Kudos to POU (Poughkeepsie, NY)

[Gary]

Amy and I flew up to POU to see some of the Hudson Valley and tour the West Point Military Academy.

Just want to give credit to the folks at the County operated FBO located at the departure end of 24. Excellent service! Helpful and attentive to detail, brought the rental car right up to the plane and helped unload as well. Helpful with diections and places to eat. No landing fee or parking fee (although I did buy 10 gallons of 100LL @ $4.22/gal).

West Point turned out to be far more interesting that I imagined. Was a bit hot and muggy to be walking around, its much bigger than Annapolis, but great fun. Lots of history at that place. The tour was well organized and they have an excellent military history museum (it's also free!). Well worth a visit and I highly recommend it!

The return yesterday was typical mid-atlantic weather for July, hazy, hot and humid with scattered thunderstorms floating about. Upon arrival (you need to call them to open the gate), the line guy helped pack back up, untie the plane, got the fuel, finished the rental car paperwork and even set up the weather computer for my flight home before I went into the FBO building. We did have to wait a 1/2 hour for a storm to pass.

Places like this, definately deserve our business!

Gary

 

[Anthony]

Gary,

We stopped at POU on a return trip from Bar Harbor, Maine, BHB, a few years ago due to weather. We spent a few hours there, ate lunch while we waited out the weather. We also had a good experience at the same FBO. The ceilings were so low we had to go around a few ridges to get through to the better weather. At one point we were wedged between the restricted area at West Point and one of the ridges. I was glad to get out of there and a little farther south where the weather was much better.

Haze? What's that?

 

[AdamZ]

Gary, glad to hear a great write up about POU. I had avoided it b/c I had heard some not so great things. I'll defintly give it a shot now. Glad you like West Point. Did you go to the Ordinace Museum?

 

[ScottM]

Too far for a day trip for me but it sounds kinda interesting.

 

[grattonja]

Got stuck there while still a VFR pilot, a day and a half due to weather. I second everything said in the original posting. Those guys were great! They even dug up a kid's movie to help entertain my then-5 year old. They went above and beyond, and we use POU as a stop any time we are in that area and have a reason to stop.

Jim G

 

[AuntPeggy]

Just want to give credit to the folks at the [POU] County operated FBO located at the departure end of 24. Excellent service! Helpful and attentive to detail

I have been going to POU ever since my first student pilot days. Interesting student pilot/student controller interactions. When I said I had never seen a lightgun, the controller and I both got in some practice that day. Still head that way for currency and to practice maneuvers to the north. Wonderful place. Wonderful people. Walk to the restaurant. Had a tie-down there for several years, too. Good prices for fuel, tho Columbia county [1B1] usually is slightly less.
-Aunt Peggy

 

[Gary]

When I said I had never seen a lightgun, the controller and I both got in some practice that day.
-Aunt Peggy

That's cool. I haven't seen a light gun in use for many, many years! Now that you've reminded me, maybe I should look up the signals again!

Shame it was so hazy and the T-storms were floating about, bet the flight down the Hudson is beautiful!

Gary