Expanding my flying comfort zone

[Ron Lee]

Prior to getting my RV-6A I had perhaps 250 hours over 20 plus years. My cross country experience was limited. I did not like to talk to ATC. I had never flown in the mountains in all the years I had lived in Colorado and less than ideal/good weather flights were avoided. I considered myself a wuss when it came to bad weather and was very proud of it. The following parts will detail how this grasshopper went from a relative newbie pilot to one that is far less newbieish. This will be provided in multiple parts for several reasons.

[Ron Lee]

After getting the RV I gradually expanded my cross country experience. Going to La Junta was a cross country technically but timewise trivial in the RV. I took trips that could be done there and back on one tank of gas then those where I needed fuel at the destination. Then I took trips where more than one tank was needed. In the process of gaining this experience I got the Flight Guide books from Airguide Publications and the WAC version of the Air Chart Systems aviation maps. These provided a lot of the info that I needed to conduct cross countries.

At first I avoided MOAs but now fly through them. Some are little used and not a concern but others like Vance I use flight following to ensure separation. While I don’t normally file a flight plan I do use flight following with ease now. Talking to ATC or going into controlled fields is not a concern.

I have made day trips to see Devil’s Tower, Mt Rushmore, Meteor Crater/Monument Valley/Shiprock NM, etc. Longer trips have been made to Monument Valley and Death Valley, Kitty Hawk, Key West and the Bahamas.

To overcome the mountain barrier to the west I took the mountain flying course from the Colorado Pilots Association. The classroom work plus the mountain flying with an instructor gave me the basics to safely fly in the mountains. It was one of the best courses that I took since it has opened up my flying to a region that is beautiful beyond what many pilots will ever experience.

[Ron Lee]

The weather issue remained the biggest limiter to cross countries as recent as three months ago. While I did take instrument training (never got the rating), seeing fronts that extend from the Gulf to the Great Lakes with radar returns of rain all over was an automatic NO GO for me. Then I planned a trip to Memphis for an air race, Kitty Hawk, Key West, Bahamas and Crystal River to swim with manatees. I took off knowing that the weather was not my normal “ideal.” Some rain was forecast as were lower than 12,000’ ceilings. The initial region of lower clouds was in Kansas or Oklahoma and I did consider turning back. But I kept going since forward visibility was good, I was not scud running and I kept checking six to ensure the 180 degree turn option was good.

My fuel stop in Siloam Springs AR gave me the first real opportunity to make a bad decision over continuing. The direct path to Memphis placed me over terrain that may have come too close to clouds for my comfort. So I diverted to the south towards Little Rock then followed an expressway towards Memphis. This option only took 10-15 minutes to clear the terrain and I got to General DeWitt airport easily.

Two days later I had to encounter more lower than desired clouds to get to Kitty Hawk from Atlanta. What made it worse was that I had to get low (2500 feet (?)) over water which I was not fond of. That made me rethink whether I would make the trip to the Bahamas. A tropical system that passed north over the Bahamas cancelled the Bahamas and Key West portions anyway and a charging system issue had me heading home.

On the way home I had the chance to overfly a cloud layer or try to skirt it. Since it was of limited width (100-150 miles), well above the ground, thin (300-500 feet) and temps well above freezing, I overflew it. All conditions were acceptable and had I needed to descend through it in an emergency I had my Trio autopilot to help maintain a wings level attitude. It was a non-issue.

My overnight stop was Springfield MO. It was late in the afternoon and I was headed towards the west. Ahead I saw what I thought was a cloud layer so I descended. Turns out it was just haze but I felt better being a bit lower so that I could use the ground below me for attitude reference. While I learned to fly in Georgia, haze had since become a complicating factor for flight decisions. When you can see mountains 100-150 miles away, going back east is a dramatic change. Nonetheless, I arrived home with my comfort zone enlarged.

[Ron Lee]

A month later the Bahamas, Key West, manatee goals remained unmet and I took off again. No issues until I got to Florida. I had been watching the haze and noted that it had a uniform appearance that may differentiate it from all clouds types. I got a briefing from Flight Watch but without current satellite info, I elected to descend below rather than get stuck above the clouds. I flew about 2500’ MSL from there to my unplanned fuel stop in Cross City then on to Ft Pierce. Visibility was around 10 miles so I was never in MVFR conditions but certainly marginal from what I consider normal in Colorado.

The next day saw yucky conditions to the east so I elected to try Key West instead of the Bahamas. I knew that there were rain showers in and around Key West. Launch to the south and instead of flying direct I flew a bit west to fly over water in sight of the Keys.

The following picture shows some of the upper Keys off to the left:



When I contacted Key West Approach they mentioned significant rain in and around Key West. I elected to do a 180 then decided to land at Marathon since it was below me. I checked the radar and talked to a pilot who had just come from there. Based upon recent info, I proceeded to KEYW and did have to get low and pass through some light rain as you can see in this picture that shows the airport ahead and to the right:



This is on final to KEYW:



After going to the southernmost point of the US, Hemingway’s house and a neat butterfly “zoo” I headed back to Ft Pierce.

[Ron Lee]

The next day the morning weather was better so I finally put my apprehensions on hold and started the trip to the Bahamas. I initially headed south towards West Palm Beach then in that area turned east towards Grand Bahamas. This is the Florida coastline looking north as I commit to going out over the ocean:



The next picture shows the GNS 430 screen shot well out into the ocean with MYGF (Freeport) as the destination:



This shows only ocean (plus clouds) below (no land):



Here I am approaching Grand Bahamas:



At this point I made the turn from Freeport to North Eleuthera Island (MYEH)



Another shot of just water for landing although there are strips of land in the distance:



At last I am on final to MYEH:



Here is the plane at the White Crown FBO. Note the official looking large N numbers:

[Ron Lee]

My objective on this island was to see Pink Sand beach. Take off the shoes and socks and walk around in the water. Take pictures. Enjoy the view. Unfortunately it was not as pink as I had hoped although it is still a nice beach:





The trip back two hours after landing was not a problem. I did not violate the ADIZ and was able to open my flight plan as I headed towards Grand Bahamas. This picture shows the Florida coast near West Palm beach:



Here I am flying north along the coast to Ft Pierce. I am not sure about whether I had to land at West Palm Beach if I crossed land there so I stayed off-shore until I got closer to Ft Pierce.



The weather was not suitable for getting to Crystal River after I cleared customs so I stayed at Ft Pierce another night. The next morning was rainy. It was just in that area so once the weather cleared to the south I took off that way with the initial thought of skirting the rain. Once airborne I decided that it looked promising “on top” so I climbed up to 10,500’ and was able to get over the localized clouds. This picture shows a plane going into Orlando and why I use flight following. On the first day out I had a FedEx L1011 type aircraft heading almost right at me but he was told to stay BELOW me until he was past. That would have been a much better picture to support the use of flight following.



The next morning I swam with manatees which was a great experience. Back to Crystal River airport and looking at the adds.aviationweather.gov cloud cover with VFR/MVFR/IFR condition circles I knew that trying to head northwest was not in my newly expanded comfort zone. The weather towards Atlanta was better so I went that way. Spent the night at my brothers then made it from Atlanta to 00V the next day in about eight hours (a record for one day). Total flight time was 29.2 hours. In addition to further expanding my piloting comfort zone, I got to do some neat things....all thanks to a great airplane.

With that I will leave you with a picture that I took at the Homosassa Springs State Park south of Crystal River:

[bsacks05]

Ron,
Excellent write up and pictures. I can certainly identify with your thoughts on expanding your personal flying envelope. What is the quote? "Go from the known to the unknown - slowly".
Nothing wrong with being a fair weather pilot either. That's what I consider myself. I'm in it for enjoyment, not to beat the airlines or stick to a schedule. Prior to the start of any X/C trip, I tell my passenger (son or daughter) that this will be an adventure and things may not go as planned but we will have fun anyway and return with great stories and fond memories.

[lostpilot28]

Ron,
Enjoyed the write up...I can relate to the concept of being a timid flyer. When I bought my first airplane, a PulsarXP in 2004 I had 105 hours. Even then it took me a long time before I stretched my legs and flew a significant distance. The Pulsar wasn't comfortable to fly for long periods of time, but I did it anyway to expand my comfort zone.

[Mike S]

Ron, Thank You.

[Jamie]

Ron:

Excellent write-up & photos. Thanks for taking the time to share.