A Wintertime Odyssey: Take Two...

Yes, this is yet another story about a flying adventure that Dad and I enjoyed on Sunday, February 24, 2008. Another Odyssey, if you will, that took place during the winter months, and other than colder temps than on our last major flight, this was as good if not better in every detail....Follow along with me, won't you, as I relay our enthusiasm and sightings from this day with both narrations and photos from the flight.

The day started like most other flying days this time of year; chilly temps requiring an engine pre-heat and a nippy breeze from the northwest. Snow had fallen only two days before, but my wife and I had freed the plane from its icy grips so any sun that crept through the clouds could melt the thin layer of ice and slush that remained:


When Dad and I arrived at the airport, we were greeted with a craft that was clean and free of the wintry byproduct that so many other airplanes kept. After taking-off to the west, I made a turn to the southeast, leveled-off at 2,000 feet and set us up at a nice cruising speed of about 138 mph, due in part to a slight quartering tailwind. It has been quite some time since we had flown when there was a coating of snow on the ground, let alone a bright, sunny day with these conditions. It was truly beautiful, to say the least, as the light reflected off of the snow covered ground and made the plane's white wings really come alive.

The visibility was about 10+ miles initially, but later in the day decreased slightly and the winds were rather light (for now). Our journey to Six Flags Great Adventure took us just south of Flemington and Princeton, NJ, then near Trenton-Robbinsville airport in Robbinsville, NJ. The further south and east that we flew, the less snow we saw. By this time there was barely a few inches as we crossed the New Jersey Turnpike. I signaled to Dad that I had spotted Kingda Ka (a roller-coaster at Great Adventure) and was heading right towards it. Like our last Wintertime Odyssey, I wanted to start the day with an Aerial Photo Update of Great Adventure's newest coaster, Batman: The Dark Knight. Upon arriving at the parks main gate, 2,000 feet above of course, I asked Dad to circle the park CCW as I shot about 30 photos in all. Take a look at the latest construction of this new indoor coaster:


Also check-out the theme park in general, including the super-sized water park adjacent to it called Hurricane Harbor:


Next we wanted to snap some pictures of my home town of Jackson, NJ, and it was quickly revealed to us that this quiet but ever expanding township was becoming a mini-metropolis; Definitely nothing like when I grew up there. After a "trip down memory lane photo session", it was now time for a pit stop at Robert J. Miller Airpark, just east of Whiting, NJ. For this to happen, though, I had to fly the circumference of Lakehurst Naval Base's airspace. Not a problem, since looking down at the sights was like a step back in time. Up ahead and to the southwest, the vastness of pines looked like a giant carpet. And smack dab in the middle of these pines was a swath of cut trees that gave way to the airport with a long, 5,000+ foot runway. We landed uneventfully, of course, because if we hadn't, you wouldn't be reading this entry.

After a brief rest and the use of their facilities, we boarded the plane and departed to the southeast, destined for the Jersey Shore, just north of Brigantine. As we crossed the Garden State Parkway and began traversing the marshland of the Barnegat bay, I commented how the patterns in the marsh were almost alien looking:


The coating of snow in this area was a dusting at best. We then flew further south, directly over the bay and towards Atlantic City. I wanted to see and photograph the new casinos built in the past few years, namely The Borgata, Steve Wynn (I think) and an addition to Harrah's. The Borgata was most impressive, though:


And at the base of Harrah's major addition, there was a huge glass dome which looked rather unique:


On Dad's side of the plane, he could see the Windmill Power Generating farm below and noted only a few were turning very slowly. This was to be expected, because if they were turning fast, then we wouldn't be flying that day. Up ahead was the now defunct Bader Airfield, which is the oldest airfield in the United States:


It figures, the airport has been closed for over a year now and nothing has been done to it. There was such a big push to close Bader to make way for new construction of casinos and such, but nothing as of yet. I also snapped a few pictures of the city skyline looking east, which is something I usually don't have a chance to do since we're usually flying up or down the shoreline, east of the city:


Rolling along, I spotted Lucy the Elephant in Margate, but opted not to shoot any more pictures of her. I already have a nice gallery of this behemoth of a tourist trap, albeit a neat one, and you can find it HERE. Ocean City was up next and I decided to fly directly over the town so Dad could view the bay area and I could snap some pictures of the ever so antiseptic-looking Amusement Area along the boardwalk:


Wintertime has that affect on places that are so vibrant and happy looking during the summer months. As we continued flying south, destined for Cape May County airport, we commented on the passing beach towns of Sea Isle City, Avalon, Stone Harbor and Wildwood. It was here at Wildwood that I once again overflew the town so I could get some pictures of Morey's Piers, the amusement areas adjacent to the distinct mile-wide beach (ok, not a mile wide, but the widest among any along the Jersey Shore). Imagine walking from the ocean to the boardwalk just to get a hot dog, then back to the ocean. Quite a work-out indeed; See for yourself:


In the distance, the inlet to the canal that cuts clean across the southern tip of New Jersey could be seen, as well as the now defunct Coast Guard heliport. There was only one fishing boat on its way in from the ocean as we overflew it and made our way to the town of Cape May:


My wife and I visited this quaint little coastal town last summer, and I wanted to capture some nice pictures of the multi-colored Victorian style homes there, as well as the pedestrian street which is closed to automobiles. We even spotted the old train station and the "end of the line" where trains would carry passengers to and from many years ago:


Next I ventured out over the Atlantic Ocean / Delaware Bay as I flew toward the Cape May lighthouse so Dad could take a look. Around the tip of New Jersey we journeyed as I turned to the right to a heading of north, past Sunset Beach and the infamous half-sunken Concrete Ship called Atlantus. Cape May County airport was just ahead and to the right of us and I soon entered the traffic pattern and landed to the west on runway 28. The landing was very slow due to the 15-20 mph breeze streaking across the bay and washing over the airport. Once we parked, we realized how hard the wind was blowing as our airplane's cockpit (aka temporary lunchroom) was rocking all about. After a relaxing and filling lunch of the usual fare (see previous BLOG entries), we walked inside the office to say hello and used the facilities. I needed some fuel, but at $4.99 for self-serve and $5.09 for full-serve, we opted to try another airport on the flight home. Before boarding the airplane, we noticed something very strange that we had never seen before. Two ultralight aircraft with OPEN cockpits were flying south towards the airport. I cannot imagine what these two pilots were wearing, but it must've been similar to what a motorcyclist would wear in this weather because it was downright cold, and they were traveling at least 80 mph. Definitely not our cup of tea.

We departed the airport on the same runway we landed, of course, due to the continued westerly winds, then turned north-northwest. While flying along the eastern shore of the Delaware bay, I glanced out over the bay and shot the following picture of a never-ending body of water, or so it looks:


Onward we flew to Millville airport and the rather large construction project adjacent to the field. This enormous swath of cleared trees is the future home of the New Jersey Mortorsports Park / Thunderbolt Raceway, and will feature a multifaceted complex with a nearly 4 mile road circuit raceway as its focal point. After snapping some pictures of the progress and noting the circuit was complete and paved, I entered the airport's traffic pattern. The thing that is strange about this raceway is that the final approach to the main runway at this airport is directly over one of the banked turns in the course. Slightly distracting if you ask me, both for the drivers and possibly for the pilots as well. With so much land available in this area, it surprises me that they couldn't shift this course to the south a few hundred feet. Take a look and see for yourself:


Ok, so we land and taxi to the parking ramp. I whip out the cell phone and make a few calls to the two different businesses on the field to check gas prices. OUCH, both are fairly close to what was being charged at Cape May County airport. We opt for Big Sky Aviation and were greeted by a nice man who promptly added 5 gallons of petrol to each of our Cessna 172's fuel tanks. We chatted a bit with him and another friendly individual in the office, then boarded our craft for the flight home. Before pulling out of the parking area, though, a Gulfstream jet taxied by. Not wanting to miss this impressive take-off, I taxied slowly and waited til I saw the jet on the runway. Stopping the plane, we sat there facing the runway with front row seats to his blast-off, um, I mean take-off. Impressive to say the least. So, now we take the runway and off we go, though a tad slower than the Gulfstream. With a turn to the north, we are now on our way home.

Enroute, we can see a hazy Philadelphia, PA to the left (west) and Atlantic City, NJ to the right (east). Cross Keys airport, complete with a Parachuting area, can be seen in the distance, halfway between us and Philadelphia. Further along, we fly over Camden County airport and near Clementon Amusement Park. To the left we spot the New Jersey Turnpike and Interstate 295. Our course eventually takes us over these two major highways, and it becomes increasingly apparent just how close these two come to each other:


We are now clear to the northeast of the Philadelphia International airport's airspace, and with South Jersey Regional airport in our sights up ahead, I now make a turn to the left and even further to the northwest. I now punch in our home-base airport in the GPS and we are soon looking ahead at the Delaware River as we cross into Pennsylvania over the Levittown / Bensalem area. Trenton is off to our right, and Sesame Place is ahead of us. I fly to the left of it so Dad can take a look at the fantastic array of colors from this children's amusement park. Clearing Trenton-Mercer airport's airspace to the west, we now cross back into New Jersey just east of New Hope and Lambertville, then traverse the rolling hills and picturesque pastures of rural Hunterdon county.

Noting private airstrips, horse race tracks and scenic fields and streams, we can now see the hills that surround the Round Valley Reservoir in the distance. The quaint village of Frenchtown is just to our west as we spot our home-base airport and enter the traffic pattern. After a gentle touchdown and another fuel stop, we park the plane and put an end to yet another Odyssey definitely worth writing home about.

Thanks so Much for Reading and See you After the Next Flight !!!

Flying Fun & The Winds Aloft

Yes, another fine winter flying day, though you wouldn't get that idea if you "believed" the weather forecast predicted for Sunday, February 17, 2008. It was a chilly morning with thickening clouds as a warm front approached from the southwest. Dad and I gave the engine a pre-heat and this helped it start after only one turn of the propeller.

We departed on runway 08 (80 degrees - to the east) and were airborne very quickly due to the rather dense, chilly air. I turned north and then west to a heading of 270 degrees. I already knew from calling the pilot's weather earlier that the winds aloft were to be blowing at over 35 mph from the south (Here is an example of the Winds Aloft forecast for Atlantic City, NJ). The air was calm on the ground, though, and there was no turbulence whatsoever while climbing out of the traffic pattern. This was until we reached 2,000 feet. At this point, we began to bounce around a bit, but as I continued climbing, the air suddenly became very still at 2,200 feet. We were now in the air mass that was carrying the frontal weather and warmer temps in this direction, all from the south. As I was looking ahead of us, I could see the aircraft moving forward, of course, but it was also drifting to the right at a very fast rate due to the high winds aloft. In order to maintain a heading, I would need to "crab" the aircraft into the wind, meaning we would have to be flying with a 10-15 degree angle with respect to the vertical axis. I leveled off at 2,300 feet and the air was "butter smooth" as I like to call it. I then reduced power and descended a bit back through 2,200 feet as we began feeling the turbulence once again. Leveling-off at 1,800 feet, we were now being bounced around again but were NOT drifting to the side any longer as we were just a few hundred feet above. This is a really neat phenomena and exciting to experience. I descended a bit further and the turbulence subsided until it was as smooth as it was in the air mass above. Basically, the altitude between 1,900 and 2,200 feet was a transition point between the calm air below and the steady stream of air from the south. I then climbed once again back through 2,200 feet and leveled off soon thereafter. Yup, "butter smooth" once again, and we were now drifting to the right at a very fast pace.

Ok, 'nuff playing around with the winds aloft :) - Onward we flew in a west-southwesterly direction towards the Bear Creek ski area just southwest of Allentown, PA. Lehigh Valley International airport's airspace was ahead of us so I needed to descend back into the bumpy air to stay clear and not have to contact the controlling agency. I could not fly lower than the transitional altitude either, due to the hilly terrain below. So, we bounced around as we made our way to the west. The visibility was rather poor up ahead, but just as we passed the Lehigh Valley/Allentown, PA area it improved. I then pointed out some lower scud (whispy-type clouds far and few between) under the 5,000+ foot overcast sky. The ski area was just ahead, and I flew one full CW circle around the perimeter, enabling Dad to take a good look. The parking lot was packed, as was the overflow lot. I then flew in a northerly direction so I could shoot pictures of the construction progress of Dorney Park's newest coaster, VooDoo. Enroute to that location, we were now getting tossed around like a rag doll, and this was starting to worry me because we were now only at an altitude of about 1,500 feet. It seemed like the transitional altitude was lowering, and quickly. Not something I wanted to experience upon landing, I quickly flew one CCW circle around the park, snapped a few pictures of my target and turned back east towards home.

Queen City airport was just to our north as we overflew the mountain ridge to the east of it and traversed the hilly but picturesque terrain of Bucks county, PA. Again, I had to remain in this transitional altitude and bumpy air due to the airspace above me and the hilly terrain below. But as we flew further and further east, the air became more and more still. Once past the airspace, I quickly climbed to 2,500 feet to reach the "butter smooth" air that awaited our return. Now I wanted to once again "have fun" with the winds aloft, this time by turning to the north with the winds aloft at the plane's backside. Quickly, our ground speed jumped up 30 mph and our ground speed was now about 155 mph. I then commenced a 180 degree turn to the right, directly into the wind at a heading of 180 degrees (south). Quickly I watched the speed drop on the GPS....140, 130, 120, 110, 100...And finally down to about 95 mph as we were now fighting the steady 30 mph flow of air pumping from the south. Way Cool !!! So, turning back on course to the east we now had a crosswind once again and a modest cruising speed of about 120 mph.

Dad then commented that he wanted to take a look at VanSant airport in Erwinna, PA, so I headed south in that direction. Of course, since we were still in the airmass, we inched there ever so slowly. At this grass runway airport, there was a powered glider waiting to take-off, and by the time we commenced a CW pass around the field, the craft had departed. I then needed a restroom break and headed northeast towards Sky Manor airport in Pittstown, NJ. Crossing the Delaware river and the quaint little village of Frenchtown, I descended a bit into the bumpy air, then lower into the smoother air once again and finally into the airport's traffic pattern. The landing was uneventful, and we parked on the airport's rather large parking ramp. The restaurant there was booming as it usually is, though most of its patrons were drive-in customers. Still, though, there were a few others parked next to us; two Beechcraft Bonanza's, an Aeronca, a Skyhawk (like ours) except with a conventional landing gear instead of the standard tricycle gear and a few Piper aircraft as well. There was also a small Robinson R22 helicopter flying, and we watched the instructor jump out and give the controls to his student for a few solo flights. All in all, a fairly active airport and more action than we see on a nice, warm, sunny Spring or Summer day.

After departing, I turned east since we both wanted to check-out some airports around the Somerville, NJ area. We could see Round Valley reservoir ahead and to the left of us, and the northern edge of the Sourland Mountain range ahead and to the right. Central Jersey Regional airport was now approaching quickly and is located to the south of the bustling town of Manville. I flew one CW circle around the field so Dad could take a peep, and we noticed how many aircraft there were based there, both in the old parking areas and the new ones at the northwest side of the field. Overflying Manville, I made my way north towards the Bridgewater Commons Mall where I shot a few pictures, then continued towards Somerset airport. It's been many months since we did a fly-over of this airport to check things out, so we did just that, though nothing special was noted. Looking to the south we spotted Solberg airport, so I decided to take a moment to fly there to take a look. We used to base our airplane there and wanted to see what has changed since leaving the field. Again, nothing out of the ordinary so I pointed the nose in a northwesterly direction and flew back towards Round Valley reservoir and the town of Clinton. Paralleling Route 22 at about 2,000 feet, we were below the transitional layer of bumpy air and were quite enjoying the flight.

By now we had flown close to 90 minutes so I figured I would point the plane towards our home base airport to finish the flight. I landed to the east once again due to the south-southeasterly wind direction on the ground, then taxied to the fuel pumps for some "liquid gold". After fueling, I walked into the office and checked the radar, noticing that the rain and bad weather was just not approaching this area like predicted. It was riding up from southwest to northeast at a 45 degree angle though the center of PA and clipping the northwestern tip of NJ, far from where we were flying. Taxiing back we parked the plane and had lunch in the car, commenting about our journey and the varying winds aloft that we experienced. And as we tied-down the plane, the skies became even brighter, still with little to no wind. It turned out to be a really nice flying day that was surely enjoyed, despite a "botched" forecast....

Thanks for Reading !!!

A Wintertime Odyssey...

Our flight was on Sunday, February 3, 2008, at the time of year when the weather should be bitterly cold, windy and downright nasty, it was quite warm and tranquil. On this day, though, the sky was a bit hazy, though that didn't stop us from enjoying one of the BEST winter flying days in quite some time, comparable to a summer season flight, and you will soon find out why.

To begin, Dad and I arrived at our home base airport and were greeted with a windsock (this indicates the speed and direction of the wind) that was completely limp, and as far a flying goes, it is a welcome sign. The airport was buzzing for a February weekend; the gas pits were full, aircraft were taking-off and landing in abundance and the air had a Spring-like feel. And since the temps were in the 30's the night before, we decided against an engine pre-heat. Once we wiped the thick layer of frost still remaining on the front windshield, we boarded our craft, cranked her over and in seconds it sprang to life. Soon, we were positioned on Runway 26 (a heading of nearly directly West) as I applied full throttle. The plane lifted-off quickly in the cool, dense, morning air and we quickly were climbing and turning to the southeast, en-route to our first destination. This is where we noticed the hazy conditions, but knew it was still rather early in the day and the haze usually burns off and dissipates as the sun's heat gets cranking later in the afternoon. So I continued climbing and leveled off at 1,500 feet. No sense in climbing to the moon if you can't see the ground due to the haze. Ok, that's an over-statement, but we flew lower than usual today so we could see more ground details and make the flight as enjoyable as possible.

Flying south, we noticed the Sourland mountain just northeast of Trenton, New Jersey. Princeton airport was on our left as we were now approaching Princeton University. I side-stepped to the left so Dad could get a good look at the happenings in this university town on a Spring-like Sunday morning. Continuing, we crossed Route 1, straight as an arrow from left to right, from Edison to Trenton. Up ahead, we spotted Allentown and the Route 33 bypass around this bustling town. It was at this point that I realized I needed to make a correction in my course and turned about 20 degrees to the right. Finally, after crossing the New Jersey Turnpike and the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area, we could see Kingda Ka's "spike" protruding into the horizon. Kingda Ka is Great Adventure's tallest coaster at over 400 feet, and can be seen from all directions and for many, many miles away. This is a great landmark in hazy conditions, and I used this to my advantage to locate the park.

Six Flags Great Adventure was now in my sights yet again:


as I wanted to shoot photos of the construction of their newest indoor coaster, Batman: The Dark Knight. The construction site can be seen below:


Upon arriving at the front gate, so to speak, I throttled back and set-up the plane in a nice, slow, CCW turn as Dad was now doing the piloting. The air was "butter smooth" as I like to call it, and allowed me to really zoom-in and focus on what I needed to capture. Dad flew three circles around the park, and on the last circle, I asked him to fly out further, past the boundaries of park property, so I could shoot pictures of the park's Wild Safari. I was finally able to get some good aerials that showed just how vast this area is...Take a peek for yourself at my latest Great Adventure Wild Safari gallery HERE. We then flew one last pass over the parking lot, then climbed and headed due west.

I wanted to continue flying south but did not want to call McGuire AFB's control tower, so we flew the circumference of their airspace until we were past the base and back on course. Just then, I signaled to Dad that I thought we should land at South Jersey Regional Airport near Mount Holly, NJ for a break. We weren't ready to eat yet, but figured we would grab a cup of coffee and a snack from the restaurant on the field. There was no one in the traffic pattern, which was odd, being the weather was so perfect. I set up for a landing and my approach was steep. Altitude was no match, though, for the Cessna 172's fowler flaps. I put in a full 40 degrees as I pointed the nose to the end of the runway and was now descending at 1,500 feet per minute. After a brief flare we touched down gently and were now taxiing to the airports main ramp and parking area, directly in front of the restaurant. Once I shut down the engine, we noticed a bi-plane getting ready to take-off, complete with a shiny, powerful radial engine built in Russia. Of course the propeller turned the opposite direction of an engine built here in the states, which looked rather odd. The take-off performance of this craft was fascinating, and was airborne in no more than 200 feet as it climbed almost out of sight into the hazy sky. We then went inside and had a hot chocolate and a brownie, sat and chewed the fat a bit, then boarded the plane. This time we were destined for yet another amusement park.

After departing the airport, we flew south once again and directly over the Columbus Farmers Market near Bordentown, NJ:


This was an impressive sight indeed, and it was incredible that that many folks had showed up at an open-air event in the beginning of February. The warm weather definitely brings out the crowds in droves. I now had my sights on Clementon Amusement Park, and knew it was just a few miles ahead. I quickly spotted the lake that the park resides on and flew in that direction:


This is a small amusement park just outside of Camden, yet still features a roller coaster and rather long flume water ride. There are other rides as well, plus a well stocked water park called Splash World, complete with slides and pools and such (though no fish of course). An addition to this popular water park is under construction and is called Laguna Kahuna, and is expected to open this Summer:


After circling the park only once, we noted the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and just how hazy it was around this area. We could barely make out the buildings as I then turned to the east to try and find Camden County Airport in Berlin (New Jersey, NOT Germany, of course). It took both of us to scout out the airport since it sits all nestled in the trees. This and the fact that I didn't program the GPS. The final approach to this airport is a sight to be seen, and I'm just sorry I didn't have Dad shoot a few pictures of this while I was landing. Next time we definitely will, though. The runway is over 3,000 feet long, but there are trees on both ends and along the western edge of the runway, and homes are present just behind this line. The end we were landing over had a house that sat smack dab under our landing path. I was noting the home's possible living room, bathroom and kitchen as we zoomed over at about 200 feet, skimming the remaining trees and power lines, and finally the runway as I flared and settled the plane down gently. We taxied to the parking area, shut her down and ate our picnic lunch INSIDE of the cockpit. We knew there was no place inside to eat, so we did like we do many times and transformed our Cessna's cabin into a portable cafeteria. The usual fare was in order; Sandwiches, pickles, olives, chips and Powerade drinks. After a relaxing recharge, we ventured in the office and quickly (and quietly) ventured out due to the sign we saw posted. A whopping $10 is charged for a ramp fee which is unheard of in such a tiny, little airport with no services offered. Needless to say, we were soon zooming down the runway and lifted off not long after, noting the row of homes to the west of the runway. Dad could see one home's deck and chairs in such plain view that it looked as if we were taking off in this persons back yard, and in a sense, we were.

The next part of the journey involved traversing the central part of New Jersey, directly east from the airport which we just departed, which would take us over the vast Pine Barrens. The haze partially obscured the horizon, but it was still solid VFR (visual flight rules), with good visibility north and south of our route of flight. I then noted some cranberry bogs and captured some interesting pictures that resemble a patio made up by pavers. Take a look and see what you think:


After passing this area, we could see a building far, far in the distance and figured it could only be the Oyster Creek power generating facility. It was later revealed to us that it was indeed this structure, and we could see this clear across the state. Before we reached that point, though, we noted Coyle field, which is a private/restricted dirt field in the middle of the scrub pines. Long, grooved, dirt runways make up this field and it is used mainly for military practice by both McGuire AFB and Lakehurst Naval Base. Take a look and see just how vast this field is:


It was now that we could really see just how interesting and different looking the Scrub Pines are. These pine trees, about 4 feet in height, clutter the land from north to south and east to west. From the air it looks like a giant carpet, and I tried to capture this as best I could:


Finally, we could see the Barnegat Bay ahead, and just before that the Garden State Parkway and the generating station we saw many miles back. I readied the camera and shot some pictures of a bay coast housing development, complete with streets in front of the homes and canals behind them, with mooring posts abound. Yes, these boating communities are all over the western shore of the bay, and make for quite a photo op as you can see below:


I then noticed other communities north of our course, then prepped my camera and took a few pictures of the intricate beauty of patterns produced by the grassy marshlands in this area:


Quite a sight indeed. We then flew across the bay and over Island Beach State park, giving us a splendid view of the shoreline to the north:


First up on our flight north towards Sandy Hook was Seaside Heights and their two amusement areas, Funtown Pier and Casino Pier. Following was Lavallette and the multitude of tiny guest houses available for rent come summer:


Next I noticed Bay Head, the town where the NJ Transit trains turn around for their long haul back to Newark, New Jersey and New York City:


Moving right along, literally, Point Pleasant and the Manasquan Inlet was just ahead. There was fishing boat just passing the outermost portion of the jetties on each side of the inlet when I pointed the camera and snapped a few pictures:


Dad pointed out a tour boat as well, or so it looked like one, and maneuvered the plane so I could get a few shots of this too. In the distance we could see the tall(ish) buildings of Asbury Park, then spotted the area where major renovations are taking place, transforming this area into hopefully what it used to be like up until the 1970's. I wanted to shoot some pictures of Ocean Grove and the distinct Victorian-Era homes that populate this area, but Asbury Park came up so quickly that I plain forgot. Next we approached the wealthier areas of the Jersey Shore, namely Monmouth Beach, Sea Bright and Rumson, and I shot some pictures of some of the Resorts that dot this area of coastline:


Sandy Hook was up ahead, and the Twin Lights of Navesink were off to the left perched high on the hill, overlooking the area where the Lower New York Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean:


The entire time we were flying north we were at an altitude of 800 feet, and about 500 feet off-shore, cruising at a spiffy 140 mph. There is usually no turbulence present over the ocean due to the even heating of the water, and today was no exception. Not one bump, blip or jolt was felt the entire way up the coast, from Island Beach State Park to Sandy Hook.

It was at this point where we turned westbound and headed towards home. But first, I wanted to fly along the southern shore of the bay, just north of the Atlantic Highlands and over to Keansburg Amusement Park. The Raritan Bay bridges that carry the Garden State Parkway and Route 9 overhead were in view by now, and after passing them, I noted the twisty, roundabout path that the Raritan River takes as it meanders into the bay. And of course, since we were now over land and away from the tranquil air that existed over the bay and ocean, the heated afternoon air made its presence in the form of light turbulence. Actually, not even turbulence but rather some bumps now and then. Just then, the New Jersey Turnpike was in our path once again, only this time we were over the portion where the car and truck lanes exist. 12 lanes of pavement, complete with shoulders, traversing the Raritan river, just east of New Brunswick. Take a look a this massive span of asphalt:


Passing this behemoth of concrete and asphalt, we crossed Route 1 once again as well, then Dad spotted the Rutgers campus just north of New Brunswick. I then took a gander at this campus' football stadium and shot a few pictures as well:


We could see the Raritan river up ahead as it curved around the town of Bound Brook, crossing under Interstate 287 twice within a few miles. Then I spotted something interesting in the distance. Bright, twinkling lights by the hundreds outside of the town of Manville. Turns out it was a giant automobile holding area, and you can see just how many cars were there at this time:


Of course, not as many as a mall parking lot at Christmas time, but nonetheless, the sun was at a perfect angle to give us a spectacle worth photographing. The Bridgewater Commons Mall was ahead and to the right, and we could see Solberg Airport just beyond this as Route 202 passed underneath. The two mounds surrounding the Round Valley reservoir were now clearly in sight as we passed just south, then noted Route 31 north of Flemington. After passing a small but noticeable plateau to the west, we was Sky Manor airport in the distance. It was after passing this airport that we finally spotted our home base airport, marking the end of a fascinating "winter" journey through central New Jersey. I setup the plane for a landing to the west and plunked her down gently. It's sure nice when there is little wind, and the wind that was present that evening was straight along the runway no less. It's not every flying day that you are treated to weather like this, so we took full advantage of it today and enjoyed EVERY moment !!!

Thanks for Reading, and I hope that the pictures that I am now including in ALL future Flight 'B'log entries makes following our Flying Adventures that much more Entertaining and Informative !!!