Burning Holes In The Sky and Dancing In Orlando

Unfortunately our summer schedule has been so busy, there really hasn't been any opportunities to take a trip and fly somewhere.  I try to at least once a week, work and weather permitting, to go fly.  I usually take off and climb out towards the west over downtown Jacksonville and then turn north over Jacksonville International Airport.  I'll cruise that way for about 15 mins or so then turn back to the east and head for the coast.
 Descending all the time, I'll cruise home along the shoreline at about 1500' enjoying the views from all around.  This little jaunt usually takes me about an hour and is good exercise for the plane and me!

Last week, Abby attended the Tremaine National Dance Finals and Convention in Orlando.  Unfortunately I could couldn't head down with them because of work.  Luckily the work schedule slowed enough that I was able to hop down there and see Abby dance on the only day she was competing.  I was so glad the Papa Ken flew out from Shreveport to join the girls for the week.  I was also excited that Grandma & Grandpa Nelson, who were in town selling at an event, were also able to come see the family and watch Abby compete.  I had a great time entertaining Mary in the hotel/resort pool and play area.  She finally got a little brave and tried the water slide and........loved it!  Surprise, surprise!

It's only a three hour drive to Orlando, but I despise that drive!  So lucky me, I flew down on Tuesday morning before the afternoon thunderstorms had a chance to fire up.  I was surprised that during the short 1 hour flight I was given 3 re-routes from ATC, but what surprised me most was the amount of traffic called out around Daytona Beach.  Most about the traffic was maneuvering, non ATC participating (think VFR instructional flights) planes that were doing so at IFR cruising altitudes.  That didn't make sense to me.  Oh well, after flying through the swarm around Daytona, I was vectored around Orlando a bit then put on a nice long, straight in approach over Disney World to Runway 15 at Kissimmee Gateway Airport (KISM).

Papa took me back to KISM Thursday morning to fly home.  I kept the plane with Kissimmee Jet Center during the stay.  Their fuel was the least expensive at the airport at $5.40 per gallon and as long as you bought at least 10 gallons there were no tie-down or handling fees charged.  Not a bad deal.  Upon departure I was vectored to the west then north for a bit before being turned on course for home.  My takeoff took me over Disney World again.  The parks look so much smaller from the air than in person!?!?  The cumulus was already starting to build, but the main area of weather at the time was safely well off to the west near Gainsville.

As I got closer to home, some of the cumulus clouds started to build past my cruising altitude of 7000'.  Since I was flying alone, I decided to punch through a few of them instead of asking for permission to make slight deviations in order to avoid them.  After the second one I decided the few seconds of bumps in the clouds really was uncomfortable so I was given permission to deviate to the east as needed.  I made it home without incident and knew I had enjoyed the easy way.  My poor wife still had to endure the jam packed schedule and one more sleepless night before loading up and driving home the next day.

We don't have any big trips planned in the near future, but hope the weather cooperates so we can fly down to Treasure Island near St Petersburg, Fl at the end of the month to enjoy a week on the beach with Grandma & Grandpa.  In the mean time, the plane's annual inspection started yesterday.  I'll gladly accept donations from my sympathetic family , friends, and followers! ;-)  I hope y'all are having a great summer!

Spring Break 2014 - The Video

Finally got around to editing the videos I shot for our Spring Break trip to Treasure Cay, Bahamas.  This is the first time I dove withe the GoPro and I am really happy with the results.  A red filter for diving is a must.  You can play this video in 1080p if you like.  Thanks for checking it out.

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.............

Sandals Emerald Bay - The Flight Home

The weather during our stay at Sandals Emerald Bay was perfect.  I'll admit a few days were a little warm, but by midweek a nice breeze developed and some of the afternoon clouds provided some refreshing shade.  On the day of departure it was a different story.  We awoke to dark gray skies and rumbles of thunder nearby.  After thoroughly scrutinizing the weather forecasts the night before, it looked best to just wake up when felt in the morning, make the 11:00 am checkout and hopefully take off around noon.

I got up at 6:30 am and got a nice cup of coffee and a croissant from the cafe and enjoyed a peaceful walk on the beach.  I watched the weather move north through the area and found myself mostly alone during my walk.  I strolled through some of the other areas of the resort taking pictures for our "scrapbook".  I returned to the room and we took our time packing and enjoying paradise for a little longer.

I don't know if it was prearranged or we were just lucky, but the resort provided a fancy new white Cadillac Escalade taxi to take us to the airport.  As we left, a pretty good rain shower was pouring on us, but it looked like we would have a nice break at the airport.  As soon as we pulled up to the terminal, Ryan from Strachan's Aviation was there to meet us and help us to our plane.  Once again, they handled EVERYTHING!  He whisked us out to the ramp and I promptly began to pre-flight and load the plane.  I gave Ryan our departure tax money,$25 each, and he ran it back to Customs for us and returned with the receipt 

Unfortunately the break in the weather did not last and now Kristi and I were both hiding in the back of the plane trying to get the soaked plane cover rolled up and put in it's bag.  That's when it hit me, in the great haste of breezing from the taxi,  through the terminal, and out to our plane, I hadn't made the required call to US Customs to make notification of our arrival.  Failure to do so could result in a fine of $5000!  It was pouring and we were quite a ways away from the main terminal and I had no clue where the free "Blue Phone" for pilots was.  So I looked straight in front of the plane at the brand new building of the FBO we didn't use, grabbed our umbrella and made a dash for it.  So, thank you to Odyssey Aviation for not hesitating to let me use your phone to make my call even though we didn't pay for or use any of their services.  I still got soaked, but not as much as I could have been!

I hopped back in the plane and a few minutes later the rain tapered off so Kristi climbed out of the back and joined me up in the cockpit.  With the engine started and the run-up complete, we back taxied on Runway 12 for a right downwind departure   After all that we actually took off 2 minutes early.  Wow.  Most all the weather continued to move north, but it appeared the clearer areas were to the west and it was.  The route I filed for was ZQA ZFP ANGEE direct to Fort Pierce, FL (KFPR) where we would clear US Customs.  I knew I would not be able to fly that route because of the huge thunderstorm over Nassau, but I also knew I'd deal with that once I established communications with Miami Center.

As we climbed through 6000' I was able to successfully contact Miami Center for my clearance.  To my pleasant surprise we were cleared direct to ANGEE then direct to KFPR at 8000'.  Center and I agreed we would still need to deviate west for a while, but we remained in the clear the whole time.  We caught glimpses of some of the islands and beautiful waters from time to time.  We could see the tremendous cell over Nassau that had ALL the planes in the area making constant deviation requests.  As we passed over the north end of Andros and cleared the weather to our east, we were finally able to turn on course for ANGEE.

The route was pretty clear of weather after that and we had a nice and easy arrival into Fort Pierce.  We shut down in front of the US Customs building and unloaded our plane.  One of the officers was one we had checked through with a few times in the past.  They did x-ray our bags this time, but the whole process only took a few minutes and they were truly pleasant as always to work with.  We loaded up the plane and walked over to the APP Jet Center and Airport Tiki to put in our fuel request and get a quick bite to eat.  Unfortunately the restaurant is going through some remodeling so the kitchen was closed, but the waitress did kindly make us some cold-cut sandwiches.

With a little break and some food in our bellies, we climbed back in the plane for our last leg home.  Even though there was a huge thunderstorm to the west of Fort Pierce, the weather home up the coast was completely cooperative and the final leg of our journey was relatively short and easy.  We arrived back into Jacksonville with clear skies and a little cooler temps.  It didn't take long to get the plane unloaded and put away in the hangar.  We had an amazing week, but were ready to get home and see our little girls.  This was a trip we will definitely have to do again........soon!

So for this trip we flew over 1200 miles and these were our times from engine start to shutdown for each leg:

Jacksonville to Great Exuma = 3.9 hours
Great Exuma to Fort Pierce = 2.7 hours
Fort Pierce to Jacksonville = 1.6 hours