This past Sunday four of us spent the morning flying around in a Citabria and my Maule looking for a new breakfast place. We took so long that when we finally found a spot, it was lunch time. When we returned to Pegasus about 2:00 pm two of the group left to do chores. It was a perfectly clear day, in the low 60's, with no wind. My buddy Tim and I decided this was too good a day to end it so we rolled out his beautifully restored Champ, named "Wild Thing", and started it up to go look for little airports neither of us had flown into yet. We chose to go north, deeper into the Poconos.

After landing at a small, deserted airport with a perfectly maintained park-like lawn surrounding a medium sized pond, we decided to fly over to a large lake owned by a utility company. The sun was warm and the rays were slanting down over the good sized hills, with trees bare of leaves, around the lake. The lake runs east-west for quite a distance. The waters were smooth with only a sailboat drifting along casting a triangular shadow. Without saying a word we dropped down to just a couple hundred feet above the still waters. The engine noise seemed to fade away. The red-orange sun was behind us as we slowly flew a lazy path along the lake. The side window was partially opened, letting in a cool breeze that smelled of moisture and a touch of smoke. A few seagulls floated on the surface. A house on a hill along the shore was burning leaves. The whitish smoke rolled down the hill and pooled in a dark inlet off the lake. We dropped lower. Left around a small island, right around another and over a couple late season fishermen in a skiff. It felt like we were in a trance. Seconds became minutes. The silence deepened. We followed what looked like a small, three wave wake - but there was no boat to leave it. It stretched on over the lake. I could sense that I was going to remember this flight. The far shore suddenly neared and the engine noise became audible once again as we gently banked up and over the hills. The ride back to our airport was quiet and peaceful. A special autumn flight.

Skystrider, I don't know what you do for a living, but you should write. You had me sitting in that back seat of the champ seeing everything and smelling those burning leaves. At first I thought damn, no pictures, but after the read, I didn't need any.

Thanks patrol guy. I am glad you enjoyed the story.

That is a great story. But the only thing missing is some pictures.

Skystrider, great snapshot from your flight, if nothing else maybe you could get some work writing marketing materials for new Champs/LSAs. Daydream imagery like that would have people lining up for a taste of that kind of transcendent moment.

Regarding breakfast places in your neck of the woods -- have you tried Blairstown (1N7) or Sky Manor (N40)? Either should be a pretty quick flight for you and both have great on-field restaurants. Sky Manor is my favorite and then you're just across the river from Van Sant, so you can drop in there to see what kind of cool hardware is out playing for the day.

Vick wrote:Regarding breakfast places in your neck of the woods -- have you tried Blairstown (1N7) or Sky Manor (N40)? Either should be a pretty quick flight for you and both have great on-field restaurants. Sky Manor is my favorite and then you're just across the river from Van Sant, so you can drop in there to see what kind of cool hardware is out playing for the day.

Hey Vick, yup - both are good places to eat and I agree, Sky Manor is better. As a matter of of fact that is the airport I first soloed at, in a Champ, ohhh one or three decades ago. My youngest brother has his sailplane over at Van Sant, so I am a might familiar with that place to.

So how do you know this area so well?

Nice flight! Your story made me feel like Ii was right there with you!!

vallilee wrote:Nice flight! Your story made me feel like Ii was right there with you!!

Haha! I am pretty sure you were there because I wasn't flying the plane! I was too busy daydreaming!

Skystrider wrote:Hey Vick, yup - both are good places to eat and I agree, Sky Manor is better. As a matter of of fact that is the airport I first soloed at, in a Champ, ohhh one or three decades ago. My youngest brother has his sailplane over at Van Sant, so I am a might familiar with that place to.

So how do you know this area so well?

I'm a NJ native, grew up in that area flying out of Hackettstown - my folks still have a Champ and Tri-Pacer there. Of all the places I've flown Andover-Aeroflex and Van Sant remain two of my favorites. And it's hard to beat weaving around balloons coming out of Alexandria on a perfect summer evening followed by a landing on the grass at dusk back at N05. When I describe that area to people most don't believe that exists in NJ.

Skystrider....It's just one of those times when you just wish you could freeze the clock and this feeling could go on forever. Every once in a while there comes a day when I just don't want to park the plane because everything that you love has come together to make something special. Sometimes it comes on before you even realize that it's there whether it involes flying, with friends, or any other occasion. Wish I could have been there too. HC

Rod,
That is the kind of flight that makes it all worth while. We all can agree that no two flights are the same even to the same location but when the recipe all comes together it can be a bliss, zen like moment in time that affects your state of mind. BTW I agree you do have an artisitc silver tongue in a literary sense.
Thanks for sharing the ride.
Flysafe
Bill