El Mirage Picnic

dan · #1 12-15-2006, 02:19 PM

Flew out to El Mirage dry lakebed earlier this week, and today I finally took Jen up there for a nice, peaceful pic-a-nic...she dug it!

Good thing you brought your purse up here, honey. There's tons of shopping...

Full story here: http://www.rvproject.com/20061212.html

fstringham7a · #2 12-15-2006, 02:45 PM

Dan

I just have to say...What a Guy....to take his honey to such a beautiful, romantic, and pleasant spot on this earth. Planes are just the best. Now if I can just get mine done!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Frank @ SGU

FredMagare · #3 12-15-2006, 04:29 PM

Now how many people can say they've done that?

az_gila · #4 12-15-2006, 04:40 PM

It's MUCH better in July or August....

And Jen didn't have any 160 lb. glider wings to remove....

gil in Tucson ... but done El Mirage Dry Lake a few times... my wife hated it...

One good thing about summer though.... a dirt bike rider always turns up with a cold beer...

For our Eastern friends, it's a flat, hard area that is 5 miles long and 1+ miles average width. You can land anywhere on it, except after a heavy rain... It would be a great place to practise engine-off landings (simulated engine failure, but actually switching the engine off).

Ironflight · #5 12-15-2006, 05:20 PM

When I was a teenager, we'd put a J-3 on skis for the winter (up in Minnesota) and land on the lakes....the trickiest part was figuring out how high you were!

Since then, I've had the opportunity to fly approaches to various dry lakebeds, and the first few times, had the same trouble (of course, we were flying pretty fast). The funny part is I've never gotten to touch down on one! I wish we had something like that in reach of Houston - but it would be gumbo, and suck your wheels right in...

I'll just have to make the California trip!

Paul

mannanj · #6 12-15-2006, 06:23 PM

(quote from Fred: How many people can say they've done that).

Did that back in the last century (about 1978???) in my Aeronca Champ When I was Stationed at Vandenberg AFB, CA. the West Coast Space Port.

Off Topic: Paul, I would love to meet you and talk about the Space Program. I was an Air Force Documentary Filmaker back in the 60"s and 70"s and filmed many of the early space programs. I was in Samoa for the Apollo recoveries and was in the clean room filming the final assembly for the first GPS satellite to go into orbit.

Mannan Thomason
RV-8 N161RL
Ft. Worth and Austin Tx to visit
kids Christmas (wx permitting)

G-force · #7 12-15-2006, 07:47 PM

The only thing I would worry about is just after the rainy season...some idiots in trucks always go whomping in the mud at night(even if the rangers have it closed) and it leaves some nasty, hard edged ruts. Twice I have nearley cartwheeled a dirt bike at 80+ mph hitting them while screaming across the lake. Be sure to do a low pass, preferably early in the morning or late in the day so the shadows give the ruts more defination.

dan · #8 12-15-2006, 08:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by G-force

Be sure to do a low pass

Always do...that's good advice. And even when dry & the surface is smooth, there are still some good sized rocks (i.e. 4-5") here and there out near the edge of the lake. Campers make fire rings from them, and let's just say not EVERY rock is in a fire ring.

AX-O · #9 12-17-2006, 11:27 PM

Man that is cool. My girlfriend would like that alot.

RVAddict · #10 12-18-2006, 06:48 AM

It's amazing all the neat places you can come up with to land an airplane!!

When I was younger, (I'm 24 now

) I thought you could only land on asphalt, imagine my suprise when I learned you could land on grass too!!

I can't wait till I get my PPL so I can search out neat places like that to land!! The Bonnivlle salt flats comes to mind. Too far for me to go though. I'll have to stick with grass......