This past weekend I relocated “home” from the Flaming Gorge Recreation Area (very near Manila, UT) to the McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area (Rabbit Valley) a few miles northwest of Grand Junction, Colorado – right on the Utah state line. The Flaming Gorge area is spectacular – I loved every sight. Another amazing little tidbit… [Read More]
Idaho Backcountry 2014 – Part 3
Once again, we were blessed with warm overnight temps so I slept well. An early departure to the north took us to Big Creek for the lodge rebuilding fund raiser. Interestingly, we got there before they were ready to serve breakfast! Apparently those Idaho folks are not early risers like we are! 🙂 Rebuilding the… [Read More]
Idaho Backcountry 2014 – Part 2
Note: This is part 2 of this trip. Part 1 is here. Arriving in the Idaho backcountry is always a thrill for me. The beauty is simply unbelievable and the rush of landing at these airstrips – even Johnson Creek (which is a pretty mild place) gets the blood pumping. Our arrival at went smoothly… [Read More]
Idaho Backcountry 2014 – Part 1
My annual trek to the Idaho backcountry is something that I really look forward to. This year, the plan was pretty much the same as previous years. An RV-4 friend and I (me in my RV-3) would motor up north and spent a few days exploring the beauty of the Idaho backcountry as well as… [Read More]
Backcountry Flying/Camping Trip 2013 – Part 3
Note from JD: This is the third installment of this trip. Part 1 is here. Part 2 is here. The day dawned spectacular on Saturday so there was no doubt that lots of flying was on the agenda. The first order of business?? Breakfast, of course. Breakfast was being hosted at the Big Creek airstrip… [Read More]
Backcountry Flying/Camping Trip 2013 – Part 2
Note from JD: Part 1 of this trip is here. Friday dawned cool, cloudy, and wet. We launched as early as possible to start our exploring adventure but there just wasn’t enough cloud clearance to get very far. When the clouds are sitting at mountain top level, it is pretty easy to fly up and… [Read More]
Backcountry Flying/Camping Trip 2013 – Part 1
I reported on last year’s trip to the Idaho backcountry here. We had such a great time that we decided to do it again this year! We is me and my neighbor with a Vans RV-4 (among eight other airplanes that he has built himself). I’m late posting this report – we actually made the… [Read More]
A really long cross-country flight
A couple weeks ago, I went on a really long cross-country flight… It all started with the need to be at the home office (Minneapolis) of the company for which I work. This just happened to be around the time that the Quickie Spring Fling Fly-In was scheduled in Decorah, IA. Finally, I was past… [Read More]
Cactus Fly-In 2013 – Part 4
Today, we finish up the 2013 Cactus Fly-In trip report. The previous installments of my 2013 Cactus Fly-In report are here, here, and here. Sunday morning in Casa Grande, AZ dawned as beautiful as all the previous. However; today a tailwind for the trip home was in the forecast. I love it when that happens!… [Read More]
Double Circle Airstrip Landing Video
Several weeks ago I stopped at the Double Circle Ranch backcountry airstrip in Arizona. Yes, I know, I am way behind on my video production… 🙁 I mentioned the stop at Double Circle in the this post and I still feel the same way – it is a really neat place! The runway is a… [Read More]