Flight Across America Turks & Caicos and the Bahamas
August/September, 2010
Photo Gallery Here
Time-lapse
video of the entire trip!
Detailed description of the flights
here
The "Big Flying Trip" this year consisted of an island-hopping
dive trip with three friends to the Turks & Caicos and Bahamas, and
a flying "road trip" with Clarence on the way home.
The dive trip portion involved 4 of
us: me, Jerry, Dan, and Kevin. Dan and I departed from Palo
Alto California (PAO) on Monday 8/16 and flew to Ft. Collins
Colorado to pick up Jerry. From the first day, the weather was
challenging. After departing through the fog in the Bay Area,
we stopped for fuel in Logan Utah and then battled thunderstorms for
much of the flight to Colorado.
Departing from the foggy Bay Area
Thunderstorm in Ft. Collins just after we landed
After an overnight in Ft. Collins, we set off the
next morning VFR into clear weather with the stretch goal of making
it to Ft. Lauderdale. A big band of thunderstorms stretching
from Texas to Indiana forced us to throw out our original flight
plan and get as close to a gap in the thunderstorms as our fuel
would allow - El Reno OK. After refueling and lunch, we set
off again, this time IFR. After working our way through the
gap in the line of thunderstorms using NEXRAD and help from ATC, we
were cleared direct to our next fuel stop in Alabama. After
another two hours of flight, however, widespread thunderstorms had
developed and forced us to divert to lovely Tupelo Mississippi and
call it a day.
Clouds over Georgia
We departed IFR out of Tupelo into a low ceiling
and rain with thunderstorms in the vicinity. Fortunately, the
weather improved within a half hour and we were mostly in the clear
for the remainder of our flight to our fuel & lunch stop of St.
Augustine Florida. Unfortunately, as we were doing our
pre-takeoff runup at St. Augustine, I noticed our vacuum pump had
failed. Fortunately, I carried a spare pump on board, so I
found a mechanic to have it
swapped in. We then set off IFR to Ft. Lauderdale. The
trip could have been conducted VFR but Ft. Lauderdale was inside a
presidential TFR that day. Halfway there, ATC tried to reroute
us via a point (PHK) which was in the middle of a big thunderstorm
cell. After I politely declined ("unable Pahokee due to TS"),
they cleared us back on our original route.
Once in Ft. Lauderdale, we went out for
well-earned cocktails and food, and then set off for the Bahamas the
next morning with our fourth traveler.
Sunset in Grand Turk
We flew IFR from Ft. Lauderdale to Stella Maris
in the Bahamas for a fuel stop. We then proceeded IFR to Grand
Turk in the Turks & Caicos. We passed over many islands that
day and the colors were breathtaking: from the crystalline white
sand beaches and the bright turquoise shallows to the deep indigo
blue of the offshore waters - the sights were unforgettable.
We stayed at the
Osprey Beach Hotel in Grand Turk
and dove with Blue Water Divers. The accommodations were just
right, the dive operation was great, and the diving was spectacular.
Coral Head near Grand Turk
The highlight of our stay on Grand Turk was a day
trip to Salt Cay. We stopped for a dive on the way over, and
made another dive off Salt Cay. We then proceeded to
Porter's
Island Thyme bar on Salt Cay for a few drinks and lunch. After
several of us sampled a variety of Porter's island moonshines and
other creations, we toured one of the colonial mansions formerly
occupied by a family in the salt mining business.
On August 22nd, we departed Grand Turk and flew
to Providenciales to refuel and spend an afternoon and night in "the
big city". The following morning we flew to Stella Maris in
the Bahamas to refuel and clear customs, then flew to our next
destination of Staniel Cay in the Exuma Islands.
Swimming Pigs near Staniel Cay
We rented a cabin at the
Staniel Cay Yacht Club,
which included a small motor boat that we used for dive trips and
exploring the area. We did a nice mix of diving and
snorkeling, and one day rented a larger boat and made a trip to the Exumas Marine Park. The yacht club was great: friendly staff,
fine accommodations, good food and drinks, and a good location.
We'll definitely be back.
Lunch on Sandy Cay between dives
The last stops in the Bahamas were Nassau for
fuel and then to Bimini. We had planned to stay a few days in
Bimini and do some dives & swim with dolphins, but since the dolphin
trips were booked up and the island was a dump, we elected to leave
first thing in the morning and spend the next day in Ft. Lauderdale
instead.
Back in Ft. Lauderdale!
Our route and overnight stops in the islands
Once back in Ft. Lauderdale, Dan, Kevin and Jerry
flew home via airliners and Clarence flew out and joined me.
After spending a few days in Palm Beach visiting relatives, we flew
to Savannah Georgia for a few days of sightseeing.
Clarence in Savannah
Savannah is a beautiful city with a lot of
colonial architecture and antebellum homes. It's a very
walkable city and has some great restaurants. One of our
favorites was the Pink House restaurant. We dined in the
tavern in the basement and had a fantastic meal in a classy
atmosphere. After a few days in Savannah, we headed to Natchez
Mississippi to see more antebellum mansions.
Jim flying somewhere over Texas
After Natchez, we spent the night in Santa Fe NM.
The Painted Desert in Arizona
Our route of flight after Santa Fe took us
westward across New Mexico and Arizona and into Las Vegas Nevada for
fuel. The scenery during this flight was gorgeous, but the
headwinds were ferocious, resulting in nonstop turbulence. In
fact, the winds and turbulence were so bad that I aborted a landing
at Boulder City and diverted to Henderson NV instead.
Photo Gallery Here
Time-lapse
video of the entire trip!
Detailed description of the flights
here
Last modified:
05/11/2012 |