Normal life has a funny way of waiting for you with things to do when you come back after leaving it for a while :wink2:
The trip was a success! I was not able to land at
all grass strips, but found quite a few.
Here's a quick summary:
Centennial, CO: APA - Home.
Holdrege, NE: HDE - Quiet field with a few cropdusters based there, landed on the turf strip. The entire way from Colorado to part of Iowa had a haze layer that smelled of burnt wood (forest fire?), all the way from the surface to 12,000'. Climbed above it to 13,500 for a while, but got tired of breathing hard and descended back into the haze.
Osceola, IA: I75 - Very deserted, pavement only with a self serve pump. A couple of kids were working on a car in one of the hangars, the younger one waved
Nice facilities.
Dwight, IL: DTG - A small airfield positioned in the middle of vast fields of wind turbines. Has two runways 90 degrees apart, both turf but one has a tiny strip of asphalt if you prefer. David, the airport manager, heard I was coming in on the radio and met me on the ground - he lives across the street. He's managed the place since the 70's, and said back then there were 40 aircraft based there. Now it's rare to see one or two transients. David insisted on putting me in a hangar for the night for free, and drove me into town to the Super 8. While waiting for him to get his car a police officer stopped by, asked for an ID, asked what I was doing, and a number of other questions. It's good to see they care, but a little saddening that you can't enjoy an evening at a small airport without appearing suspicious enough to be interrogated.
The next morning I walked back from town, a bit over 2 miles but it was good to get a bit of exercise before sitting in a small cockpit for another day. Fueled up, they took a few pictures with me (I didn't think to take out my camera), and too off for Fremont, OH. Very nice people and a good price on fuel... I recommend a stop if you're in the area!
Fremont, OH: 14G - Fairly gusty winds, so I figured it'd be a safer bet to land on the paved runway into the wind. There was a gathering of airplanes and people that day to kick off a volunteer restoration of a DC-3 on the field. The airplane was very old and ratty, and smelled of mice and mildew. I don't think they intend to fly it, just to get the community involved in fixing it up as a display. Great to see this sort of thing happening. A free hotdog, lemonade, and lots of questions later I was on my way.
Pittsfield, PA: P15 - Skirting Cleveland's bravo, I was catching up with a warm front, and had to descend from a nice tailwind-capturing altitude of 11,500 to maybe 3,500 to stay under a layer. Brokenstraw airport is a very nice turf strip tucked between the hills of Pennsylvania. The area was very wet, but the runway seemed to be in good enough shape so I landed. Not a soul in sight. There's a self serve pump in the middle of the field, but upon shutting down and investigating, there was a note saying that only local credit cards would be accepted
While strapping back in to go elsewhere, Bill the airfield's owner came by in a gator. He accepted cash for fuel, and I was soon on my way. I also learned that Tim Mara of Wings and Wheels soaring supplies flies from there...neat!
Ithaca, NY: ITH - Lower clouds on the final leg, but nowhere near scud-running; just not the clear flying from before. Accommodating folks at Taughannock Aviation had me in a hangar in short order.
Burlington, VT: BTV - A nice low 'n fast flight to Burlington south of the adirondacks and up Lake George and Champlain. Heritage flight is a good facility, albeit a bit on the expensive side and seem to think every plane is a biz-jet. They even laid out a red carpet [for a tube and fabric airplane]!
Returned to Ithaca for the rest of the week, but soon it was time to head west once again.
Salem, OH: 38D - Weather was spotty, but not terrible, so I launched with only a general area in mind. I flew the return trip a little more ad-hoc, and was even able to find some grass for the first stop! This strip is rough. I would have been better off landing on the parallel pavement. There was absolutely nobody around. Another aircraft landed, but taxied away into some T-Hangars. The self-serve fuel approached $6/gallon, which I can only imagine does wonders to spur on general aviation in the area
There was no accessible restroom in sight, so with full fuel tanks and bladder I took off in search of better places to land.
Wabash, IN: IWA - This place as in great shape. Nice facilities, new ramps and runways. Nobody was there, but it was an easy stop.
Fort Madison, IA: FSW - Landed just before sunset. Foreflight had indicated there was a motel within 1/2 mile of the airport, so it seemed like a good place to stop. After tying down securing the airplane, I started the walk to town. Apparently there is no motel within that distance, and I was looking at a 3 mile walk to town...not bad considering it was a nice night. About two miles later the sun had set, and I was stopped by the local police (again!). Same drill: "ID?", "what are you doing here?", "people use that airport?!". This officer was a lot friendlier however, and ended up driving me to a hotel five miles away (the nearest one...heh). Took a cab back in the morning and set off for the last day of flying.
Manhattan, KS: MHK - Skirted a few thunderstorms on the way in. Good controllers, quick fuel, on to the next. Restricted area was cold so took off due west.
Goodland, KS: GLD - Last stop. "You here for fuel?" "Yep" "I've never seen a pitts stop without taking fuel!" Haha, he was right, small tanks. No self serve, but the price was dramatically cut by being a member of AOPA. Probably paid for this year's membership with that alone.
Lucky but unlucky footnote. A few days later at home airport, on taxiing out to go flying, cleared to take off and one of the mains had gone completely flat. Annoying, but good place to be!
A few pics:
The haze/smoke layer over Nebraska
Osceola, IA
Dwight, IL at sunset
Walking back from town
A storm over Ohio
Somewhere in Pennsylvania
Field + Mower + Ambition = This
Illinois
Turbines!
Turbines in progress
