---------------------------------------------------------- Kolb-List Digest Archive --- Total Messages Posted Sat 09/28/13: 1 ---------------------------------------------------------- Today's Message Index: ---------------------- 1. 10:55 PM - Home again, without our planes (TheWanderingWench) ________________________________ Message 1 _____________________________________ Time: 10:55:39 PM PST US From: TheWanderingWench Subject: Kolb-List: Home again, without our planes =0A=0AHello all,=0A=0AIf you were following my SPOT, you know that we were marooned in Baker =0ACity, Oregon for 3.5 days. It felt like a week. On Tue sday and Wednesday we =0Amight have been able to fly around the Baker valle y - but there was bad =0Aweather that had settled right over our route east - the Elkhorn =0Amountains, Ontario, Caldwell, Nampa, Boise - and it just wouldn't move. =0AWe kept checking the radar pictures, but no luck. So we s tayed put. =0A=0A=0AThe FBO folks were great. We read, (happily, both Bob a nd I are avid =0Areaders;) we had full use of the courtesy car to go into B aker City =0A(which happily has a good bookstore;) we spent an afternoon at the =0AOregon Trail Historical Interpretive Center (which is absolutely =0Awonderful;) we checked our e-mail on the FBO computer; we read some =0Am ore...and more...and more. =0A=0A=0AThursday =0Athe ceiling lifted and the storm over our route was dissipating - but =0ABaker City was pummeled by st rong gusting winds. As we watched the trees bending and twisting, we agreed that flying out was not an option. We =0Aalso agreed to bag our flight to Monument Valley. I have to be back at work on =0AMonday, Oct. 7, and there just wasn't time left. The forecast =0Alooked good to get home on Friday, a nd we agreed to be out at =0Adawn...6:45 a.m.=0A=0A=0AOn Friday at 6:45 a.m . it was beautiful flying weather - some stratus =0Aclouds in a beautiful b lue sky. No wind. We were packed and ready to =0Afly. But...it was 30=B0 an d our planes were covered in a thin sheet of ice. And of course, in the air =0Athe temps would drop and there was the wind chill factor. (For me - not =0Afor Bob, who's in a fully enclosed cockpit.)=0A=0ASo we scraped off the ice and waited for the sun to warm the temps up to a whole 39=B0 before we took off! I was in my Pillsbury Doughboy outfit and was surprisingly comfo rtable even in the cold air.=0A=0A=0AThe flying was great to LaGrande and t hen over the Blue Mountains. Ceiling =0Awas about 6000', more than enough f or safety. The strong tailwind we'd =0Ahad getting to Baker City had lessen ed, so although we had a headwind it wasn't terrible. And it was steady - n o gusting - which is always great when you're flying over mountains.=0A=0AA s we passed Pendleton, the sky ahead seemed to be getting hazier and =0Ahaz ier. Still over 10 miles of visibility, but it was hard to see if it =0Awou ld last. And the headwind really picked up - so much that when I =0Atried t o taxi out of Hermiston after refueling, I was spinning in circles for a =0Aminute or two. That's a taildragger for you! The flight from The Dalles =0Ato Hermiston had taken just a little over an hour - it took almost two =0Ahours for me to fly from Hermiston back to The Dalles. Air speed =0Aindi cated 85-90 mph; speed over the ground was 48-52 mph. I cheered =0Aevery ti me I got up to 55 mph! We flew for about ten minutes through =0Alight rain as we flew along the Columbia River. =0A=0A=0AAfter refueling in The Dalles , we decided to try and make it home - a flight =0Aof about 60 miles throug h the Columbia River Gorge. We passed Hood River without a problem although the =0Aclouds looked ominous up ahead. But we still had over 10 miles visi bility and a ceiling of =0Aabout 3000'. Bob was, as usual, weather dummy, s ince he flies faster =0Athan I. I was about five miles behind him as I flew past Cascade Locks - only 30 miles from home! But we were getting into lig ht mist and =0Alooking downriver we saw a bank of low clouds. Bob radio'd t hat he was =0Aturning around and I promptly agreed. =0A=0A=0AWe landed at H ood River and tied the planes down and called Norm to come =0Aget us. It wa s pouring by the time he arrived - our decision to stop was a really good o ne. So now I'm home listening to the rain's steady =0Adrumbeat.Supposedly t he weather is going to be better on Tuesday - so we'll take the first good opportunity to get our planes and head home.=0A=0ANorm thought I'd be reall y bummed about not making it to Monument Valley. =0ABut it's all part of fl ying a "fat ultralight turned LSA" and I'm still =0Aglad we went. There's a lways next year!=0AArty=0A-=0Awww.LessonsFromTheEdge.com/uladventure2009. htm=0A=0A=0A"Life's a daring adventure or nothing"=0AHelen Keller=0A=0A=0A" I refuse to tip toe through life just to arrive safely at death." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Other Matronics Email List Services ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post A New Message kolb-list@matronics.com UN/SUBSCRIBE http://www.matronics.com/subscription List FAQ http://www.matronics.com/FAQ/Kolb-List.htm Web Forum Interface To Lists http://forums.matronics.com Matronics List Wiki http://wiki.matronics.com Full Archive Search Engine http://www.matronics.com/search 7-Day List Browse http://www.matronics.com/browse/kolb-list Browse Digests http://www.matronics.com/digest/kolb-list Browse Other Lists http://www.matronics.com/browse Live Online Chat! http://www.matronics.com/chat Archive Downloading http://www.matronics.com/archives Photo Share http://www.matronics.com/photoshare Other Email Lists http://www.matronics.com/emaillists Contributions http://www.matronics.com/contribution ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- These Email List Services are sponsored solely by Matronics and through the generous Contributions of its members.