You know what? I don’t really mind winter coming on, because I need all this indoor time to go through the crazy gigabytes of photos and video I shot over the summer. Spring and summer were a complete BLUR, and if I leave everything sitting on my drives I won’t remember anything I did.

Here, for example, is a short clip of the flight I took in the Beech D18S Expeditor at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum the third week of August. I flew in a variety of aircraft this year, but of all the rides this one was my favourite. We banked so steeply and quickly that I had to fight the G-force to keep my camera hand up to shoot this video!

I flew in the DC-3 Dakota in July for the second time and it was still loads of fun, but this was my first time in the Beech and it was even BETTER! I don’t know if it’s customary for the Beech pilots to do that many dips and turns for member rides, but we were airborne for a generously long period of time compared to other flights I’ve taken at the museum. The pilots were thoroughly enjoying themselves, too, despite the incredible heat and humidity that day.

It wasn’t my original plan, but I left Toronto in the middle of the night on Friday and arrived later than expected in New York City Saturday morning, pushing everything forward including brunch. Then it took me an eternity to get out of New York City, I got caught in gridlock on the I-87 going north, and seriously didn’t think I would make it to Rhinebeck before they closed up everything.

I very nearly turned around to go back to New York City, because Rhinebeck is a four-hour round trip journey — all for naught if I couldn’t fly. I sat in traffic still more than an hour away, trying to decide whether to return or push on.

But I decided to keep going, crossed the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge and with great relief saw the biplane in the sky… I knew I still had a chance to make it.

The good people at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome got me a seat (in the back, just where I like to sit), I put my gear on, and entered a whole new world above the treetops — a glorious world of wings, wires, whistling wind.

Nothing makes my spirit soar like flying.

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Woo-hoo! I was booked months ago for two rides today, as part of my membership at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum at Hamilton Airport. I put myself down for the DC-3 Dakota at 11am and the 1942 Beech D18S Expeditor at 1pm, but the crazy summer storms we’ve been having wreaked havoc in today’s schedule, too.

It wasn’t just the weather: after we were all buckled in, the pilots noticed a mechanical issue and we were evacuated for a bit until they sorted it out (hydraulic lock) and we got on our way. I uploaded a short clip of the flight to Flickr for now — there’s more to come.

This is my second flight in the museum’s DC-3 Dakota, my first flight was November 4, 2006:

All the flights got delayed due to this mechanical issue and the stormy skies, eventually leading to an intense downpour that hangared every single one of the museum’s planes out for rides and cancelled flights for the rest of the afternoon. It was sunny by the time I was on the QEW, but one flight was enough for me today. It’s still incredibly hazy and humid — not really ideal flying conditions — so I’m happy to wait for a better day for a flight in the Beech 18.

Now that I’ve got my flying mission accomplished, on to mission #2 for today: a haircut!!

For those who’ve never been to Vancouver, here’s an aerial shot I took nine days ago that’ll give you an idea of the lay of the (so-called Lotus-)land. This is one of the better aerials I have of Vancouver — you can see the surrounding areas quite clearly and its location in relation to the nearest mountain ranges.

View Larger On White

Click for some notes in Flash, and if you’re in Flickr, feel free to add your own notes.

A video comprised of photos from my memorable flight at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome on October 14.

104 years ago today was the first official flight.

“My aging body transmits an ageless life stream. Molecular and atomic replacement change life’s composition. Molecules take part in structure and in training, countless millions of them. After my death, the molecules of my being will return to the earth and the sky. They came from the stars. I am of the stars.”

Charles A. Lindbergh, Autobiography of Values (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1978), p.402.

Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome
Dutchess County, New York

I really could not have asked for a better last flight to close out the season at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome. First of all, it was a glorious day to fly over the Hudson Valley! View larger.

I got lucky this time x 3:

1. I had the back seat to myself
2. I got some air-to-air shots
3. I also got lucky because the pilot of the second ORA biplane had to do a go-around due to some ground obstructions — turkeys and deer!! — and therefore we couldn’t land right away, either. No complaints here, more air time for me!

wheee!!!

The lady in front of me was a little spooked when the pilot did his dips and turns.

I, on the other hand, couldn’t get enough!

I was all set to make a video from my biplane photos, but after work, errands and mailing my niece’s birthday present, I ran out of steam. 15 hours of driving over two days always catches up with me on Mondays.

The world looks so much more interesting from the sky.

Aerial taken during my fly-along with the Durham Regional Police Air 1 helicopter, Oct 2. It looks like I’m saving all my write-ups for the winter, because I’m too busy the rest of the year to do anything but travel and shoot.

This is the final weekend of the season for Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome air shows and biplane rides. Hopefully if the weather’s good I’ll get one more chance tomorrow to go up in the 1929 New Standard and peer down at the autumn-tinged earth through David’s goggles.

A shot from two weeks ago:

September 30, 2007

I received a truly lovely email this week with a photograph attached of O2P landing at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome. David and I wanted to land there in the Tri-Pacer, but we didn’t get a chance. I’m pleased to report the old bird finally made it there a little while ago. Bravo! Gotta love those grass landings.

Photo credit: A.H.

A short (less than 2-minute) string of videoclips from this afternoon’s one-hour fly-along in the Air1 police helicopter, courtesy of Durham Regional Police. I was too busy taking photos to shoot much video. It was — in a word — THRILLING! Photos are next.

It’s been ages since I uploaded a videoclip, but that is only because I tend to get hyper-editorial about videos and having them play just so, not from lack of material. Video editing can therefore become very time-consuming, so I decided to just let this one go, even though YouTube couldn’t handle the file properly and plays only the music track and not the first audio track that has the sound of the engine. Bah! Well, let’s just pretend we can hear the engine roar, shall we? Just this time.

This is a short clip of take-off from Cherry Ridge Airport last Sunday. It’s a bit before 9 o’clock in the morning, and it’s evident we’re heading north because the shadow of the Super Cub is on our left (west). It’s also a little windy, as you can tell by the bumpy video. The leaves are beginning to turn, but autumn isn’t quite in full swing yet. And it’s not as hazy as it was two weeks ago.

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The Swing at Ocean City, New Jersey’s Wonderland amusement park on the boardwalk

Mondays can be brutal, but a Monday after driving 1,200+ miles or 2,000 kms over a weekend requires major caffeination and a lot of willpower not to crawl underneath my desk for a nap. I’m going to see if I can catch a short snooze now, but I may just wake up tomorrow… before I go, I’d just like to thank everyone who donated online over the weekend to sponsor me for the Terry Fox Run on Sunday. I’m two-thirds of the way toward my goal of $300 thanks to the generosity of these kind folks. I’ve got six days to raise $100, so if you’d like to make a contribution, fire away! Your donor information will not be public (I’m the only one who sees any info), and you will receive a CCRA income tax receipt in PDF format right away. Apologies to those outside of Canada who can’t get an income tax deductible receipt valid in your country, but rest assured the Terry Fox Run is a well-established charity that has been supporting the National Cancer Institute of Canada for more than two decades. 87 cents of each dollar raised goes directly to NCIC.

From the Terry Fox website:

An electronic tax receipt for your donation, in accordance with Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, is sent to the e-mail address you provide and can be printed out on a printer. If no e-mail is provided, it will be mailed to the street address on the form. Our Charitable Registration Number is 10809 9979 RR0001 and our privacy statement is available for viewing.

More photos of the weekend to come, after a battery recharge. I did get to go flying!

over Lake Ariel, Pennsylvania