Aug 18-19, 2012 - POA fly-in Shelter Cove

Just re-read what you said. I didn't think we would be diverting mid-flight; I thought we would all "decide" the morning of. Weather will be much more "real" than a night before forecast.
 
1. Tell everyone Shelter Cove and the alternate, full information on both (and for me, I'll make reservations at both as long as they don't charge my card).

The Shelter Cove places (at least) seem very amenable to pilot cancellations.

2. Get everyone's phone numbers and decide on a "cutoff" time the day of Saturday. This won't work for people going in on Friday. I don't know if there is cell service in Shelter Cove but some hotels have wifi.
Most internet sources claim limited or no cell service there; hotel wifi net access will have to serve.

3. Call everyone with the decision, even if it is Shelter Cove. Leave messages with instructions. Post on all boards too (4 boards).
Sounds reasonable.

The reason I want to decide on Saturday morning is because a lot of people have said the surrounding areas will be clear and you can duck under the clouds to land (depending on how high they are). I personally think my "cutoff" time should be no later than 11am but I'm waiting to hear back from my local contact in the town.
That also sounds reasonable. It would be nice to make the cutoff even later, but that may not be realistic.
 
I've done event planning before and I think I could organize this. I'll spend some time tonight googling and come up with an alternate. The reason I want it to work for you is because you / me / John started this whole thing as the "core" group and you seem committed to going. So that is why.
 
Update: My friend who told me the other weekend was the big airshow is incorrect. So just a heads up to those of you who plan to go to "Wings Over Wine Country" - Looks like I picked the wrong weekend based on bad information.

Oh well, it is all over the internet now. I'm not changing the dates, don't want to be flakey. I will miss the airshow (I was going to volunteer for the 99s to sell hot dogs and work the show).

Those of you who want to join us can do the airshow one day and our destination the opposite day. Or, you can see the air show on Saturday and come up Saturday night after the airshow.
 
Kimberly that picture you posted I don't think is of Shelter Cove. Correct me if I'm wrong.
 
I asked my most recent CFI what he recommended, with the understanding it can't be any further from Oregon than Shelter Cove. Here was his reply:

Kimberly

I agree Shelter Cove is very iffy - I've been there many times. Other options close are Garberville (Benbow Inn is a good resort close by) or Boonville (I think there is a small hotel there). Neither of these has an IAP. Ruth is a very tricky airport, you have to fly down the river and actually don't see the runway until you're on short final. There used to be a resort there but it closed several years ago. Trinity is pretty good but I don't think there are accomodations, again the resort closed several years ago. Let me know if you want options further away.
 
I looked into Garberville on my last trip. Benbow Inn looked nice, but I would think most of the stuff to do is over at Humboldt and the Avenue of the Giants and I didn't see any way to get a rental car. It is only about 10 or 15 miles I think, but still too far to walk for most people.
 
I looked into Garberville on my last trip. Benbow Inn looked nice, but I would think most of the stuff to do is over at Humboldt and the Avenue of the Giants and I didn't see any way to get a rental car. It is only about 10 or 15 miles I think, but still too far to walk for most people.

OK I just called Garberville.

Here is what I propose (though it is by no means perfect):

We call Garberville the day of (right now the hotel has over 40 rooms available). They charge $25 cancellation fee if you cancel more than 5 days in advance and they charge FULL PRICE if you cancel less than 5 days in advance. So none of us can have reservations. They have an RV resort with cabins and they have an Inn. The Inn ranges from $175 - $350 per night so I imagine the cabins are less.

They said there is "lots to do but you need a car". Because of this I will personally land somewhere else like Fortuna and rent a car. She says that is a 45 minute drive. Problem is, I don't know if I can do that on a Saturday last minute. I could then drive the car back to the Garberville airport. The Benbow Inn is 2-3 miles from the airport via 101 freeway, not sure if you could walk there even if you wanted to. The woman on the phone did not have many answers for me.

Sorry, this is turning out to be a lot more complicated than I thought. I'll keep looking.

Kimberly
 
Another thought is we could land at Garberville and wait out the fog, then fly over to Shelter Cove.

The inn keeper emailed me again last night from Shelter Cove and said the fog breaks each day by noon (if it is going to break). She disagreed with my 50 / 50 assessment, of course, saying we can probably get in.

So noon should be our cut off.
 
There are no cars in Fortuna. You have to go to Eureka and they get fog. I stayed in Fortuna the night before my race, but had to fly into Eureka to get a car.
 
Another thought is we could land at Garberville and wait out the fog, then fly over to Shelter Cove.

The inn keeper emailed me again last night from Shelter Cove and said the fog breaks each day by noon (if it is going to break). She disagreed with my 50 / 50 assessment, of course, saying we can probably get in.

So noon should be our cut off.

We lived for 7 years in Aptos, about 1/3 mile from the beach, and coastal fog there was relatively predictable in that it typically burned off by noon or 1 PM. While Aptos lies in the eastern curve of the Monterey Bay, it sounds like Shelter Cove exhibits a similar pattern.

That said, we should still have a good alternate.
 
OK I just called Garberville.

Here is what I propose (though it is by no means perfect):

We call Garberville the day of (right now the hotel has over 40 rooms available). They charge $25 cancellation fee if you cancel more than 5 days in advance and they charge FULL PRICE if you cancel less than 5 days in advance. So none of us can have reservations. They have an RV resort with cabins and they have an Inn. The Inn ranges from $175 - $350 per night so I imagine the cabins are less.

They said there is "lots to do but you need a car". Because of this I will personally land somewhere else like Fortuna and rent a car. She says that is a 45 minute drive. Problem is, I don't know if I can do that on a Saturday last minute. I could then drive the car back to the Garberville airport. The Benbow Inn is 2-3 miles from the airport via 101 freeway, not sure if you could walk there even if you wanted to. The woman on the phone did not have many answers for me.

Sorry, this is turning out to be a lot more complicated than I thought. I'll keep looking.

Kimberly

Are you interested in exploring alternates in the Sierras?
If so, my own preferences, in order, would be (yes, I've put Columbia back in since it opens up a viable, though borderline distant for us, option):

Rogers Field (o05)
Ground transport: Bikes
Camping: Nearby; http://www.northshorecampground.com/
Hotels: Best Western, Antlers Motel, Cedar Lodge, others
Walking distance: Town within 15 minutes
Fishing: Nearby

Fall River Mills (o89)
Ground transport: Probable courtesy car, rental cars from "Hiway Garage"
Camping: Nothing within easy walking distance
Hotels: Fall River Lodge, Fall River Hotel, Himont Hotel
Walking distance: Town within 15 minutes
Fishing: Nearby

Truckee (ktrk)
Ground transport: Hertz, Enterprise, shuttle bus, etc.
Camping: Several, probably not within easy walking distance
Hotels: Hampton Inn, many others
Walking distance: Town within 15 minutes
Fishing: Probably need transport; see for example http://www.sierraanglersfishing.com/

Columbia (o22)
Ground transport: Hertz, shuttle bus
Camping: Yes
Hotels: Several
Walking distance: camping, eating
Fishing: Would need ground transport
 
I appreciate you all getting all this info/planning together. I think we may try to make it since we won't be making a Wisconsin trip this year. Since we're out of the Tucson area, we'd probably come a day or two early. If that comes to pass, could certainly pass pireps on. Anyway, staying tuned.

Jonathan
 
FYI I just flew in to Shelter Cove today. It was clear by 9:00 a.m. but a fog bank rolled in right around 1:00 p.m. Got out just in time.

Beautiful day there otherwise.
 
FYI I just flew in to Shelter Cove today. It was clear by 9:00 a.m. but a fog bank rolled in right around 1:00 p.m. Got out just in time.

Beautiful day there otherwise.

Excellent! Sounds like fun.

That kind of late day fog happened occasionally where I used to live, so I checked the Shelter Cove web cam archives to see how bad it got and for how long:

http://northcoastaviation.com/shelter_cove/shelter_cove_southwest.htm

If interested, click on the "Video Archive" link for the compass direction of interest, then be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the page to see the "View Video" for today and past days and click on the corresponding "View Video" link.

As far as I can make out, it looks like the fog started to roll in mid-day today (6th) in a menacing way, but rolled back out almost as quickly. Well - quickly on the time lapse video! (I did a quick sample of videos from the past 6 days and it looks like they have had clear skies by afternoon, and a fair number of days with clear skies almost all day.)
 
Sounds promising. I may go on Friday afternoon, instead of Saturday and stay for two nights.
 
Excellent! Sounds like fun.

That kind of late day fog happened occasionally where I used to live, so I checked the Shelter Cove web cam archives to see how bad it got and for how long:

http://northcoastaviation.com/shelter_cove/shelter_cove_southwest.htm

If interested, click on the "Video Archive" link for the compass direction of interest, then be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the page to see the "View Video" for today and past days and click on the corresponding "View Video" link.

As far as I can make out, it looks like the fog started to roll in mid-day today (6th) in a menacing way, but rolled back out almost as quickly. Well - quickly on the time lapse video! (I did a quick sample of videos from the past 6 days and it looks like they have had clear skies by afternoon, and a fair number of days with clear skies almost all day.)

Well, there was generally a clearing trend but there was a big fog bank that I had observed to the South as I flew in. I didn't think anything of it as the wind was calm, but winds picked up from the South and the situation progressed from a "looks like a few wispy clouds that will blow through" to "hmmm better keep an eye on that to "holy s**t I better get the F outta here."

I had guessed it might eventually blow through or dissipate but I didn't have enough time that day to wait it out. And there are no departure procedures, so an IFR departure doesn't appear to be an option.
 
Are you interested in exploring alternates in the Sierras?
If so, my own preferences, in order, would be (yes, I've put Columbia back in since it opens up a viable, though borderline distant for us, option):

Rogers Field (o05)
Ground transport: Bikes
Camping: Nearby; http://www.northshorecampground.com/
Hotels: Best Western, Antlers Motel, Cedar Lodge, others
Walking distance: Town within 15 minutes
Fishing: Nearby

Fall River Mills (o89)
Ground transport: Probable courtesy car, rental cars from "Hiway Garage"
Camping: Nothing within easy walking distance
Hotels: Fall River Lodge, Fall River Hotel, Himont Hotel
Walking distance: Town within 15 minutes
Fishing: Nearby

Truckee (ktrk)
Ground transport: Hertz, Enterprise, shuttle bus, etc.
Camping: Several, probably not within easy walking distance
Hotels: Hampton Inn, many others
Walking distance: Town within 15 minutes
Fishing: Probably need transport; see for example http://www.sierraanglersfishing.com/

Columbia (o22)
Ground transport: Hertz, shuttle bus
Camping: Yes
Hotels: Several
Walking distance: camping, eating
Fishing: Would need ground transport


If Columbia is an option for you (I thought it wasn't).... that is the airport every single LOCAL pilot has suggested to me. After my phone calls and research in things towards Oregon, I'm afraid they don't compare.

If you are sure, this would make the most sense. Please let me know, and again, I'm sorry I couldn't find an alternate closer to you. I have people now on other sites (meetup) joining us - and it seems a few POAers - so this has grown to a larger event already!
 
By the way, the more I talk about Shelter Cove, the more I want that to be our airport. A few pilots went out there this weekend (I wonder if you saw them, Sac).... they loved it. I realize we are going to have a back up but I hope Shelter Cove works out.
 
If Columbia is an option for you (I thought it wasn't).... that is the airport every single LOCAL pilot has suggested to me. After my phone calls and research in things towards Oregon, I'm afraid they don't compare.

If you are sure, this would make the most sense. Please let me know, and again, I'm sorry I couldn't find an alternate closer to you. I have people now on other sites (meetup) joining us - and it seems a few POAers - so this has grown to a larger event already!

Columbia wasn't an appealing option only because of its distance, so I originally ruled it out. However, given the lack of interesting viable alternates, I've reconsidered and would be fine with setting that as an alternate. So unless anyone else objects, feel free to announce o22 as the alternate.
 
I don't know if I did. There was one (apparently) transient Bonanza parked there, and another 172 arrived that morning before I left. Definately not a high traffic area.

And there was some really old dude and old lady in a golf cart that drove out to the ramp so they could watch me take off. Probably their only aviation excitement all day.
 
OK, I will actually be "announcing" on four websites. Let's see if anybody here objects today, and if not - I'll post tomorrow on all the rest that Columbia is our alternate.

Thanks a bunch!
 
The Inn of the Lost Coast has 17 rooms.

I just booked mine with the inn keeper. She was very nice. She is going to try to reserve the van for us (for me, I might have a large cooler with ice and drinks and snacks for the two days I want to host folks).

Check in is 2pm, Check out is 11am. The standard room has a fridge and microwave (not sure about ocean views but it might). They are $150 but if you mention you are a pilot you get a 10% discount. Be sure to mention we may cancel the day of (Saturday).

I called this event "Kimberly's Fly-In" - because I didn't want to say "Pilots of America" when I am inviting people from 4 other boards. I couldn't think of anything else on the spot and I wanted people to use an event name when calling in so we could keep track of how many rooms we have.

It also helps if we do this again, the businesses I / we use will remember us.

Some other notes:

No tables on / near the runway, but the deli near the South end of the runway is open on Saturday and Sunday until 6pm and they have tables outside. My plan would be to pic a time on both Saturday and Sunday when I will be there to welcome pilots. Sort of a "happy hour" I guess - though on Sunday the drinks will have to be water.

I asked if we could have a bonfire on the beach, she told me that she thinks the cove allows fires but not the other beaches. This could be fun and optional after our Saturday night dinner.

For dinner, she recommended I reserve the Cove but I haven't done any research yet. She says their hotel place has a pizza parlor.

She hasn't seen many go "fishing off the shore." I'm going to call the two charter fishing companies to see what they charge.
 
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Some ideas (if we do Shelter Cove):

1. Pilots arrive Saturday morning / early afternoon (check in to hotels etc)


2. Pilots meet near the airport, probably at the deli tables, on Saturday afternoon for a meet and greet with beverages and snacks


3. Pilots go to dinner Saturday night (restaurant to be determined)


4. Possible bonfire on the beach after dinner


5. Pilots check out of hotel Sunday morning


6. Pilots meet near the airport, probably at the deli tables, on Sunday afternoon for another meet and greet / goodbye


7. Various events will be done Sat / Sun individually (hiking, going to the beach, fishing, golf)
 
The Shelter Cove Inn has 17 rooms.

I just booked mine with the inn keeper. She was very nice. She is going to try to reserve the van for us (for me, I might have a large cooler with ice and drinks and snacks for the two days I want to host folks).

Check in is 2pm, Check out is 11am. The standard room has a fridge and microwave (not sure about ocean views but it might). They are $150 but if you mention you are a pilot you get a 10% discount. Be sure to mention we may cancel the day of (Saturday).

Was that really the Shelter Cove Inn or the Inn of the Lost Coast? The first one seems to claim on their web site rooms between $275 and $315 with a two night minimum stay, but the latter lists the $150 rate you mention for a standard room, though their web site says they have 18 rooms. Or did I overlook something for the Shelter Cove Inn, or maybe their web site is incomplete?
 
Sorry. This is from her email:

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Hi Kimberly Anne,[/FONT]


If there is fog, it generally clears out by noon. In Aug. I cannot say what the fog situation will be. We do have a web cam on our web site. http://www.innofthelostcoast.com/ and you can also check out northcoastaviation.com.

So I guess it is the Inn of the Lost Coast. Let me go back and change all my other posts.
 
standard-room3.jpg



standard-room2.jpg



They all have "ocean views" according to the site.

Wireless Internet

King or
Two Queen Beds

Balcony or Patio

Ocean View

Refrigerator

Microwave

Television
 
Just FYI: I've made reservations at the Inn of the Lost Coast for August 18 and checkout on the 19th.
 
Just FYI: I've made reservations at the Inn of the Lost Coast for August 18 and checkout on the 19th.

Did you ask about their cancellation policy? I told them I would arrive no earlier than probably 11am and no later than 3pm in regards to using the van.
 
Did you ask about their cancellation policy? I told them I would arrive no earlier than probably 11am and no later than 3pm in regards to using the van.

I didn't ask about the cancellation policy. When I called, I said we would be flying in, and she immediately asked if I was with Kimberly's fly-in, to which I said yes. She mentioned the 2 PM checkin time and I said we would likely be checking in after that time.
 
Very cool, since I sent her one last email with questions (I hate to bother people but local knowledge is important). Once she replies with the names of businesses, I can complete my research and find out stuff.

Looks like those of you who enjoy biking are in for a treat, since they have a van and I / they can help you get to this:

Mountain Biking

Single Track Epic Trails


Cyclists can ride mountains in the morning, surf with sea lions in the afternoon and be back at The Inn of the Lost Coast to relax and watch the sun set over the Pacific.

Paradise Royale is a relatively new 14-mile single-track loop on California’s Lost Coast. Paradise Royale is in the King Range National Conservation Area, in one of the most undeveloped stretches of coastline in the lower 48. The mountains jut out of the Pacific like knives and drop straight down to lush river valleys. No doubt, Paradise Royale is a skillfully engineered piece of singletrack – and it will leave you longing for more. Plans to expand Paradise Royale are in the works!


Trail Map:

http://www.blm.gov/pgdata/etc/media...le.dat/mtnbiketr_handout_dem_508compliant.pdf
 
Maybe we should meet at the hotel, it seems they have lots of and even a social room with a ping pong table. Not sure if we could have food and beverages that we bring in ourselves, I'll have to ask.

thumbs_shelter-cove-lost-coast-ext-008.jpg
thumbs_shelter-cove-lost-coast-ext-007.jpg
 
Maybe we should meet at the hotel, it seems they have lots of and even a social room with a ping pong table. Not sure if we could have food and beverages that we bring in ourselves, I'll have to ask.

That seems as good a place as any to meet up at - but obviously not everyone will necessarily want to stay at that hotel. (The Tripadvisor reviews are mostly positive for that hotel, but it appears the inn is composed of two buildings, one in better condition than the other.)

Seems a good idea to plan one major meet-greet-and-eat event at one of the main eating places or hotels, but perhaps not too much beyond that?
 
That seems as good a place as any to meet up at - but obviously not everyone will necessarily want to stay at that hotel. (The Tripadvisor reviews are mostly positive for that hotel, but it appears the inn is composed of two buildings, one in better condition than the other.)

Seems a good idea to plan one major meet-greet-and-eat event at one of the main eating places or hotels, but perhaps not too much beyond that?

Yeah, it was optional. I just thought I'd set aside a time (like 4pm on Saturday and a bit earlier on Sunday like 2pm) where I'd be somewhere for an hour with drinks and food. If people show up - that's great. If not, I'll watch the ocean for an hour with a beverage. No big deal and certainly more of a suggestion than a requirement.
 
Wanted to add that the reason I was doing the whole meeting thing was because some people won't stay the night on Saturday but will come up for the day, ditto for Sunday. The Saturday night dinner idea will only work for those people who are staying the night.
 
Wanted to add that the reason I was doing the whole meeting thing was because some people won't stay the night on Saturday but will come up for the day, ditto for Sunday. The Saturday night dinner idea will only work for those people who are staying the night.

I hadn't thought about that (which is odd, since I originally considered making it a day trip if I was going by myself!)

Thanks for doing the planning and coordination, definitely appreciated!
 
I hadn't thought about that (which is odd, since I originally considered making it a day trip if I was going by myself!)

Thanks for doing the planning and coordination, definitely appreciated!

I just called the deli. That is where we will meet on Saturday for our meet and greet. They sell beer and we are allowed to drink on the cement patio / table area.

They have a grill that makes food until 5pm, and the store (beer and wine only, no hard alcohol) is open until 6pm.

He estimates they are 150 yards from the runway, on the South end.

Let's say meet at the deli from 4pm - 5pm for drinks and snacks (I'll buy some beer so we are their customers and I'll bring some appetizers like chips and dip or something from home). Then we can go back to our hotels to get ready for dinner and have dinner around 7pm. They said almost nightly there is a fire down by the boat dock so it sounds like fires are allowed (fire would be after dinner, should be dark by then, and we can walk on the beach at night). I'll figure out fire stuff when I'm there but like another POA fly-in perhaps I'll bring marshmallows and we can roast them.
 
I just booked for Aug 16, 17 and 18. We have wanted to come and poke around that area for some time. Thanks again to Kimberly, and you too Jim.

Jonathan
 
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