Sunday, January 7, 2007 was a spectacular flying day. It was a day surrounded by high winds and extreme temps. Saturday was unseasonably warm in the 70's with high winds and Monday was seasonably cool as the winds slowly delivered temps in the 30's by late afternoon. But in between on Sunday, there were relatively calm winds and moderate temps in the 50's, perfect for flying and shooting aerial photos. Dad and I were flying today as my wife was otherwise pre-occupied. We arrived at the airport and all was uneventful as we applied full throttle and left the tarmac on runway 04. With a quick 180 degree turn to the left, we were soon headed southeast to our first destination.
This morning I had Six Flags Great Adventure theme park in mind for my first aerial photo shoot as I wanted to see what was happening as the park readies itself for the 2007 season. I flew a couple of CCW circles around the park, shooting over 30 pictures before leaving the area to the southwest. As practice, I decided to call the control tower at McGuire Air Force Base and ask for clearance to transition their airspace to the southwest. After a few calls and having me enter a certain code on my transponder (gives an aircraft's position to the controller) I was cleared at or below 1,000 feet. Descending from 2,000 feet to the assigned altitude range, we transitioned over Fort Dix and McGuire AFB. After leaving their airspace and getting the ok to switch radio frequencies, we headed to South Jersey Regional airport for a coffee and muffin at their airport restaurant.
While at the airport, we sat in the pilot's lounge and had our snack, then took a stroll on the general aviation tarmac to check-out some military aircraft that were re-located there from the Air Victory Museum that is on the field. If you're ever in the Lumberton, NJ area then by all means check-out this fascinating museum located at South Jersey Regional airport. At this time, we did not visit the museum, though we have been through it previously and will definitely visit again in the future.
After a take-off to the east, we decided to fly southeast toward the vast pine barrens of Ocean County. We wanted to test our VOR instrument and confirm if it worked properly or not, so we tuned-in the Coyle VOR which happens to reside along Route 72 just west of Manahawkin. After making some minor corrections and noting that the VOR was never directly ahead of us as it should've been according to the instrument, we realized that the instrument was for decoration only. The VOR instrument is based on out-dated technology, though many folks still rely on it, assuming the instrument in the aircraft is working properly. Ok, back to the trusty GPS receiver and a left turn towards Robert J. Miller Airpark in Toms River, NJ. While flying nearby the airport, I spotted the Popcorn Park Zoo that I once attended as a child. We then entered the traffic pattern and landed on runway 06, stopped in at the fixed base operator (FBO) there and used the facilities. The plane's fuel tanks were both about 3/4 full so we decided to wait until we landed back at our home field to fill-up.
Soon we were off once again and climbing to the east, just south of Holiday City in Toms River. Shooting pictures of this vast complex of senior citizen homes, we continued over the town of Toms River, then turned northeast towards Asbury Park. On we flew, shooting pictures of all familiar landmarks that are in that area such as the Ocean County Mall, College and other landmarks and buildings that offered an interesting view. Since I grew up in Ocean County, all of this terrain is very familiar to me. Continuing, we flew further north, just east of the Earle Ammunition Depot in Colts Neck, then over the Monmouth Mall at the intersection of Routes 35 and 36. Finally, a turn to the west as we over-flew the now defunct Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital, the city of New Brunswick and then the Bridgewater Mall, shooting pictures of each of these places.
In the distance to the west, just before the mountains surrounding the Round Valley Reservoir, we could see our final destination; Solberg airport. Upon landing, we taxied to the gas pit area and fueled-up for what we hope will be a day just like today, only this time with my wife joining us !!!
