Spring Break 2014

Last month was our 5th annual visit to Treasure Cay, Bahamas.  We had a fabulous time and stayed
at the Bahama Beach Club in John Cash's unit named "Bahama Breeze".  We have stayed there once before on our Memorial Day Weekend 2010 visit.  All the places we have stayed have been great and Bahamas Breeze has one of the best views that allow you to enjoy the beauty of Treasure Cay Beach even while inside!  I think only Pam's condo (Sandollar Dreams) tops this feature so far!

I had an itch before our trip to change up our route to the Bahamas.  The default route is to proceed down the coast of Florida until you get to Melbourne, then turn out over the water and head to Freeport, then direct into Treasure Cay (MYAT).  I have noticed over the years that a lot of aircraft seem to be arriving into MYAT from the northwest.  The problem with that route is that if you turn out early to make it happen, ATC needs you to be at 13,000 feet or above to provide radar services.  I really wanted to come in over the very northern part of the Abacos to see how much better the views below might be before landing.  So I took a chance and filed IFR for a route that would take me to Melbourne and then direct to Treasure Cay; basically cutting out Freeport.

I filed for 8000 feet and got cleared as filed!  Unfortunately it didn't stay that way, but it all worked out in the end.  I wasn't worried about the over-the-water time because it was almost the same by the time you reach Walker's Cay.  Just before we reached Daytona Beach, ATC offered us direct to Treasure Cay so I said yes!  As soon as we were handed off to Orlando Approach, we were diverted back south to stay out of some active restricted areas.  Once we were allowed to head for our destination again, I was told I either needed to climb to 13,000 feet or proceed further south towards Grand Bahama Island to maintain radar services.  I didn't want to do either.  So after thinking about it for a minute, I asked ATC if I could cancel IFR and just proceed VFR with flight following and stay with them for as long as I could at 7500 feet.  This may not sound like a big deal, but I wasn't sure how this would be handled since I was still smack in the middle of the ADIZ and didn't want to cause any problems.  ATC, and now I was talking to Miami Center, said no problem!  So we continued on and surprisingly we were able to stay in radar service with them quite a bit further than they had informed.

The flight over the ocean was peaceful and soon we could see Walker's Cay.  We cancelled flight following and descended to about 2000 feet as we cruised along the North Abaco cays until we reached the Treasure Cay airport.  This change to the routine was definitely worth it!  The views were amazing.  Abby and I took turns pointing out the sights and taking pictures.  Unfortunately Kristi missed the whole thing since she pretty much slept the whole flight until just before we landed.  Oh well, she liked the pictures though!

Our favorite taxi driver, Sydney Hart, was at the airport when we arrived.  Clearing Immigration & Customs was the usual painless experience except since our last visit we now have to pay a $50 landing fee to Customs.  Personally, I'm still not happy about the new fees like a lot of other pilots are, but the Bahamian Government wins this one because it's still such an amazing place to enjoy.  There are still now tie-down fees at MYAT so that's good.

We got to the Bahama Beach Club around 1 pm and were very happy to find the condo and our golf cart ready and waiting!  We made a quick trip to the grocery store for some essentials and then hit the beach!  We spent most mornings on the playing on the beach and then after lunch we would hang out at the pool.  There seemed to be a lot of folks around, but not as many as last year.  Unlike last year's chilly stay, we enjoyed almost perfect weather all week!

This year we ended up making most of our meals at the condo.  We enjoyed a few lunches and treats, like conch fritters, at the pool grill, but it was just easier to do things for ourselves and mainly on our schedule!  A few times a week the Bahama Beach Club has themed dinner nights.  If you do go, the Friday Steak Night is the best!  Pay for the upgrade and get the Filet & Lobster Tail.  You will not be disappointed.  We didn't end up attending any of these dinners this time, but the girls enjoyed the after dinner bonfires that are usually done.

I did get to dive two days, but most mornings for me started off with a nice long walk on the gorgeous Treasure Cay Beach.  I had different walking partners each morning and what a pair of posers they are!

We all went one morning towards the west end of the area to a place called Carleton Point.  Carleton Point is the area where loyalist refugees from New Your City settled in 1783.  The winds had picked up earlier in the week for a little bit and the girls were able to find some very cool treasures that had washed up.

By most afternoons, we were all pretty worn out from the days' activities.  It didn't bother me to just chill out in the condo with some rum punch and enjoy the view while the girls got some down time.  Towards the last half of the week the low tide cycle had shifted to the late afternoon which meant it was prime time for beach walking and shell finding again!

As it always does, time just flew by.  After 7 nights it was time to go home.  As I made the rounds in the morning to return the golf cart and pay our tab, I overheard conversations among folks that the phones were not working on the island including cell phones.  I really didn't pay it much attention until we got to the airport and were ready to leave.  I had already filed our eApis manifest and flight plan online the day before so all I had to do was make the required phone call to US Customs & Border Protection (CBP) prior to departure.  Most all the airports of entry in the Bahamas have blue phones available to pilots for free.  All the speed dial numbers are posted and you can easily call Flight Service to file flight plans and get weather briefings as well as phone any of the US Customs locations..............when the phones are working!!!!!!!  Uh oh. 

Failure to make this call and just "showing up" can supposedly result in a $5000 fine.  Yup, a little panic set in.  The Bahamian Customs Officer tried her personal cell phone for me multiple times with no luck.  I even turned my phone on knowing if I got through it would be an expensive phone call, but at least not as much as the fine!  No luck either.  I resolved to just take off, see if ATC could help at all once I opened my flight plan, and just plead forgiveness from the CBP Officers in Ft Pierce until I thought of one more thing.  I remembered a sign in the Customs and Immigration building that said "BTC WiFi Hotspot"  So after loading the plane and finishing my preflight, I headed back to the building to give it a try.  I turned on the the iPad, and quickly found the Customs wireless router listed.  It let me connect with no password!  Ok, let's see if the internet works..........yes!!!!!!!  Quickly over to Facebook and I made this quick post:

"All land lines and cell phones are down in Treasure Cay. Could someone please call Ft Pierce US Customs for us and make a notice of arrival for us? Phone number is 772-461-1733. Choose the prompt to make a notice of arrival. Please tell the officer that answers it is for aircraft tail number N424RM arriving FT Pierce airport at 1330. Please post here if you are successful so they don't get a lot of calls. Thank you. We are taking off now."

Then I prayed someone would help, loaded up the family, and took off right on time.  Climbing through 6000 feet we checked in with Miami Center and picked up our IFR clearance into Ft Pierce.  Halfway across Grand Bahama Island we started to cut through a few cloud layers.  Just before arriving, we had to make a few diversions for weather.  We were IMC off and on and picked up a bit of the rain.  It was maybe moderate rain at most and I didn't mind at that point because I saw it as a free and easy rinse for the plane after she sat  all week in the salt air.

Since you aren't allowed to use cell phones in the Customs Building until you are cleared and back outside, I turned my phone on just be fore we shutdown on the CBP ramp and was so relived to see that my sister-in-law was successfully able to make the call for us!  So we cleared Customs with ease and no fine!

After a partial fill of AVGAS and a to-go order of food, we were back in the air for the last leg home.  It was uneventful as usual, which is a good thing, and as much as we were all happy to be home, we were wishing we were still in Treasure Cay!

I did take the GoPro camera this trip and have been very happy with the results.  I'm still working on the clips and hope to have a short movie about this trip to share soon so stay tuned.............

Flying The Famous Abby Nelson!

Well she is to us anyway; famous.  My oldest daughter, Abby, has been dancing for quite a few years now and last fall she auditioned to be a company member for the new national dance expo called Dance League USA.  At the ripe old age of 10 she made it!  So that meant, in addition to her home studio's busy schedule, she has to attend at least two cities with this new group.  She gets to take all the classes during the expo, help the instructors as needed, and gets to perform during the closing show for all the attendees put on by the company owner, teachers, and fellow company members.

Given that it is winter, we weren't sure if we would be able to attend the inaugural event in Dallas, TX this last weekend, but as my Dad likes to say,"It was field grade flying weather!."  The girls already had last Friday and Monday off from school, so once Abby was done with her exams Thursday morning, we got her out of school early and took off for Dallas around noon.

As anyone that flies these parts knows, heading west during the winter will almost certainly treat you with a headwind.  So I abandoned my normal IFR flight plan and elected to to just head out VFR to get moving in the right direction without delay.  We got flight following at 4500' and settled in to the 30+ knot headwind which resulted in a ground speed of less than 120 knots at times; ughh!  I know, it's still fast, but when the true airspeed is 150 knots +, it stinks!

A little over three hours later we stopped at Meridian Aviation, our favorite FBO at Key Field (KMEI) in Meridian, MS for a quick turn to hit the restrooms, get fuel, and to load up on ice cream, popcorn, and hot dogs.  In less than thirty minutes, we were back in the air heading west.  A quick check of the winds aloft before takeoff showed that even though they were still high, there wasn't much difference up to 6500' so I elected to give that a try.  Well that didn't work out.  We leveled off and settled into cruise again, but this time we only averaged about 110 knots!  So after about 40 minutes of basically the same thing, we descended back to 4500' to see if the winds were a little less and if the bumps were tolerable.  And the answer to both was yes!  We gained about 10-15 knots and even though we left smooth air at 6500', the ride at 4500' had only occasional light chop.

As we approached Tyler, TX, we watched the sun set.  It has been a long time since I had my family in the plane at night, but we all enjoyed the pretty views below; especially the nighttime approach over the Dallas Metroplex and landing into the Dallas Executive Airport (KRBD).  After we landed, we taxied to Ambassador Jet Center, out favorite FBO when visiting Dallas, shutdown, unloaded into the rental car they had pulled up next to the plane, and we're quickly on our way to the hotel.  After a quick bite at In-N-Out Burger by the hotel, we settled in to our room and got some much needed rest.

Abby didn't have to start her dance stuff till Friday evening, so we enjoyed a great visit and lunch with Kristi's Mom and stepfather during the day.  After playing with Mimi & Grandpa Don, we took the girls back to the hotel so Abby could get ready for company rehearsal.  They rehearsed for about three hours and Abby finally got to bed around 10 pm.  Saturday was going to be an early and exciting day!

Abby was up and out the door before sunrise, so she was ready start at 7:30 am!  Not me......Mary and I slept in, then got ready for our day with a stop at the doughnut shop.  At these dance conventions, the attendees spend all day in various classes and then compete at night.  Abby got to learn more techniques in ballet, jazz, tap, lyrical, and hip-hop as well as she assisted the instructors as needed.  The highlight of the first full day was that some of the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders came to visit.  They did a little question & answer session and then let everyone get autographs.  Abby was pretty stoked!

My Dad & Kim were also in town visiting for business so we got to spend time with them too!  Mary and I picked up Grandpa Saturday morning and proceeded to the Dallas Zoo for a few hours of fun.  We got to see the insect building, the reptiles & amphibians, penguins, gorillas, and even fed the giraffes.  On the way out she got one ride on the carousel which of course she HAD to find a "pretty" horse to ride!

Sunday was another early start for Abby so she could attend the day's classes.  Mary and I drove out again to meet up with Grandma & Grandpa, Ellie, and Karen to enjoy a tasty brunch at the Brookhaven Country Club.  The convention was was over by 2 pm and we all went back at the hotel to watch Abby dance in the closing show.  Mimi and Pam also joined us so we had quite the little cheering section going for Abby.  She did great!

Monday morning came early and it meant it was time to check-out and head home, but not before seeing our friends Gina & Pat for breakfast.  Flying on your own has it's benefits since we were able to pace our morning schedule and enjoy our time with our friends without feeling rushed.  After paying our fuel bill, loading the plane, and conducting the pre-flight inspection, we were in the air and headed home around noon.

The weather again was CAVU (ceiling and visibility unlimited) so we departed VFR and got flight following at 7500'.  Our departure out of the DFW airspace was painless and although the winds aloft were not as strong as they were on the way out, they were decent tailwinds!  A little over two and half ours later, we landed in Meridian, MS for our now usual rest stop and quick turn.

The last leg home was a little over 2 hours and we averaged about 170 knots (almost 200 MPH!).  As we cruised over the farmlands of the South, a lot of farmers were making their seasonal burns.  As the sun set, you could see the flames pretty well.  We had a nice, smooth nighttime approach and landing back home in to Jacksonville.  One of the biggest successes for us this trip was Mary.  It's not easy for anyone to be coped up in a small plane for a long time, but Mary has traditionally required a little more help than could be give at time over the years.  Not this time!  She was a perfect little traveler and even allowed Mom to get some nap time in on occasion during the flights.  This looks encouraging!

A few things learned this trip:

1.  This was the first VFR cross country I had done in years.  I know it's available at my home drome, but the ground controllers at KMEI and KRBD will happily arrange flight following for you.  This sure makes life easier once you take off.

2.  Our hotel room had two double beds so it's not easy to all four of us to comfortably fit.  Short of getting a roll-away, which can cost extra, we brought along our twin sized AeroBedwhich made the sleeping arrangements easier to deal with.

3.  The family did great!  No complaints at all.  It was 7 hours of flying time to Dallas and only 5 hours for the return home!  My iPod Touch is still working well to provide in-flight music and I have discovered that Abby is a perfect DJ as she selects a nice variety of music while we travel.

4.  I seriously considered flying into Dallas Love Field (KDAL), home of Southwest Airlines, for this trip since we were staying on the north side of town and one of the FBOs there advertises relatively cheap AVGAS.  I never called to ask about ramp and parking fees.  We have used Ambassador Jet Center a few times before and you just cant beat it.  Yes, we had about 15 mins more driving time, but we didn't have to get sequenced into the flow at KDAL, which I'm sure is not and issue, but I know it WOULD add time nonetheless.  Ambassador has good fuel prices and does not charge ANY ramp, handling, and tie-down fees.  In addition, as long as you buy fuel, they will put your plane in a hangar if the have space available and we have always received that benefit.  Why go anywhere else?

It must have been shirt giveaway day on Monday!  Ambassador gave us a nice polo shirt and Merdian Aviation gave all us t shirts!  Pretty cool!

Our Swag!!!