be easy to get back down.  Leaving Charleston I worked my way around some puffy clouds and then some rain showers.  Since the flight was short, going high was not a great option.  The further I went the lower I went.  2,000 was bumpy and hot but the AC fixed one of those.

I had several hours in Myrtle beach and the skies were blue and clear.  The forecast rain never developed in Florida but, South Carolina and Georgia went the wrong direction.  An area of low clouds and rain developed and worsened as the day proceeded.  Heading back to Charleston I flew the coast which was pretty clear but as I approached the airport, it was surrounded by showers.  A bit of maneuvering kept us dry and in the clear.  I dropped some people off and headed home and that's when it got more difficult.

I tried the coast but it had areas of showers.  I headed inland a bit and then pushed back to the coast as it was looking better.   At Hilton Head, I ran up against a wall of clouds that forced me to head down, turn around and head North before finding an area of relatively clear skies.  Actually they were full of clouds but I was able to fly between layers until I made it to Florida where it was once again sunny.  Remember this was the only place that was supposed to have clouds.

I took some video of the clouds, sunny in the morning and then a bit junky later.

Adel Again

Last year we had a bit of an adventure going to the Adel GA monthly fly in BBQ.  I had been meaning to go again but weather and stuff kept getting in the way.  Today, things lined up nicely and we headed over for some ribs, beans, slaw, salads and talking.

I also just got a new GoPro 6 so it was a good time to try it out.  It is best not to be pilot and camera man so I brought along some assistance.  I thought the flight there was going to be clear but I filed IFR both ways just in case.  The just in case was a good idea as it was broken clouds most of the way.

Approaching Adel, we were told that we would have to circumnavigate the MOA (military operations area). Now if you are VFR you can transit so we took a watch and wait approach.  No need to start going around too early, our plan was to cancel IFR if conditions permitted and finish the last few miles VFR.

Luck was on our side as the controller, gave us a descent and told us we could transit the area IFR.  Sometimes good things come to those that wait.  Arriving at Adel, we had a twin Cessna which was a conflict.  We maneuvered behind him and after giving him plenty of room we turned final.  Well he missed the turn off and on short final he turned around on the runway.  We had room to land and stop but chose the safer action which was to go around.

With the new GoPro adding some video
Use 1080p and full screen for best viewing

Second time was the charm and we topped off and were soon enjoying airplanes and BBQ.  We left a bit after noon and the storms had begun to build by the coast.  We worked through some buildups but luckily by the time we arrived, the rain had moved South and West and with a slight North deviation we cleared the weather.

After that it was a straight in visual to 14 and back to the hangar.  The food and fellowship were quite good, we will be back.

The wet road home

On the way out we did about 10 minutes of dodging to avoid some showers.  Coming home it all started very easy with helpful controllers and great weather.

Starting up in Greenville we called ground for our clearance.  We had it right away and were given taxi instructions.  Greenville is an air carrier airport.  Think Delta, United, etc so you sort of expect more services and a bit more formality.  This morning it was quiet.  Tower and ground was the same person.

At the end of the runway, before we could complete our checks, we were cleared to take off.  We declined and requested a delay to finish our checklist.  Once finished we were number one and on our way.

It was a straight shot until we passed Augusta and then I started to get busy, we skirted a small shower and started looking towards our arrival.

The East Coast from Charleston to Brunswick was popping with storms.  So I pulled a Wabit out of my hat.  I requested a deviation to the West over WABIT intersection.

Again we had contrasting views.  To the left storms and some window reflection.

To the right, blue skies.

The Wabit worked and soon we were around the rain and looking good for our arrival until a storm parked over our airport.  Initially they wanted to vector us through it but we declined and asked to try the visual from the opposite direction where it was clearing.  That was not available so we decided to pass by and land in Saint Augustine as it was clear.

We made a quick stop, topped off the tanks and then flew the 10 minutes back to our field.  Everything went smoothly in the end with the exception of hitting about half the bugs in South Carolina and Georgia.  CC made quick work of wiping the wings while I got the high spots.  Then it was back in the hangar until the next flight.

A day on the town

Those who read the last post will remember we just arrived in Greenville, SC for a quick get away. After finding that our old house was standing, we ventured off to meet some friends.  Ironically they were not old Greenville friends but some recent transplants.  We went by and saw their very cool new house and then headed off to downtown for some lunch and reminiscing.

When we lived in Greenville there were falls at the end of main street but no park.  Somewhere in the last few decades they built a park with a really cool curved suspension bridge.  As luck would have it, the bridge was under renovation.

We had to trek down the old fashion way to see the falls and take selfies.  They look sort of small until you see the people in the corner and get the full scale.

We spent a bit more time walking down the river looking at the ruins of the old mill.

Now how do you tell these are ruins from a mill?  CC told me and I am sure she is right.  I did enjoy some of the nature, like this tree growing out the side of a hill.  I could have done with a little less heat.  I figured going to the foothills would cool things off, instead it was hotter.

Now one cool thing was staying at the Marriott by the airport.  First they had a double shower head.  Never underestimate a great shower.  Second, for the second time I could technically see my plane from the hotel room.  Yes, it is just a blur in the picture but if I had a longer lens it would have been sharp.

In the evening we went downtown and acted trendy.  We saw an improv group at the Coffee Underground.

Yes it is underground and the theatre is even less fancy.

After the show we strolled Main Street and stopped by the hotel where we stayed the night of our wedding.  After that we grabbed some food and called it a night.

Greenville, SC

Long weekend and empty nest means Roadtrip!!!!  Actually air trip.  We once lived in Greenville, SC so we decided to go back and visit.  September is usually a lousy travel month due to the frequent tropical weather but we made it work this time.

We woke up and headed out Saturday morning.  This should have avoided the storms but there were a few just North of town.  We initially thought we would need to fly up the coast to Savannah before turning towards Greenville.  As we passed the first big shower we could see a clear path pretty much on course.

We skirted one small shower, enjoying a plethora of rainbows as we maneuvered.  Though the weather looked ominous at times off to one side, we always kept an escape route available.

Once clearing Brunswick GA, we were able to settle back for a straight shot to Laurens, SC.  Laurens? You said we were going to Greenville.  We were but they have priced their gas as if they are adding gold dust so we opted to land 10 minutes short and gorge on cheap gas, before hopping over to GSP or Greenville Spartanburg International.

The FBO at GSP is very friendly and actually charges only $22.50 for the first night parking and fees and then $7.50 a night thereafter.  They waive the $22.5 if you buy gas but due to the price difference, cheap gas was the better plan.

I don't begrudge them the fees.  They parked us upon arrival, are open 24 hours in case you need anything, provide clean facilities, free waters, sodas, cookies and even ice cream.  I just got a cookie, water and my rental car, which they thoughtfully pulled up front to the main door.

We were soon on the road, even with the fuel stop, door to rolling out of the airport was 2:40, much better than driving.  Our first stop was our first house.  Back in the early 90s, I took some paper and a ruler and drew house plans.  Over 2 decades later it is still standing, pretty amazing.  No one was out and about so I just took a look from the street.  We both agreed it might have been creepy to knock on their door and ask for a tour.