John & Anne Wiley

2010/07/09

Shall We?

Filed under: Aviation,Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,NxNW Adventure,Random,Tripp — John @ 04:08

We’re seriously contemplating a “North by Northwest Adventure” – another long flying trip – this time in Tripp. This time going to the aviation extravaganza that was called “Oshkosh” when I first began dreaming about it 30 years ago. Now it’s apparently AirVenture, but is still at KOSH airport in Wisconsin. The dream right now is a two-day flight out, several days tenting KOSH and flying the area by day (maybe into the DC area), then up into Canada and across to at least Edmonton. Probably then on to Smithers, BC and then detour back to follow the Alcan Highway up to Alaska before heading home down the West Coast. Lots of planning already happening beyond what was required for Big Adventure I, due to the border crossings and possible DC flying.

So we’re seeking your help. Shall we go for it? Which of the two initial tentative routes on the map below do you suggest, and why? Where are the places we must see on the fairly direct flight to KOSH, and the slower flight from there? Any stops with on-airport camping that you’d recommend on these routes? Should we carry a bear gun even though we’ll be flying the highways? Any other questions we should be asking?

BA2 Route v.2

BA2 Route v.2 (click to enlarge)

So above are the current options on the table. As with most images on this blog, click to enlarge and keep clicking until you’ve seen the largest version. The orange line from SBA to OSH is our second idea, enabling a glimpse at more states (yes we’re going back in early Fall!). Also possibly a detour in SD to see Badlands and Rushmore at least from the air. This will be our first time flying there, though we’ve toured by car before we met. You’re invited to Comment or use the Contact link to reach us privately. More news as it happens…

2010/07/06

The Fireworks Begin!

Filed under: Aviation,by Anne,Flying,Has Photos,Random,SB Region — Anne @ 00:17

I took this just as the show began. It shows the Fireworks in relation to the twinkling city lights and mountains.  What an amazing night that was for us, and though the photos are so fun to view after the fact, seeing these 3-D in the air was Wondrous! ~Anne

1223 Fireworks in context

1223 Fireworks in context

2010/07/05

Flying the Fireworks!

Filed under: Aviation,Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Random,SB Region,Tripp — John @ 05:42

At past fireworks displays we’ve seen, I noticed plane(s) circling and wondered what it would look like from up there. So this year, with Tripp tied to the ground looking frisky out at SBA, we decided to check out the show from above.

7682 Wow!

7682 Wow!

The first one we saw evoked a gasp! How truly magnificent it was from the air! Even though we were 1/2 mile away it was crisp and breathtaking. Something about slowly circling them gave a special “3D” quality to the display. Plus we were above all the smoke that usually dims the show from the ground. The only thing missing was the “Oooh” from the watching crowd, but we did see a surging flicker of camera flashes all during the show for miles in every direction. In the one above, you can see lights of Stearn’s Wharf on the left and harbor on the right, and light reflecting on the sands of West Beach. Note that some of these are much larger than the version displayed with this text, so if there’s one you like you can click on it.

7641 Well Red

7641 Well Red

Because we were above the smoke, colors were especially brilliant and the light reflecting from the white sands of West Beach amplified the effect.

7651 Fire Flower

7651 Fire Flower

The smoke was gently wafting out over the water, so when we were flying over the water the smoke showed up more as backlit foreground. After some high bursts, lower ones would be partially in smoke and this one created a pink floral arrangement effect.

7661 Canon Fire

7661 Canon Fire

We enjoyed the fluffy white ones, and the way the starbust accented it. I also like how this snap caught the canons firing more.

7734 Green Machine

7734 Green Machine

I like how the sand bar mingles with the reflected green in this one, and how the wharf joins beach and harbor to frame the next against the inky black water.

7755 Framed Fire

7755 Framed Fire

7791 Red Domination

7791 Red Domination

Timing is everything. As the blue was just fading, the red burst and all but wiped out the brilliant blue that still remained.

7830 Blue Streaks

7830 Blue Streaks

The smoke from the previous firework blooms anew in blue as the next burst lights it from close by.

7934 Red Curtain

7934 Red Curtain

There’s a curtain of red trailing to the beach below this one.

7954 Finale

7954 Finale

Another plane joined us at the end, so we went further out to give them a spot closer to the show. Just as the spectacular finale began we went behind the smoke, but this shot of the start captures some of the intensity. Wish these photos could begin to convey how amazing this was! I wonder if watching fireworks in any other way will ever be the same.

2010/07/04

Guess

Filed under: Aviation,Flying,Has Photos,Random,SB Region,Tripp — John @ 10:13

Take a look at this photo from 7/4/06 and try to guess what we’re thinking about doing tonight. Hint, click on the pic to see the largest version, and take note of the area to the right of the white firework burst.

0061 July42006 Perspective

0061 July 4, 2006 Perspective

In case you’re wondering, this was taken from the SBCC East Campus overlook that had been recently spiffed up. We’d gone there several years before, and even then a small crowd was taking advantage of that vantage point.

BFR

Filed under: Aviation,Flying,Happiness,Inner World — John @ 02:51

Pilots already know what this post is about, but for everyone else BFR = Biennial flight review, yet another safety feature for aviation. Basically it means that every two years, pilots go flying with an expert flight instructor who reviews our knowledge and skills. This is my second one (both with Terry Harris), and again I had fun and learned some things.

This time we purposely flew into IMC (more pilot jargon, basically meaning clouds in this case). My license and interests both prohibit that kind of flying, but like all pilots I’ve had some training in it and like many pilots I wanted to practice my skills. So flying with Terry today gave me the opportunity to safely and legally practice flying in clouds with someone who teaches airline pilots how to do that. 🙂

Santa Barbara was uncharacteristically cooperative in this. Usually our town has clear skies this time of year, as it did yesterday and probably will tomorrow. Today though, the low clouds lingered late into the afternoon. ATC (sorry, Air Traffic Control) cooperated too, by allowing us to fly a long time at the altitude that would put us in clouds.

By now any non-pilots reading this may be muttering, “Why would you make so much effort to fly in clouds, when you could easily have flown in the clear above or below the thin layer?” Because I never fly in clouds, I want to feel confident in case I ever have to. It’s very rare, but sometimes pilots have inadvertently flown into clouds and become disoriented. I was already comfortable, and now I’m more confident.

I found it tiring, because there was a lot to keep track of with the added layer of complexity involved in following ATC instructions rather than just putting the plane on a course for getting back out of the clouds we simulated having inadvertently flown into. I’m glad of that extra distraction, because it further increased my comfort in handling extra challenges.

The fun part though, is getting even more comfortable with an entirely different type of flying than my normal. Rather than trusting my body’s strong signals about what to do, I demonstrated ability to trust what the instruments and my brain were telling me. If you’ve never done this, no amount of verbiage can convey the experience. Nor does flying with “foggles” that simulate flying in clouds by blurring your view outside the cockpit. Flying without visual reference like in actual clouds has magical powers to confound your senses. It feels like navigating around on a constantly tilting surface in total darkness – weightless. Unlike foggles that often leave me mildly nauseous, flight in clouds is just slightly giddy and dizzy feeling.

Now I have a question for you: was this totally boring? I’m curious, because it’s obviously of interest to me but I don’t know if anyone else cares about stuff like this. 🙂

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