John & Anne Wiley

2011/02/11

Comfort and Suffering

Filed under: Aviation,Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Random,Tripp,White North Adventure — John @ 04:02

We’re totally cozy in our Edmonton hotel, but Tripp’s shivering outside in the cold again like Boise missing the heated hangar she got in Lethbridge. Hopefully she’s just hibernating, huddled under her spiffy new Kennon cover. If we get a chance to fly her while here in the next few weeks, we’ll pay the Edmonton Flying Club to put her in a heated hangar overnite to give her a gentle waking from hibernation.

The journey was magnificent, with vistas and adventures aplenty. Flying was mostly uneventful, though slow due to strong headwinds. We had one short bumpy passage between Butte and Helena, MT but the rest was smooth. Unlike my notion that it could be boring to fly over nothing but snow, it was simply breathtaking. Though we snapped relatively few pix, I hope some of those we did take will give you an impression of the vast views we traversed.

So we’re holed up amid two tons of cargo spread out in the room, with more words & pix to follow as we catch up on rest between helping with chores and babysitting. Meanwhile, here’s part of our view on final approach to Edmonton City Centre airport.

5433 Edmonton Winter

5433 Edmonton Winter

2011/02/10

Courage Under Flyer

Filed under: Aviation,Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,People,Random,White North Adventure — John @ 16:48

Well, last nite after posting I took a look at one of the last photos from yesterday’s flight and just about choked. Just across the border into Canada approaching Lethbridge I noticed something moving a few thousand feet below and perhaps half a mile away. Looking closer it turned out to be a helicopter flying along a power line, and when it stopped to hover over one of the towers I snapped a few pix. Well not only was it hovering within a few feet of the tower in strong gusting winds well below zero – in the photo you can see there’s someone standing with one foot on the tower and the other on the helicopter skid. I’ve posted a larger version of this on the Photo Page (link in the right column here), but here’s a crop at full res of the helo and high-wire performer.

5369 Daredevil

5369 Daredevil

We’re preparing for a bumpy flight to Edmonton, but this pic is so amazing I just had to take a moment to share it. More when time permits…

Into White

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,Random,White North Adventure — John @ 05:29

OK, Tripp’s happy in a heated hangar and we’re cozy in a nice new Lethbridge hotel, sated with especially tasty food, and ready to share some pix from our new adventure. This is the first time we’ve flown into hard Winter and it’s a whole new beautiful. But first a few snaps from SBA to RHV (San Jose).

For example, here’s a Barbie version of what we were leaving. Mid-70s, sunny, calm and bucolic. Easy to take.

5271 Villa Barbie

5271 Villa Barbie

The view, though pathetic compared with the panorama we were taking in a quarter mile above, must be rather remarkable for ground level. The little red car looks so like a toy to me, the whole scene takes on the quality of a Barbie dream set.

After a fuel stop in SLO, Morro Rock looked magical as usual but this time with a “volcano” top.

5282 Misty Morro

5282 Misty Morro

After a leisurely landing at RHV, as Anne rummaged for something packed in Tripp I strolled toward the terminal to look at a murder of crows. They were sitting quietly in the tree enjoying the cooling evening breeze. Well, not completely quietly. OK, they were raising a horrific raucous din cackling and trumpeting in their loudest grating harsh voices.

5310 Crow Congretation

5310 Crow Congretation

Now you may know I’m sometimes impish, prankish and annoying. So of course I had to “humiliate” (my niece’s term for it) the poor gentle crows. Suddenly raising my hands from my sides as if to take off, I made a loud “Caw!!”

5312 Fear and Loathing

5312 Fear and Loathing

There was a varied and unmelodious response as they first startled into flight, then realized I was vastly too fat to fly as they so easily do sans airplane, and they began to diverge. Some flew directly away giving alarm calls. Others seemed almost embarrassed to have been tricked and formed a scold choir. A few left the flock to fly a little closer, perhaps to examine this idiotic creature or maybe to memorize me as enemy of their murder. One of these days I must learn to speak crow, and possibly also some avian manners. As it stands though, I quite enjoyed the exercise and pretend it was artistically motivated to get an interesting photo. Am I bad? 🙂

2011/02/05

Surprise Sunset

Filed under: Happiness,Has Photos,SB Region — John @ 02:22

OK, I know the sun sets every day and here in SB we’re able to see it more often than in cloudier parts of the world, but still! Tonight seemed to be settling quietly toward dark looking out our living room window toward the mountains, but when Anne glanced out the kitchen to the West she suddenly got excited. Coaxing me to get away from the computer for a look, she smiled when I gasped and ran for the camera. 🙂

5254 Unexpected Color

5254 Unexpected Color

It was so brilliant, the colors seem to have overwhelmed the camera’s sensor and there wasn’t time to experiment with settings as it changed so quickly.

5253 Surprise Sunset

5253 Surprise Sunset

Off to the Northwest there was a gentle curve of pastel tinted cloud that normally would have been remarkable, but next to the explosion in the West it offered a place to rest your eyes.

5256 Color Curve

5256 Color Curve

Even as it began to fade, the show was remarkable.

5257 Deepening Colors

5257 Deepening Colors

2011/02/03

Flashback

Filed under: Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,People,Random,SB Region — John @ 21:51

Long ago (a few weeks), I shared this shot of UCSB here on our blog. I also sent it to Edhat and put a larger version on my Photo Page. Thanks to Dreamyshade’s comment on the Photo Page version, I’m looking back at the pic with my eyes open. I’m fascinated by old stuff, and have often imagined looking in the attic of an old house where I’d discover some forgotten treasure. It might even be valuable: I think it was last year someone did that and sold it for several million, but I digress.

4466 What's Inside?

4466 What's Inside?

Every time I fly into, out of, or around SBA this is in sight. Given my fascination with old stuff, how can I have possibly not noticed this bunker? Will I remember next time we’re out where Tripp is parked, to see if it’s visible even from there? Even if it only held WWII munitions for the Marine Air operation once based at SBA, wouldn’t it be cool to look around and in this thing? What if it was used as an alternate command post in the event of attack, and there’s an old desk with a hot line and paperwork or charts? Well, I’ve sent an item to Edhat about it so if they put it on we’ll probably get lots of answers from the history experts that hang out there. Meanwhile, in answer to Dreamyshade’s comment here are crops of the other two bunker areas from pix of that day, slightly reduced from full size.

4466 Bunker Busting

4466 Bunker Busting?

4469 Bunker Busted?

4469 Bunker Busted?

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