Finally, the past two weeks found me and Path off on a cross country trip – to Arizona.
With the addition of a fuel flow meter (Christmas gift from my hubby) I’d realized having long range tanks could mean very few stops. Plan was to fuel once en route to Lake Havasu, at Truckee-Tahoe airport near Reno. Unfortunately the plane out flew my bladder so an earlier stop was required, just 2 hours out of Chehalis at Lake County in Oregon. I topped up the tanks and flew south, into head winds up to 25 knots and very rough air. A long anticipated flight over Lake Tahoe was not as envisioned due to haze, snow glare and bounce. Just over an hour short of Havasu, I’d had enough and landed at Shoshone for some time on something not moving, like solid ground. A short walk into town was the respite I needed. Even though the flight was difficult at times, it felt so very good to be flying 864 miles across several states, over familiar and new territory. Photo below is I-15 looking east.
I arrived at Lake Havasu with 20 gallons remaining in the tanks.
I sampled more of Arizona with flights to Buckeye to see my new house, a side trip to Wickenburg, and back to Havasu all the while enjoying sunshine and temps in the upper 70’s to mid 80’s. And people ask me why I want to move there! Below: Colorado River south of Lake Havasu.
The flight home was perfection. I left Havasu at 8:00 am, flying to Tehachapi where I followed a 172 into the pattern. As I tied down, a man pulled up in a bright red truck with “The Apple Shed Restaurant” printed on the side – the very place I planned to visit for breakfast! Turns out the driver was the 172 pilot, creator and still part owner of the restaurant and gift shop. He proudly gave me a grand tour of the airport and then the restaurant. George didn’t exaggerate a bit – the food here is top notch. Be sure to try one of their unique versions of Eggs Benedict. George kept me company over coffee as we talked food and of course, flying.
Leaving Tehachapi I flew along the western edge of the Sierras spotting Yosemite’s El Capitan and Half Dome.
There is no way to describe the richness and beauty of this area – even photos can only provide hints. Back in “home” territory I made my next stop at Lebanon Oregon to take advantage of Mo Gas priced at $3.35. My longest non-stop flight ended here - 600 miles and just under 6 hours.Washington welcomed me home with rain and visibility went to 5 miles, occasionally less, as I passed through squalls.
Chehalis was kinder with broken at 10 thousand. Good to be home after a long day’s flying. Good to have finally gotten in those long flights.