Weekend Getaway:
November Debrief & the January Outlook
by Craig Albright, Cirrus N857CD @ KCHD, CFI/II
Back from Carlsbad, NM
It’s nearly Christmas and the weekend of November 24-25 seems like ages ago! That weekend was our first out-of-state, overnight Weekend Getaway. On Saturday, four aircraft carrying 11 souls left the Valley, heading to Carlsbad, NM, intent on exploring the world-famous Carlsbad Caverns. We had three Cirri carrying yours truly and my wife Jo, Kevin & Patty Sandler, and Mike Wolf with his wife Gail and their son Garrett. Phil Merrill flew his Cessna 414A and shared the cabin with his son Scott, grandson Race and friend Kathleen Pagnini. Enroute, we were joined by Denny Myrick in his Vans RV-12. Displaying incredible “mission dedication”, Denny had to depart on Friday in order to make our scheduled 10:00 AM arrival time on Saturday. Although his good looking Experimental is quite well-equipped, as an LSA, his airspeed is restricted to 120 kts. And, flying under Light Sport rules, Denny (a retired airline captain and former Air Force pilot) is restricted to day-time VFR.
Upon arrival, we picked up our rental vehicles from the Chandler Aviation FBO and headed for an early lunch. Then, it was off to the Caverns. While all of the “big kids” enjoyed themselves, I bet that Phil’s grandson Race had the most fun! Flying in granddad’s plane and underground caves in the same day – pretty cool!
(The photos are courtesy of Mike Wolf – thanks Mike!)
After peering into the dark recesses and gazing at the incredible mineral formations in the 14 acre Big Room, we headed back to the airport and launched for our overnight destination of Las Cruces, NM. Why Las Cruces? They have yummy Mexican food made using the famous Hatch green chile. Did I mention the margaritas? Phil had the bar mix a special concoction – delicious! After a good night’s sleep and a leisurely breakfast the next morning, we headed to the airport and launched for home.
Off to Palm Springs, CA – Jan. 26-27, 2013
Now that winter has finally arrived in the southwest, we’re going to avoid travel to destinations where the weather might be iffy. A couple of our Carlsbad pilots mentioned the possibility of going to Palms Springs, CA. It’s already on our list of possible Weekend Getaway destinations. And, it’s an easy flight of about 240 nm. So, set aside the weekend of January 26-27. We’ll fly over on Saturday morning and hop on the Aerial Tramway that takes us to the top of Mt. Jacinto. (Bring hats and jackets!) Although I have yet to do the detailed planning, I believe there are a couple of places to eat at the top of the mountain. Back down in town, we can visit the Palm Springs Air Museum. And, in the evening, the Palm Springs Follies might bear investigating. Folks with only a limited time could fly back late Saturday afternoon. However, I suggest that we spend a leisurely evening in Palm Springs and fly back on Sunday morning.
Between Christmas and New Years, I’ll put together a detailed plan and send emails out (via the website) to those folks who have indicated an interest in our Weekend Getaway events. If this sounds like something you’d like to do, please make sure that you’re subscribing to “Weekend Getaways” on the “My Accounts” page of our website. That will ensure that you receive all group emails regarding our Getaway events.
Blue skies,
Craig
Comments
Any details about the PSP trip? Looking forward to a late January getaway!
Many thanks,
Jeff
603-309-0911
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