Winter Splendor

With Winter approaching fast, I’ve found myself thinking about this flight so thought I’d share it. In February of 2006, one of those magical winter days arrived with cold, clear skies inviting pilots and planes to come play. Michelle and I, flying my 172 left Chehalis at 8:00 am and spent the entire day exploring the mountains of Oregon.

Here we are at Country Squire with Mt Hood as a backdrop.

Then we got up close and personal with Mt. Jefferson. Please note that this photo was not zoomed in.
You cannot always fly this close to mountains, sometimes winds or other conditions make this unsafe, but today all the peaks had the welcome mat out.
Here is Mt. Washington.

This area along the Oregon Cascades from Jefferson south to Mt Bachelor are all set in an area that was previously volcanic. This is Three Finger Jack with The Sisters in the background.

Our flight required a great deal of circling to get just the right picture. Outside air temperature was in the upper 20’s and we had a window open for much of the flight – Darn near froze, but sacrifices must be made to “get the shot.” I was flying and Michelle would say “wing up” or “turn more west” as she focused and framed.

We stopped at Bend OR for fuel and lunch. Professional Air is a great FBO and treated us like royalty. The runway was clear but snow remained in patches on the taxiways and parking, much to my delight – first time on snow. So we took our signature “Foot Photo”. Don't laugh. I can go back through the foot pix and remember who what when where. It really works.

Now we flew southwest and visited Mt. Bachelor and the Three Sisters. Note old cinder cone in the foreground, and Broken Top at the near right.

Setting sun as we approach home airport and the end of a perfect flying day.