First time flying up the Pacific coast

[terzap]

Since my sister (the motorcycle racer) decided to come along with me on my lesson this morning, my instructor suggested she could pick our destination for the day. So instead of going to HIO to shoot touch and goes (which can be exciting for passengers who like near death experiences ) we flew West to Tillamook, over the bay, and turned north up the coast. It was an exquisite day and the only problem was: left the camera at home!

Laura could not believe it was real--flying over the Coast Range and then to the ocean--in less than twenty minutes compared to an hour and forty five minutes via the roads! She was totally thrilled with the entire flight. So was my instructor. It was a nice Sunday morning jaunt and I just got to sit back, concentrate on my course and altitude and enjoy myself, too. We saw schooling fish and Laura spotted a pod of dolphins herding some salmon into a group for an early lunch. I looked hopefully for some orcas, but it is a little too early to see them, I was told.

The Oregon coast is just beautiful and I wish we had pics to share with all of you. It was the first time I flew over (withing sight of the beach) an ocean or other huge body of water, unless you count Lake of the Woods in Minnesota, which was frozen solid enough to land on, or miles and miles and miles of the flooded fields of the Red River Valley earlier this year.

Anyway, it was great, and can't wait until I don't need to have an instructor along to do another flight like this.

terry

 

[tonycondon]

thats awesome terry. seems that perhaps its a little more fun flying on the oregon coast than in north dakota?

 

[terzap]

It's just a different type of flying. It took me a while (it is still taking me) to get used to having real topography instead of perfectly straight section lines and miles of flat space as far as the eye can see. I had fun flying to places in ND--International Peace Gardens, a private strip near Walhalla, etc., but there is a heck of a lot more to see here, and keeps you on your toes flying over the mountains where there aren't any convenient soybean or beet fields or even roads to make emergency landings! Logging roads...yeah...LOL!!

I am going to miss the clear, cold ND winter flying VERY very much when the damp weather settles in to stay for a while, that is for sure.



terry

 

[HPNFlyGirl]

Terry...keep a disposable camera in your flight bag. Sounds as if you guys had an awesome day for flying. Better than the bad wx day we had here. Hah hah hah.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

Since my sister (the motorcycle racer) decided to come along with me on my lesson this morning, my instructor suggested she could pick our destination for the day. So instead of going to HIO to shoot touch and goes (which can be exciting for passengers who like near death experiences ) we flew West to Tillamook, over the bay, and turned north up the coast. It was an exquisite day and the only problem was: left the camera at home!

Terry,

I bet it looked something like this, right?

I took almost the exact same flight in early April, only in reverse and in a Twin Comanche. Departed HIO, flew down the Columbia river to the Pacific, then headed south to Tillamook and back east to HIO. Absolutely beautiful out there.

#1 is the view out the front when you get to about 600 AGL off runway 2 at HIO. Is this Mt. St. Helens? That's what the CFI told me.
#2 shows a bit of terrain
#3 is where the Columbia meets the Pacific
#4 is the waves crashing on the Pacific shoreline
#5 is a peek directly into heaven, AKA the Tillamook Valley. And somewhere in there is an airport with an aviation museum.

 

[terzap]

Almost, Kent! We left from 7S3 (Twin Oaks Airpark) where I fly from (just do controlled field practice at HIO), so skipped going along the Columbia, just went due west after left turnout and skirting the HIO airspace. Although I went 6500 over the mountains, once at the coast I flew 2500 - 3000 so we were a bit lower that it looks from your pics. Didn't the waves breaking on the shoreline look as if they were frozen and barely moving? And we didn't have one single cloud today, not one! Plus glorious fall color in the valleys. Thanks for posting the pics! Tillamook is like a little slice of heaven. I decided it was worth paying extra for the Tillamook cheese after today. heh heh.

Oh--yes, that is Mt St Helens. We had a good view of all the big peaks today.

 

[Dave Krall CFII]

Later on, make it a point to fly all the way up to at least Cape Flattery, it gets even more spectacular and becomes quite rugged, maybe land on the sand at Copalis (S19). Don't forget your cam for that flight!

Almost, Kent! We left from 7S3 (Twin Oaks Airpark) where I fly from (just do controlled field practice at HIO), so skipped going along the Columbia, just went due west after left turnout and skirting the HIO airspace. Although I went 6500 over the mountains, once at the coast I flew 2500 - 3000 so we were a bit lower that it looks from your pics. Didn't the waves breaking on the shoreline look as if they were frozen and barely moving? And we didn't have one single cloud today, not one! Plus glorious fall color in the valleys. Thanks for posting the pics! Tillamook is like a little slice of heaven. I decided it was worth paying extra for the Tillamook cheese after today. heh heh.

Oh--yes, that is Mt St Helens. We had a good view of all the big peaks today.

 

[terzap]

Later on, make it a point to fly all the way up to at least Cape Flattery, it gets even more spectacular and becomes quite rugged, maybe land on the sand at Copalis (S19). Don't forget your cam for that flight!

Sounds like a plan. This is giving a lot more scope for my long cross country (well, even the shorter ones, since the coast is so close.) We're supposedly renting a house in Manzanita (a bunch of people I don't know, mostly scientists since she is one) for Thanksgiving and there is a nice little strip in walking distance to the beach there, too. We flew over it yesterday. (Anyone want to fly in and "crash" Thanksgiving dinner--I might reconsider going.)

terry

 

[Dave Krall CFII]

Sounds like a plan. This is giving a lot more scope for my long cross country (well, even the shorter ones, since the coast is so close.) We're supposedly renting a house in Manzanita (a bunch of people I don't know, mostly scientists since she is one) for Thanksgiving and there is a nice little strip in walking distance to the beach there, too. We flew over it yesterday. (Anyone want to fly in and "crash" Thanksgiving dinner--I might reconsider going.)

terry

Watch out for the Xwind at that one coming in and up over the dunes, it's worse than most people think it will be...

 

[flyingcheesehead]

Didn't the waves breaking on the shoreline look as if they were frozen and barely moving?

Yeah, it was kinda weird... It just added to the illusion of flying over a giant, beautiful painting.