5 Flights to Make Before You Die

We've flown coast to coast, Canada to Mexico, for the last 12 years,
and we have seen a lot of beautiful sights. There are way more than
five flights to make before you die -- but these are my Top 5. Can
you add yours?

1. Grand Canyon. Flying over the Grand Canyon is an awesome, almost
religious experience that words simply cannot express. We spent
nearly 2 hours over the canyon, the four of us gaping in awe, in
almost complete silence. There's nothing else like it.

2. Mackinac Island/Mackinac Bridge. At the top of the Great Lakes
sits scenic Mackinac Island. Quaint, with no motor vehicles allowed
(it's either horses or bikes, your choice), this throwback to another
era ("Lost in Time", with Christopher Reeves, was filmed at the Grand
Hotel on Mackinac Island) is always a great place to visit, and an
absolutely gorgeous flight. The beautiful Mackinac Bridge (which does
NOT go to the island, BTW) is one of the largest suspension bridges in
the world, and is truly a wondrous sight to see as well.

3. Barrier Islands/Ocracoke/Hatteras Just a few weeks ago we made
this flight, from Kill Devil Hills, NC to Beaufort, NC, flying
straight down the barrier islands. With the vast Atlantic to our
left, open water to our right (the mainland is often barely visible),
and a thin spit of land beneath us, we made this beautiful flight on a
picture-perfect day.

4. Great Salt Lake. This one may surprise you, but we flew over it
(and the surrounding salt flats) on our way to the Reno Air Races a
few years ago, and I will never forget the stark beauty and utter
desolation of this flight. If you ever want to fly over an alien
planet, check this area out.

5. Oshkosh! This one is pretty obvious, and is the ultimate flight
goal of almost every pilot I've ever met. There is simply no place on
earth like Oshkosh, and to fly into the show is a thrill that is hard
to describe to someone who hasn't done it. More importantly is to
wake up on the field at OSH -- it's a feeling like none other. No
matter what, you MUST make this flight at least once before you die.

Alas, we have had so many great flights, it's hard to whittle it down
to just five. Niagara Falls, Meigs Field, First Flight Airfield, and
a host of others would round out my Top Ten list -- but let's keep it
the Best of the Best, and stick to five for now.

Where would YOU choose to fly before you die?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
oups.com...
We've flown coast to coast, Canada to Mexico, for the last 12 years,
and we have seen a lot of beautiful sights. There are way more than
five flights to make before you die -- but these are my Top 5. Can
you add yours?

Lap of Lake Tahoe. Lucky enough to do it before buying a house stalled my
training. My wife was in the back seat of a rental 172. Rolled right by a
gust above Emerald Bay - my instructor just laughed. Hard to focus with
views EVERYWHERE. 72 mile perimeter can take you hours with all the "did
you see that" thrown in.

Looking forward to summer 2008 when the remodel is done and I can pursue the
PPL again

CJ

On 7 Apr 2007 21:16:37 -0700, Jay Honeck wrote:

Where would YOU choose to fly before you die?

I'd fly the 120 miles of the Exumas in the Bahamas... 365 cays and islands
before reaching Exuma International. When you get there, rent a houseboat
and spend a couple of days puttering around Elizabeth Harbour.

--
Dallas

"Jay Honeck" wrote:
[snip]
2. Mackinac Island/Mackinac Bridge. At the top of the Great Lakes
sits scenic Mackinac Island. Quaint, with no motor vehicles allowed
(it's either horses or bikes, your choice), this throwback to another
era ("Lost in Time", with Christopher Reeves, was filmed at the Grand
Hotel on Mackinac Island)

That movie was "Somewhere in Time" with Christopher Reeve and Jayne
Seymour (not "Lost in Time").

Jay Honeck wrote:
Where would YOU choose to fly before you die?

One of my dream flight would be to cross the Atlantic on
my own... it has been done before and with the right aircraft
and equipment and preparation it is not such a crazy proposition
anymore. But that's on my list of things to do before I die.

--Sylvain

The Badlands of SD, Mt. Rushmore, Wyoming at night with a
full moon.



"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
oups.com...
| We've flown coast to coast, Canada to Mexico, for the last
12 years,
| and we have seen a lot of beautiful sights. There are way
more than
| five flights to make before you die -- but these are my
Top 5. Can
| you add yours?
|
| 1. Grand Canyon. Flying over the Grand Canyon is an
awesome, almost
| religious experience that words simply cannot express. We
spent
| nearly 2 hours over the canyon, the four of us gaping in
awe, in
| almost complete silence. There's nothing else like it.
|
| 2. Mackinac Island/Mackinac Bridge. At the top of the
Great Lakes
| sits scenic Mackinac Island. Quaint, with no motor
vehicles allowed
| (it's either horses or bikes, your choice), this throwback
to another
| era ("Lost in Time", with Christopher Reeves, was filmed
at the Grand
| Hotel on Mackinac Island) is always a great place to
visit, and an
| absolutely gorgeous flight. The beautiful Mackinac Bridge
(which does
| NOT go to the island, BTW) is one of the largest
suspension bridges in
| the world, and is truly a wondrous sight to see as well.
|
| 3. Barrier Islands/Ocracoke/Hatteras Just a few weeks
ago we made
| this flight, from Kill Devil Hills, NC to Beaufort, NC,
flying
| straight down the barrier islands. With the vast
Atlantic to our
| left, open water to our right (the mainland is often
barely visible),
| and a thin spit of land beneath us, we made this beautiful
flight on a
| picture-perfect day.
|
| 4. Great Salt Lake. This one may surprise you, but we
flew over it
| (and the surrounding salt flats) on our way to the Reno
Air Races a
| few years ago, and I will never forget the stark beauty
and utter
| desolation of this flight. If you ever want to fly over
an alien
| planet, check this area out.
|
| 5. Oshkosh! This one is pretty obvious, and is the
ultimate flight
| goal of almost every pilot I've ever met. There is simply
no place on
| earth like Oshkosh, and to fly into the show is a thrill
that is hard
| to describe to someone who hasn't done it. More
importantly is to
| wake up on the field at OSH -- it's a feeling like none
other. No
| matter what, you MUST make this flight at least once
before you die.
|
| Alas, we have had so many great flights, it's hard to
whittle it down
| to just five. Niagara Falls, Meigs Field, First Flight
Airfield, and
| a host of others would round out my Top Ten list -- but
let's keep it
| the Best of the Best, and stick to five for now.
|
| Where would YOU choose to fly before you die?
| --
| Jay Honeck
| Iowa City, IA
| Pathfinder N56993
| www.AlexisParkInn.com
| "Your Aviation Destination"
|

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
oups.com...
We've flown coast to coast, Canada to Mexico, for the last 12 years,
and we have seen a lot of beautiful sights. There are way more than
five flights to make before you die -- but these are my Top 5. Can
you add yours?


1. The Great Ocean Road and 12 Apostles National Park.

2. Outback Australia. - Broken Hill - Bridsville - Alice Springs - Ayers
Rock - Oodnadatta - Coober Pedy - Leigh Creek - Wilpena Pound.

3. South- West Tasmania

4. Sydney Harbour

5. Queenstown to Milford Sound.

Terry

In article .com,
"Jay Honeck" wrote:

We've flown coast to coast, Canada to Mexico, for the last 12 years,
and we have seen a lot of beautiful sights. There are way more than
five flights to make before you die -- but these are my Top 5. Can
you add yours?

I had different take on this...

(in no particular order)
1) First flight
2) First solo
3) First time in the soup
4) First flight in your own airplane
5) First time as private pilot with passenger

--
Bob Noel
(goodness, please trim replies!!!)

Jay Honeck wrote:
We've flown coast to coast, Canada to Mexico, for the last 12 years,
and we have seen a lot of beautiful sights. There are way more than
five flights to make before you die -- but these are my Top 5. Can
you add yours?

Where would YOU choose to fly before you die?

Alaska.

Matt

Jim Macklin wrote:
The Badlands of SD, Mt. Rushmore, Wyoming at night with a
full moon.

So far the only one not sensible enough to trim the post when responding...