Flying to Cedar Key

The Garmin 696 shows a little weather.

The nasty (39 degrees and raining) mid December weather in Memphis depresses me enough to load up the RV-7 and, accompanied by my wife, fly south until we can find some warm air. So, after checking the weather, I filed IFR direct to Cross City Florida.  We stopped there for fuel, because our destination, about 30 miles southwest of Cross City, has no fuel.
Cedar Key is one of a number of islands located off the west coast of Florida.  The city has an area of about 2 square miles. Fortunately, there is a small airstrip located on the island.

Leaving Memphis, we were on top of the clouds at about 5,000 feet. Early winter flying in the south is some of my favorite. The air is still relatively warm, with freezing levels up over 10,000 feet, making IFR trips safe and comfortable. This is a lot different from summertime flying, where large cumulous clouds are to be avoided.  At 9,000 feet, the outside air temp was about 35 degrees, rising to the mid forties as we traveled south.  For the most part, we enjoyed a very smooth ride.

Short final to KCDK

After refueling at Cross City, we made the short jump to Cedar Key in about twelve minutes.  The 2,300 foot strip is in pretty good shape, and it's plenty long for the RV.  How nice of them to have this landing strip just so we can come down and eat clams and hang out!  As I mentioned above, there is no FBO or fuel services here, but there is a tidy little ramp to tie the plane down on.

Romeo Victor tied down

The island looks as tiny as it is. It's home to a little over 900 residents. The "aquaculture" here is primarily clam farming

Raoul ferries us to our motel in a golf cart.

We had made reservations for lodging, and the managers there are a nice couple named Raoul and Teresa.  Raoul came to the airport in a golf cart to transport us and our few bags the two miles to our destination.




Our motel turned out to be a delightful change from the standard Hampton or Holiday Inn type accommodation.  It reminded me of the little motels we stayed in when I was a child. The room was small but clean and comfortable.  And Teresa and Raoul went out of their way to make us feel at home.

Although the skies were a bit overcast when we arrived, the warm temperature of Florida lifted our spirits.  We stretched our legs and took a walk, covering the whole town in about twenty minutes.

Dinner was at the Island Hotel and Restaurant, a well known bed and breakfast and restaurant.  The  Grouper Piccata was excellent. 

The next morning was sunny and warm. So we took advantage of the beautiful weather to take a more extended tour of the island on our bicycles. For lunch we stopped at Tony's to sample the world championship clam chowder. Definitely the best I've ever had.

That evening we were able to see the annual Christmas boat parade with "Santa Clams" on his own float. Finally, dinner at The Island Room, where I finally had my fill of clams. Stuffed again!

All too soon, Sunday morning came, and we winged our way back toward Memphis.  A steady headwind of about 15 knots prompted a fuel stop halfway at Prattville, AL to stretch our legs.

All in all, it was a great way to escape the cold and spend a day and a half.  We will keep Cedar Key on or list of favorite destinations.

For more pictures:  Cedar Key Photos

Another Boston Terrier saved

My daughter, Rachel, picked up this little guy from the Memphis animal shelter on Tuesday. On Thursday, I flew him to Tullahoma, TN to meet his foster, Sue Hall.

Mr Boston finds a home.

This was a pretty short trip. I left Memphis and landed in Paragould, AR to pick up Mr Boston, a little Boston terrier bound for a new home.

Terry was the lady who delivered Mr Boston to the airport.

Mr B and I flew to Corinth, MS, where he was picked up by Tanya. He then continued on to his new home in Alabama.

Mr Bingley moves to Florida

Mr. Bingley is a nine year old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.  He got the old heave-ho after the arrival of a new grandchild in the house.  Fortunately for him, there was a nice lady in Merritt Island, Florida who wanted him. So, we loaded up the RV-7 and Mr. Bingley was off to his new home.

I love small dogs like this.  He made the long flight very well, even weathering a bit of turbulence on the descent through the Orlando airspace. As you can see, he's very happy to be home.

Ten Gallons Per Pound

That's about what it took to fly Audrey, a whopping two-pound yorkie,  from her rescuer in Greenville, MS to Corinth, MS where she will get all fixed up and ready to ultimately be adopted.  She sure is a cute little thing...and very friendly!   Here are some pics of the participants.

Louise Burnside, of Burnside Kennels in Greenville, MS

Tanya, daughter of Janet Seago in Corinth.

Yours truly and Audrey

Sevier County Choppers

There is a guy the same age as my daughter sitting beside me wearing a baseball cap telling me what to do. Hunter Robinson is my instructor, and I'm now at Sevier County Choppers in Gatlinburg, TN working on my helicopter skills.  If things go OK, I'll get my commercial helicopter add-on rating some time in the next few months. It's an add-on rating for me since I already have a commercial pilot certificate (required when one gets a flight instructor certificate).  The countryside around Gatlinburg is beautiful, especially this time of year with the leaves changing color.  So, Mary came along with me to do some hiking while I'm busy hovering.

One of our off-airport landings was to a hilly pasteur with a few cows milling about.  I think one of them had a sign around his neck that said "eat more chikin."

Time For Choppers

I've always been fascinated by helicopters.  I just never found the time to devote to actually learning to fly them.  That changed this month when I cashed in some Delta Sky Miles for a ticket to Vancouver, then caught a bus to Whistler in British Columbia where I was met by Eric Ridington.  I spent the next five days immersed in helicopter training.   Eric hosted me and two other people at his home in Pemberton.  He then spent his days giving us lessons in his leased Robinson R-22 helicopter. He is doing this, in part, to build time. In fact, he is not allowed to charge for his time, as he only holds a U.S. flight instructor certificate.  So, we paid the cost of the helicopter lease plus expenses, and we were able to train at a substantial discount.  Eric turned out to be an excellent instructor.  He obviously loves flying, and that makes him my kind of guy.   This was one of the most enjoyable experiences I have had in aviation.  Being able to fly around the Canadian mountains while training was almost indescribable.

The Pemberton airfield is situated in a valley just east of the mountains where the Whistler ski resort is located. This makes for a spectacular background for flying. It was worth the trip just for the view. For some video of my week, check out the link to my Mobile Me website.