Columbus Ahead
Well the winter weather is beginning to break a little so Ashlynn and I took the opportunity on a fine calm Sunday to make the run to Columbus.
Having been to Billings airport and back during my training I'd been in the vicinity but never actually seen the airport from above.
The flight from Bozeman and back is about 50 minutes each way and rolls right down a gorgeous open valley between some of the most dynamic and beautiful mountain ranges I know of. So far.
Actually I was so enthralled with the view, that I came up on Columbus a little sooner than I thought we would. I found myself dumping altitude at 1500 to 2000 feet per minute in order to avoid a fly around or 360's. Once at pattern altitude though we had an uneventful final leg straight in for runway 10. During my flair I got a little spooked because the slight curvature of the runway hid the opposite end making the runway seem about 1000 feet shorter. I instantly shortened the flair and got out of the air asap. Of course once down I realized I'd only used a quarter of the runway, lol.
After parking we enjoyed some hangar talk, a great Pilot's Lounge ( The largest and best we've seen yet at AFR ), a choice of three courtesy cars and some good old fashioned greasy "bad for you" food.
All in all a very good trip! This is a highly recommended GA airport.
Check out the airports, cars, and restaurant pages for more details.
B.
Ennis at last
What a beautiful flight. The trip from Bozeman can't be more than 40 mins via C172 but it is really one of my favorite trips so far from a scenic standpoint. The trek took us around the north western shoulder of the dense Gallatin Mountain Range to the east and the Madison Range to the West. The Gallatin Mountain Range includes Ted Turner's famous ranch, two ski resorts, world rated trout fishing, a sliver of Yellowstone National Park, sharp mountain peaks, the Gallatin River, and just all around amazing mountain scapes.
This trip also includes a wonderful view of the Bear Trap canyon section of the Madison river. This is a popular white water destination and boasts great Class 4 challenges. The Airport itself is situated on a quite handy geological formation called an alluvial fan. The alluvial fan is a surprisingly flat and treeless fan shaped deposit of sediment from years of erosion in the mountains to the East.
To top it off one of the local Elk herds greeted us on base leg. For more about this area I suggest you check out "Chasing Lewis & Clark Across America: A 21st Century Aviation Adventure" a wonderful aviation book.
B.E.
Waiting Patiently
After years of special event planning in Montana, I swore that I would avoid any important activity that required the weather to co-operate. Oh well I guess I broke that promise.
Since receiving my Private Pilot's License it has snowed, blown or rained every weekend, and been bright calm and clear every weekday...from my perspective...
Oh well, we will be attempting a trip to Ennis this coming weekend. Stay tuned!
B.
Snow snow go away…
No VFR today!
KBZN 052308Z 32009KT 2SM -SN BKN027 OVC041 M08/M12 A3006 RMK AO2 SNB2259 P0000
We'll try again next week. Ennis is the target.
B.E.
