Odyssey Pilot Hours–Going Home

After two weeks in Erie, Colorado, it was now time to go home. Andrew flew to Denver to join me on the drive back. We spent Friday exploring Rocky Mountain National Park, then started our journey east on Saturday.

Saturday, August 2

At 7:00 AM, Andrew and I left the motel in Longmont, Colorado and headed east. We took a back road that intersected with I-76, then followed that northeast until it intersected with I-80. We took the Ogallala, Nebraska exit and stopped for lunch. The town was quite small with one main street, a rail yard, and a few businesses. We ate lunch at Caroline's Omelet House. Even though the town was small, the restaurant was packed full. We worried a little about how long it would take, since we were on a schedule. But once the food arrived, we knew that it was worth the time it cost.

From Ogallala, we continued east to North Platte, Nebraska. North Platte is the home of the world’s largest rail yard – Bailey Yard. And to our great luck, they were having their 2025 Rail Days event this weekend. We knew this in advance, and I used it as a way to entice Andrew to fly to Denver and join me on the drive back home.

The plan was to tour the Golden Spike Tower, take the 1:00 PM or 3:00 PM Bailey Yard Tour, and see the Challenger display at Cody Park. If we had time, we’d try to see the Model Train Show and attend the Pulled Pork & Corn Feed.

Rail Days schedule

We arrived at the Golden Spike Tower at 12:55 PM. We took a few minutes to stretch and take some pictures before going inside. As you can see in the picture below, the 1:00 PM tour bus was in the parking lot. Inside, we went to the desk and talked about the activities. We mentioned that we wanted to take the 3:00 PM yard tour. We were then informed that the last tour was at 1:00 PM. We were shocked to hear this news, given the schedule, and especially since we had time to catch the 1:00 tour bus, had we known it was the last one. Sigh.

Golden Spike Tower

Not to be deterred, we accepted our fate and toured the tower. The view from the tower is amazing. You can see for miles to the east, north, and west. The yard in front of us was busy with activity. We could see cars being sorted on the two humps. We could also see locomotives being moved to the maintenance buildings. And we could see dozens of full trains coming, going, or waiting on the many sidings.

While we looked and watched in awe, we ran into a volunteer / photographer. He was answering questions from whomever asked. We started asking questions and he went on and on about the history and details of the yard. He then told us that it was a special day. The tower was open after dark, which isn’t normally the case. He was trying to capture a picture of the yard with lightning in the background. I wonder if he got his shot.

Bailey Yark rail diagram

Around 3:00 PM, we left the tower and drove to Cody Park. Here we visited the Railroad Museum and saw an old train depot, the Challenger steam locomotive, and the Centennial diesel locomotive. Unlike every other railroad museum I’ve been to, this museum allowed full access to everything. It was amazing to see all the knobs and levers inside the Challenger cabin and inside the engine and battery rooms of the Centennial. We even got to go down into the bathroom in the nose of the Centennial.

The Challenger is an articulated 4-6-6-4 steam locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company between 1936 and 1944. They were the workhorses for Union Pacific railroad until the Big Boys were developed.

Union Pacific Challenger

Andrew and the Union Pacific Challenger

The Centennial is actually an Electro Motive Division DDA40X. It is basically two normal locomotives aligned back to back inside one much larger locomotive chassis.

Union Pacific DDA40 X Centennial

Inside the train depot, we ran into a couple of volunteers who had once worked for Union Pacific. The were both quite tickled to tell us all about how the toilets would freeze and leave a disgusting, growing pile of poo that someone would have to clean out.

Back on the highway, we continued east. We stopped at a motel in Lincoln, Nebraska at 8:30 PM.

Sunday, August 3

At 8:30 AM, we left the motel and started driving east. When it came time to look for gas, Andrew found a Costco in Coralville, Iowa. This was not your typical Costco. This Costco was build inside a warehouse. The entire parking lot is also inside the warehouse. We got gas, drove into the warehouse to park, then went inside the Costco, which is inside the warehouse, to use the restroom and get a couple slices of pizza. This place is bizarre.

Costco inside a warehouse

After lunch, we continued eastward. As we crossed Illinois, we had to take a detour. We got off the exit and were routed onto a country road. This seemed really odd to us, but it was about to get even stranger. We came around a turn and came upon a factory with an enormous parking lot full of electric Amazon Prime delivery trucks. That was entirely unexpected.

After the detour, we were back on the interstate. We finished crossing Illinois and entered Indiana. We arrived at our motel in Richmond, Indiana just before 10:00 PM. We drove for around 650 miles. So far on this trip, Indiana has had the bumpiest highways, by far.

Monday, August 4

At 8:30 AM, we left the motel and continued our eastward journey. Our first stop was at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, in Dayton, Ohio. We planned to stay for two to three hours. Once inside, we realized that getting out quick was not going to be possible. The museum is comprised of four huge hangars. Hangar one contains two exhibits: Early Years and World War II. Hangar two contains two exhibits: Korea and Southeast Asia (Vietnam). Hangar three contains the Cold War exhibit. Hangar four contains four exhibits: R&D, Space, Global Reach, and Presidential. And between hangars three and four is the Missile Gallery. And that’s not to mention the static exhibits outside. It took us over an hour to ‘quickly’ explore hangar one. We knew we’d need to pick up the pace if we wanted to be in Toronto, Ohio before dark.

This was not my first visit to this museum. While I was in elementary school, we took a field trip here. I don’t remember a lot about it from that time. I do remember that Mom drove the school bus, and I specifically remember taking a picture of an F-100 painted in Thunderbirds colors. I was happy to see that they still have it on display.

F-100 in Thunderbirds colors

Although I found all the exhibits to be very well documented and interesting, I was drawn in by the exhibits of hangar four the most. My favorite plane is still the F-16 – especially when it is painted in the Thunderbirds scheme. But other fascinating planes included here include: B-1 and B-2 bombers, SR-71, XB-70 Valkyrie, F-22, and various former Soviet era fighters.

F-16 in Thunderbirds paint scheme

High view inside hangar four

After about six hours, we grabbed a bite to eat from the Valkyrie Café, then left the museum. So much for staying only two to three hours.

Our next destination was Ohio State University. I wanted to show Andrew the campus. We arrived around 5:00 PM, parked the car, and paid for an hour of parking. During that hour, we walked around the stadium, then headed past a fitness center, through the library, and across the mall.

Ohio Stadium

Ohio Stadium

Andrew and I were both very impressed with the library. The outside looks like a 100+ year old building should look. Once inside, we found a large open space with one side made of glass, going up four or more levels, topped with a glass roof. It was an amazing sight.

Library at Ohio State University

Back outside, we walked past a pond with a fountain, then past tennis courts and the stadium. We reached the car at 6:00 PM.

Ohio Stadium

Back on the road, our final destination was in sight. We got off the interstate in Cambridge, Ohio, and took US-22 towards Steubenville. And it just wouldn’t be right to drive through this part of town without stopping at DiCarlo’s Pizza. So much for making it home before dark.

Andrews at the Wintersville DiCarlo's Pizza

We arrived at my cousin’s house at 9:20 PM. It was after dark, but that was fine with us. We had a long drive, saw some amazing things, and had pizza in our bellies. It was a great trip and I’m so glad that Andrew flew to Denver to share this adventure with me.

Rocky Mountain National Park

While in Colorado at Odyssey Pilot Hours, I invited Andrew to join me for the drive home. He liked the idea and bought himself a plane ticket. I picked him up from the Denver airport yesterday. We took the train from the airport, stopped in downtown Denver, and visited the Erie airport. I showed him the planes that I'd been flying, but it was too late to take him for a flight. Today, we set off for Rocky Mountain National Park.

National Parks require some amount of planning to avoid surprise. The Rocky Mountain National Park requires visitors to have a reservation that allows you in at a certain time. We tried to get a reservation, but the website didn’t appear to be working. We read that you can enter the park either before or after the reservation window. We chose to be at the main gate before the 9:00 AM reservation window opened.

The drive to Estes was about an hour from our motel in Longmont and we left just after 7:00 AM. We arrived at the gate around 8:15 AM. We wanted to go to the Fall River Visitor Center prior to entering the park, but it didn’t open until 9:00 AM. We couldn’t go else we would miss our chance to get in the park before the reservation window. Instead, we planned to go there on the way out of the park.

Rocky Mountain National Park entrance at Fall River

At the gate, we paid the entrance fee, and the ranger gave us a map of the park. Now that we were in, there was no leaving until after 2:00 PM, else we wouldn't be allowed back in until after 6:00 PM.

Rocky Mountain National Park map

With that option out, our new plan was to drive to the Alpine Visitor Center at the high point of the park. It opened at 10:00 AM, so we had plenty of time to visit a few overlooks along the route.

Our first stop was at Many Parks Curve. We parked in a parking lot that was beyond the overlook and walked back. Being that this was our first time out of the car, we realized that maybe we weren't dressed properly for the conditions. Luckily, we both had light jackets to block some of the wind, but it was still pretty chilly. From the overlook, we could see to the east, north, and west. Since the sun was in the east, the view to the west was the best. We figured we’d see the nice east view on the way back out of the park.

Looking northwest from Many Parks Curve

Back in the car, we continued climbing. In many spots, the road was a vertical cliff on one side and a drop off on the other. It reminded me of driving through Mt. Rainier National Park with Aunt Patti; she loved the views but didn't care much for the steep drops.

Our next stop was the Forest Canyon Overlook. We were now above the tree line, thus the term 'alpine' applies.

Looking west from Forest Canyon Overlook

Looking west from Forest Canyon Overlook

Our next stop was the Lava Cliffs Overlook. We were now above the snow. There's something about the sight of snow that makes everything feel colder, as if it wasn't already cold enough. While looking around, we noticed that something was moving out in the distance. With the help of the binoculars, we determined that it was a marmot. There is obviously a lot of wildlife in the park. I wondered what other animals we might see.

Looking north from Lava Cliffs Overlook

As we continued our climb, the scenery changed drastically. It was completely different than before. It was like we were passing through a very large meadow along a ridgeline. There were no trees, and the surface was covered mostly with rocks.

Driving through the alpine area

Our next stop was the Gore Range Overlook. This is the highest point on the road through the park. From this point, you have an unimpeded view to the west.

Panorama from Gore Range Overlook

The next stop on the map was the Alpine Visitor Center. It was now past 10:00 AM, so it was definitely open. As we descended from the Gore Range Overlook, we saw a line of cars along the right side of the road. My first thought was that there must be animals along the road. No, there was no animal. This was the line to get into the parking lot. Apparently, there's a large rush of visitors to get to the Visitor Center before it opens. So, we decided to keep going and come back here later.

Our next stop was the Lake Irene Picnic Area. We found a parking spot near the picnic tables, then started hiking down towards the lake. Along the trail, we ran into a ranger and a volunteer. We talked to them for quite a while, until some other hikers arrived. They told us about the rush to get to the Alpine Visitor Center, and that the best time is between the morning and afternoon rushes. Continuing down the trail, we passed the lake and came to an opening meadow with a view to the west. Here we turned around and followed a different trail up the opposite side of the lake.

Lake Irene

Looking west along the Lake Irene trail

Back in the parking lot, we pulled out the cooler and the dry goods box and carried them to a nearby picnic table. We had the choice of tables in the sun or in the shade. After all the chilly air up on top of the mountains, it was nice to soak in the sun while we ate.

After lunch, we packed up our stuff and headed south along the road. We passed by a few sites that looked interesting, but we continued all the way to the southwest entrance of the park. As I mentioned before, we couldn't leave, else we wouldn't be able to get back in until later, so we didn't get to stop at the Kawuneeche Visitor Center. We were near this entrance during our first Utah trip. During that trip, we drove into Colorado and stayed in Granby for a few days. The park was closed at that time; else we would have entered then.

After turning around, we headed back towards the Colorado River Trailhead. Soon we came upon a car stopped in the road. Again, I wondered if there was an animal spotting. This time there was! Right beside the road was a mother moose and her calf.

With are excitement ratcheted up a few notches, we continued toward the trailhead. We stopped and walked the short distance to the river. At this point, the Colorado River is more of a creek. It's hard to imagine that this is the same Colorado River that passes through Utah and the Grand Canyon.

We continued up the trail while keeping a close eye on what appeared to be a building storm. Soon we came upon a gathering of people. As we approached, we realized that there was another mother moose, and she also had a calf walking along the river. The mother crossed the river, leaving the calf on the far bank. The calf looked nervous about being left behind. After a few moments of hesitation, the calf took a leap and entered the river with a splash. Unfortunately, Andrew missed that moment by just a second in his video.

We soon turned around and returned to the car. The clouds were looking more threatening by the minute, and we didn't want to get caught out in a storm. We continued driving back up the mountain towards the Alpine Visitor Center.

When we arrived at the visitor center, the parking lot was half empty. We easily found a parking spot close to the main entrance. Inside, I was hoping to find an exhibit of local wildlife, but it was just a gift shop, but with a stunning view. Next to the visitor center was a restaurant and an even bigger gift shop. I was hoping to get a nice cup of hot chocolate, but when I asked if it was milk-based, the kid behind the counter said it was water-based. No thanks.

Back outside, we had a decision to make - climb the trail and risk a storm, or not. While we decided, we ran into a couple who had just driven up the old, one-lane dirt road. Apparently, it is narrow and steep but easily handled by a minivan. They told us about seeing elk along that road. After seeing four moose - which was completely unexpected - I was really itching to see a herd of elk.

The storm clouds appeared to be staying to the north, so we decided to take the trail to the top of the park. It was a nice trail, consisting of hundreds of steps. At that elevation, breathing was difficult, so I had to take a few breaks along the way. Eventually we reached the top and enjoyed the view in all directions.

View of the Alpine Visitor Center

The highest accessible point in the park

On the way back down the mountain, we passed by the overlooks that we stopped at on the way up. We eventually reached the Beaver Ponds. That sounded interesting to me, based on my experience with beaver ponds in Grand Tetons National Park. We stopped and walked the short boardwalk trail into the marshes. At the end, we didn't see anything, so we returned to the car, somewhat disappointed.

Our next stop was the Endovalley Picnic Area. It was off of a side road that we purposefully skipped on the way up in our attempt to reach the Alpine Visitor Center when it opened. We weren't really sure what there was to do there, but we stopped anyway. It was at the end of the paved road and marked the beginning of the one-lane dirt road that leads up to the visitor center. We got out and tried to figure out if there was a short hike starting there, but it soon started to rain. We tried to wait it out, but after five minutes, we made a run for the car.

This side road also had the Alluvial Fan and Horseshoe Falls Trailhead. The fan is an interesting area where a large pile of rock debris lies at the foot of the mountain. There's a very interesting story about it, that it included here:

In 1982 a breach in the earthen dam at Lawn Lake brought down a devastating wall of water sweeping vegetation and debris that would eventually form the Alluvial Fan as we see it today. The boulder field and sediment surrounding the Alluvial Fan are remnants of this destructive event.

Horseshoe Falls

Looking down at the Alluvial Fan

Back on the main road, our next stop was Sheep Lakes. It is here that I absolutely expected to see a herd of elk. Instead, we saw three big horn sheep crossing the road.

By this time, it was approaching 6:00 PM. This meant that we could leave the park and come back in if we chose. This is when we planned to visit the Fall River Visitor Center, so that's what we did. When we arrived, we realized that it was already closed! We were shocked and sad. But after a quick search, Andrew discovered that the Estes Park Visitor Center was open until 7:00 PM. We hurried into town and arrived about 20 minutes before they closed.

The Estes Park Visitor Center was more of what I expected a visitor center to be. They had a large, 3D map of the park that showed all the roads and peaks. They also had souvenirs and cute, stuffed animals, but they didn't have local stuffed animals. They were showing a screening of the park history, so we went in and watched the last 10 minutes of it. We were the only ones in the room.

At 7:00 PM, we left and headed for the Bear Lake entrance. There was no line at first, but when the road split off from the main road, we ran into a small backup of cars. As we sat there, we wondered why there was a backup at all. As we inched forward, we realized that there were no rangers in the booth. Then it donned on us. The backup was caused by two extremely violent speed bumps that they had across the road. 

We followed the road up to the Bear Lake parking lot. It became obvious that this part of the park is more rugged than what we saw earlier. This part of the park is where the serious hikes begin. I doubted that we'd find any trails short enough to do in the amount of daylight that we had left. The parking lot was huge, but mostly empty. They get so many visitors to this part of the park that they have a shuttle bus that runs to another parking lot further from the trailheads. We parked and walked several hundred yards in the parking lot before reaching the bus stop and the trailheads. When we saw the sign, we laughed out loud. The Bear Lake trail was measured in feet, not miles. That's the one we chose to take.

Looking south from Bear Lake parking lot

Hiking trail choices at Bear Lake

Looking northeast from Bear Lake

Back in the car, we still had some time before it got dark. We decided to go back to Many Parks Curve and see if the view to the east was any better. We also hoped to see some elk along the road. We stopped at the overlook, then continued back down to the Fall River entrance. We didn't see any signs of elk along the way. We left the park, excited about what we did see, but still a little bummed about the lack of elk sightings.

Back in Estes Park, we chose to take a different route home than the way we came because I wanted to stop at the In-N-Out in Loveland. The route we chose followed closely along the Big Thompson River. In many places, there was barely enough room for the road and the river to fit between the high cliffs of the narrow canyon. Occasionally the canyon would widen out and have enough room for a pull off for tourists and fishers. As we approached one of these pull offs, we saw a line of vehicles parked. As I passed, we noticed two very large male elk munching on tree branches, right beside the road. I was so shocked that I didn't know what to do. There were already cars in the pull out and I was going a bit too fast to stop suddenly. We ended up driving by, our jaws dropped open. After a full day in the Rocky Mountain National Park, without seeing any signs of elk, we now saw two bull elk standing 10 feet from us, and we didn't even stop. Wow, what a day!

---

Click the link to see all of the pictures from this trip: Rocky Mountain National Park.

Odyssey Pilot Hours–Around Town

While living in Erie, Colorado and flying at Odyssey Pilot Hours (OPH), I flew from dawn until early afternoon nearly every day. The rest of the time, I was free to do whatever I wanted. On some days, I went exploring.

View of the Rocky Mountains from the neighborhood

Tuesday, July 22

On Tuesday, I asked around for good hiking trails in the area. One person suggested Boulder Falls, but when I looked it up, I discovered that it was closed due to a rockslide. Someone else suggested the Royal Arch Trail at Chautauqua Park, in Boulder. That looked promising, so I filled my Camelback with water and headed to Boulder.

When I arrived, I couldn't find a trail map. I saw a bunch of kids coming down the trail with their adult chaperones, so I asked one of the adults how she liked the trail. She said that it was nice. So, that's the trail I chose. After hiking for only a few minutes, I began to feel the effects of being at 5,500 feet above sea level. My legs were fine, but I was struggling to breath. I told myself that it was not because I'm so out of shape; it's the thin air.

The trail split several times, so I took pictures of where I'd been to be sure I could find my way back. Soon, I ran into a guy who was going the same direction, and we started talking. He moved to Colorado decades ago and has loved it ever since. We walked along a mesa trail together for about a mile, then I turned around and headed back the way we had come.

David on a trail near Chautauqua Park, Boulder

Back at the car, I thought about what else I'd like to do. I decided to go tour the University of Colorado, which is also in Boulder. I found a parking lot that wasn't too expensive, then started walking. I found a campus map, then headed for the stadium. All the gates were closed, but I found a spot with a pretty good view.

Home of the Colorado Buffaloes

Then I continued through the older part of campus. The buildings were very old, and several were in the process of being restored. I walked past a small pond, then headed for the student union.

The student union was nice and reminded me of nearly every other student union I've ever visited. One of the banquet rooms was being set up for an event. There were two people sitting at a table outside the room and I stopped to talk to them. I mentioned that my son goes to UCF and the girl said that she was from Florida. We talked a bit about how the football game was almost cancelled due to a hurricane that passed through the area during the week leading up to the game.

Student union at CU

My next goal was to find a view of the Flatiron mountains from somewhere on campus. It didn't take long to find it. I sent the picture below to Andrew, saying something like, "UCF campus is nice, but it doesn't have mountain views!"

Flatiron Mountains from CU

Thursday, July 24

On Thursday, I returned to Chautauqua Park. I wanted to find the Royal Arch Trail. This time, I went to the proper park entrance and found not only a trail map, but also a guide. I told him that I was told that I must do the Royal Arch Trail. He told me that it was nice, but it was the hardest trail. He suggested the Flatiron Trail. I thought it wise to take his advice.

From the park, the trail rises very rapidly about 1,500 feet vertically. Needless to say, I stopped several times during this section, to take pictures <cough><cough> of course. I eventually came to a decision point, where one trail was easy and the other was medium. I told myself to suck it up and take the medium trail, so that's what I did. While coming around a bend in the trail, I saw a nearly vertical cliff rising above me. And to my surprise, there were people climbing it! Nope, that's not for me.

Climbers near the Flatiron Trail

On my way back to the condo, I decided to stop in downtown Erie. It is a very small town with some mining history, but it is growing rapidly. On this evening, they were setting up for a street fair. Vendors were busy setting up tents and putting out their wares. I like it when towns show their civic pride and hold events out in the streets.

Sunday, July 27

On Sunday, I decided that I wanted to drive into the mountains. I routed a trip that went to Estes Park and came back down a different route. I asked my house mate Daniel if he wanted to come along. He said yes. The route started in Longmont, went west to Lyons, took US-36 to Estes Park, then took CO-7 back to Lyons.

It seems like July 27 is event day in Colorado, or maybe it is like that every weekend. In Lyons, there were cars and people everywhere. A lot of them were carrying innertubes and floating on the river. Then in Estes Park, the sidewalks were overflowing with people. It was chaos, but it looked like a lot of fun. Then something absolutely crazy happened. We were leaving Estes Park - just a mile out of town - when we came across a female elk standing right beside the road! The hustle and bustle didn't seem to affect her at all.

The drive down CO-7 was amazing. The road follows the path of the Little Thompson River as it winds its way through a narrow canyon with steep walls. We stopped in several places to take pictures and to touch the water. I nearly fell in as I jumped onto a rock to take some low angle pictures.

Little Thompson River

Tuesday, July 29

On Tuesday, the weather was not conducive to flying, so I took the opportunity to ride the Denver RTD train. With Andrew coming on Thursday, I wanted to ride the train and avoid the traffic and parking issues at the Denver airport. I thought it would be good to ride the route ahead of time so that I'd know what to expect when he arrived. I asked Daniel if he'd like to join me and he said yes.

Our first stop was in Eastgate. Eastgate is the stop that is closest to Erie. From there, we rode south into downtown Denver. The end of the line is Union Station. We got off the train and looked around Union Station while we waited for the next train to the airport. This is a stop on Amtrak's California Zephyr route, which we chased around Granby and Winter Park the last time I was in Colorado.

Union Station in Denver

We boarded the next train to the airport, sat back, and enjoyed the ride. Once at the airport, we walked around for a while, then boarded the next train back to Union Station. Just to mix things up a bit, I decided to get off the train at the Peoria station and ride a different train to Aurora. I was hoping Aurora would be nice, but it wasn't all that special. We got off that train and caught the next train back to Denver.

The next train took us to deeper into downtown. From here, we walked past the famous 16th Street Mall. We were in a bit of a hurry, so we didn't have time to explore it. From the street, I couldn't see why it was so popular. Back at Union Station, we caught the next train to Eastlake. On the way out of town, we passed by Coors Field and a BNSF rail yard. I miss seeing those big, beautiful "pumpkin" locomotives.

BNSF rail yard in Denver

After hearing so many stories about how bad Colorado has become after legalizing marijuana, I have to say that I didn't smell it at all the entire time I was there. Also, I left Denver feeling like it is a small city, trapped inside a huge metropolitan area. Most of the buildings in downtown are old and less than six stories tall. Finally, I noticed walking paths everywhere. During most of the train ride, there was at least one paved path visible. Colorado takes outdoor living seriously. This is something I wish more cities would do.

Odyssey Pilot Hours–Flight Time

I arrived in Erie Colorado on Thursday, July 18. On Friday morning, I attended orientation at Odyssey Pilot Hours (OPH). I was scheduled to get checked out in the two plane types afterwards, but the weather was not cooperating.

During orientation, the owner of OPH went through all of the rules and regulations. After each section, we signed and dated the document. With the paperwork out of the way, we moved on to flight details. There were four columns of notes on the whiteboard covering things like logging flight time, airplane-specific details like airspeeds, local area airports and air spaces, and pilot pressures and how to cope with them.

After orientation, I was nervous. I wasn't sure if I was ready to be the responsible pilot in command in this new, complicated environment. I told myself that I'd insist that my first partner be the flying pilot on my first flight. That way, I could sit in the right seat and observe everything.

JMB VL-3 at the OPH hangar in Erie

Saturday, July 19

Saturday was checkout day. I first flew the Harmony for nearly two hours. My instructor had me demonstrate slow flight, steep turns, and stalls before heading back to the pattern for touch and goes. I did four laps around the pattern before doing a full stop landing. Later that day, my instructor and I repeated the process in the VL-3.

After flying both planes, one after the other, I was convinced that I wanted to spend all of my time in the Harmony. The main reason was the seating position. You sit higher in the Harmony, so forward visibility is better. Also, the Harmony has a solid roof panel that blocks out most of the sun. Finally, the Harmony is a little easier to land. The VL-3, on the other hand, is very sporty. Some say it is like driving a go-cart. It is very slippery in the air and requires a lot of focus and tiny inputs to the stick to make a smooth landing.

Evektor Harmony at OPH in Erie

Sunday, July 20

For my first flight, I was paired with Lee to fly the VL-3, and we flew to Limon, Colorado. Lee had been flying at OPH for a long time and lives in the area, so he had a lot of knowledge for me to tap into. I flew as safety pilot and observed everything that he did and spoke. To make things even more interesting, two of my house mates were paired up and they also flew to Limon. This was very unusual at OPH. Most pilots choose to fly at night and they rarely, if ever, land anywhere. But the four of us preferred to fly during the day.

VL-3 in Limon

Monday, July 21

On Monday, Lee and I flew to Scottsbluff, Nebraska. After the flight on Sunday, I was fully confident that I could manage the flight, so I was the flying pilot on this trip.

VL-3 in Scottsbluff

Tuesday, July 22

On Tuesday, Lee and I flew to Pine Bluffs, Wyoming. I was the safety pilot. This flight was extra special to me. At first, I didn't put it together, but as we flew along, I realized that I'd been to Pine Bluffs before. Back in 2014, during our vacation to Jackson, Wyoming and Yellowstone National Park, we were driving west from Omaha, Nebraska along I-80. I remember Nebraska being such a wide state with very little variation in scenery. I was thinking, "When will we see trees again?". And then we entered Wyoming. The first rest area was in Pine Bluffs. I remember a hill covered with pine trees and large rocks in the rest area. I thought, "Finally, we have trees and elevation changes. We must be getting close now." Little did I know how long and tiring the drive ahead to Jackson was going to be.

VL-3 in Pine Bluffs

Wednesday, July 23

On Wednesday, Lee and I flew to Akron, Colorado. I was the flying pilot. It felt odd flying to Akron, given that I went to school at the University of Akron (Ohio). Inside the FBO, I mentioned to the guy running the place that I was from Ohio. He said that he had once spent some time in Akron, Ohio. How strange is that?

VL-3 at sunrise

VL-3 in Akron

Thursday, July 24

On Thursday, Lee and I flew to Oshkosh, Nebraska. I was the safety pilot. This destination was a pleasant surprise to me, given that 1) Oshkosh, Wisconsin was currently hosting AirVenture and 2) I didn't know there was an Oshkosh, Nebraska.

VL-3 at sunrise

VL-3 in Oshkosh

David in Oshkosh

Friday, July 25

On Friday, Lee and I flew to La Junta, Colorado. I was the flying pilot. For this flight, I wanted to break the mold. All previous flights departed Erie and flew northeast around the Denver Class B airspace. For this flight, I wanted to depart to the south, along the mountains towards Colorado Springs. The trickiest part was finding a route that went above and below various airspace altitudes. To make that easier, we requested permission and flew through Rocky Mountain Metro's Class D airspace and the Colorado Springs Class C airspace. Once clear of those, we headed for La Junta. I was expecting to have the airspace to myself, but then about eight planes appeared on our traffic screen. They were all from a flight school in Pueblo. Half of them went to La Junta and the other half went to Melon Field. With four planes in the pattern, I went ahead and shot my approach as planned. With the other pilot's help, I was able to join the flow and land. I rolled to the end of the runway because the taxiways were all a mess. The runway wasn't in very good shape either. That was the roughest airport I can remember flying into.

VL-3 at sunrise

VL-3 in La Junta

Saturday, July 26

On Saturday, I flew with my house mate Iven to Lusk, Wyoming. I was the flying pilot. Our route took us right over Cheyenne, Wyoming. Earlier in the week, I had heard a Thunderbird pilot on the radio. My curiosity overtook me, and I called Cheyenne Tower to ask about the Thunderbirds and the Temporary Flight Restriction that I saw on the chart. He told me that they were flying Saturday and Sunday afternoon. As we flew near the airport, I peeked out and saw a line of small white jets on the far side of the field. I was tempted to take the following day off and drive up to see them fly.

VL-3 in Lusk

Sunday, July 27

On Sunday, I flew with my house mate Daniel to Sterling, Colorado. I was the flying pilot. 

VL-3 in Sterling

Monday, July 28

On Monday, Daniel and I flew to Sidney, Nebraska. I was the flying pilot.

VL-3 in Sidney

Tuesday, July 29

On Tuesday, the weather was too lousy to fly, so I did a trial run to the Denver airport on the train. After my experience dealing with traffic and parking at the airport when I dropped off my mom, I thought it would be easier to just park and ride the train when picking up Andrew later this week. The train went from a parking lot in Eastlake to Union Station in downtown Denver. Then another train went to the airport.

Wednesday, July 30

On Wednesday, Daniel and I flew to Limon, Colorado. I was the flying pilot. On the trip out, we noticed that the cylinder head temperature was running a bit high. Out of an abundance of caution, we returned to Erie to have it looked at. A mechanic quickly fixed the issue, and we were on our way again. On our return to Erie, we noticed an area building over the mountains on the NEXRAD weather screen. I decided to make a bee line straight back to Erie. As we got closer, Erie became covered by green, and then yellow. We were considering finding an alternate to wait out the storm, while still flying towards Erie. As we got within 20 miles, we could still hear other pilots flying in the area. We flew back to Erie and had no rain and no gusts. I don't know what the NEXRAD was seeing, but it wasn't making it to the ground.

Thursday, July 31

Today was my last day at OPH. I still had time on my account, so I needed one more flight. The flight could be either a dual 1.6-hour flight or a solo 0.8-hour flight. I chose to fly the VL-3 solo over Boulder and along the mountains. It felt nice to complete my hours, but sad to know that my time at OPH was over. I find it ironic that I wanted to fly the Harmony but ended up flying exclusively in the VL-3.

Flight Time: 50.4 hours
Total Time: 796 hours