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 !!!
