5 days and wheels up :)

[SkyPirate]

Watching the weather and it looks like the morning of June 3rd is going to be a green light from the tower..
My Co pilot has had her gear packed for a week ha ha !!
I will repost our route once all stops are confirmed, and do my best to stick to the schedule so if im near any forum members at the planned way points it would be cool to get some pictures with other kitfox flyers along our adventure :)

Chase

[DesertFox4]

Chase, will you two be carrying a SPOT type personal locator? If so, send me the site address if you want. Would like to follow along.:)

[SkyPirate]

no Spot this trip Steve,..Chris is tracking my cell,.too many gadgets to pick from/purchase , but future adventures,..it's on the list :)

[SkyPirate]

I will be posting photo's and locations on here though :)

[SkyPirate]

first day this is our flight plan,..which I found out it's a good thing we are leaving on Tuesday..CEY is closed on Wednesday for runway repairs,,this is our first fuel stop, I have our times based on 95 NM Hr


M48 HOUSTON MEMORIAL 177.6nm 1h52.2m to
KCEY KYLE-OAKLEY FIELD 16.7nm 10.5min to
GPS N36°47.94' W88°4.22' 29.8nm 18.8min to
KHVC HOPKINSVILLE-CHRISTIAN COUNTY 197.2nm 2h4.6m to
I35 TUCKER-GUTHRIE MEMORIAL 138.3nm 1h27.4m to
00VI GROUNDHOG MOUNTAIN 61.9nm 39.1min to
KBUY BURLINGTON-ALAMANCE RGNL 46.6nm 29.4min to
FUQUAY/ANGIER FIELD5.1nm 3.2min to
5W5 TRIPLE W (Total 668.1nm 7h2.0m

[SkyPirate]

when we get done in NC this is the planned route to New Hampshire

NC78 to W17
W17 RALEIGH EAST 24.4nm 15.4min to
NC56 DEER RUN 176.8nm 1h51.7m to
KOKV WINCHESTER RGNL 95nm 1h0.0m to
KRVL MIFFLIN COUNTY 83.2nm 52.5min to
N27 BRADFORD COUNTY 112.9nm 1h11.3m to
1I5 FREEHOLD 96.2nm 1h0.7m to
KCNH CLAREMONT MUNI total 588.5 NM 6.30 hrs

[SkyPirate]

and the flight home.. taking our time and stopping often

KCNH CLAREMONT NH 68.3nm 43.1min to
5B2 SARATOGA COUNTY 131.7nm 1h23.2m to
D82 OVID 139.3nm 1h28.0m to
N35 PUNXSUTAWNEY MUNI 67.5nm 42.6min to
KUCP NEW CASTLE MUNI 12.6nm 7.9min to
4G4 YOUNGSTOWN ELSER METRO 116.1nm 1h13.3m to
KLHQ FAIRFIELD COUNTY 37.1nm 23.4min to
I23 FAYETTE COUNTY 64.8nm 41.0min to
GPS N39°35.31' W84°49.09' 125.7nm 1h19.4m to
KSIV SULLIVAN COUNTY 54.2nm 34.3min to
KFOA FLORA MUNI 185.1nm 1h56.9m to
M48 HOUSTON MEMORIAL
Total 1002.4nm 10h33.1m

[SkySteve]

Chase,
Looks like a cool trip. How about at least throwing it on Sky Vector and copy the page to TKF so we can see where you are going? (Since we can't go, too. We really, really want to watch) :p

[SkyPirate]

Im not sure how to do that Steve got any ideas?

let me try this ..

http://skyvector.com/?ll=40.06910401961928,-83.6132812440139&chart=301&zoom=12&plan=A.K6.KCNH:A.K6.5B2:A.K6.D82:A.K6.N35:A.K6.KUC P:A.K5.4G4:A.K5.KLHQ:A.K5.I23:G.39.588475053634866 ,-84.81811522846493:A.K5.KSIV:A.K5.KFOA:A.K3.M48:A.K 5.KCEY:A.K5.KHVC:A.K5.I35:A.K6.00VI:A.K7.KBUY:A.K7 .5W5:A.K7.W17:A.K7.NC56:A.K6.KOKV:A.K6.KRVL:A.K6.N 27:A.K6.1I5:A.K6.KCNH

[Dick B in KY]

Hey Chase, If you are stopping at Hopkinsville-Christian Co in Ky, you might want to contact Danny Powell from the members list. He and his SS7 are at Hopkinsvville. He just finished his plane a couple of years ago.\

Dick B

PS - If you get near KIOB (Mt. Sterling, KY) give me a hollar, would be glad to meet you in person.

[SkyPirate]

I will be 200 miles south of you this trip,..but we are 4 hrs apart there abouts,,M48 to KIOB. sounds like a future cross country :) would be cool to meet you in person as well

I will look up Danny Powell ..we plan on stopping at Hopkinsville for lunch :)

[SkySteve]

Chase,
Looks like you are a SkyVector guru. Works just fine! Thanks.

[kitfoxnick]

Hey Chase heads up N74 pens cave is a cool cavern that is navigable by boat, and a wildlife park. LHV is home of Piper and The piper museum. If you find yourself coming by LHV between June 17-21 the sentimental journey fly in will be happening.

[Paul Z]

Chase,

Looks like a great trip. Have fun, fly safe, and I'm envious.

Paul Z

[SkyPirate]

Nick that sounds tempting but if i was gone from home that long Chris would kick me to the curb😱 i have a 12 day limit, dang it !
Paul , your welcome to fly along 👍 only take you 4 hrs to get here 😁

[GT280flyer]

Skypirite on your return trip, the Saratoga Co. to Ovid leg you will be in my back yard. If you need a break would be glad to make the acquaintance with another kitfoxer. I am in Edmeston NY which is south east of Hamilton (VGC). I fly from a 900' private grass runway.Would be glad to PM my email and phone if needed. Have a Great Trip.

Tim Tophoven
Kitfox III

[SkyPirate]

Ok Tim :) i will check your location, could be a rest stop on our way back , i will pm my cell #

[Paul Z]

I just got back from my Trip to Idaho, the wife would kill me!


Nick that sounds tempting but if i was gone from home that long Chris would kick me to the curb😱 i have a 12 day limit, dang it !
Paul , your welcome to fly along 👍 only take you 4 hrs to get here 😁

[SkyPirate]

Am I spoiled? .... Maybe :) Chris just surprized me with 2 in flight pillows, for my kitfox :)

[SkySteve]

Yes sir, you are one spoiled pilot!

[SkyPirate]

Ha ha :) Steve,.. I just might have to plead guilty but with no remorse :)

[SkyPirate]

ok last change to route :)

M48 HOUSTON MEMORIAL 177.6nm 1h52.2m to
KCEY KYLE-OAKLEY FIELD 077° 45.7nm 28.9min to
KHVC HOPKINSVILLE-CHRISTIAN COUNTY 201.4nm 2h7.2m to
KMOR MOORE-MURRELL 44.3nm 28.0min to
33NR WOLF RIDGE 49.8nm 31.5min to
56NC WHEAT FIELD 42.5nm 26.8min to
E40 WILSON'S 20.9nm 13.2min to
KSVH STATESVILLE RGNL 52.2nm 33.0min to
KHBI ASHEBORO RGNL 39.1nm 24.7min to
KTTA RALEIGH EXEC JETPORT 17.5nm 11.0min to
78NC FUQUAY/ANGIER FIELD

this route will put me in the Blue Ridge Mts at peak elevations at around 7000 ' ASL .. hope its clear for some good photo's :)

http://skyvector.com/?ll=35.062600981802745,-81.60974120482494&chart=301&zoom=5&plan=A.K3.M48:A.K5.KCEY:A.K5.KHVC:A.K7.KMOR:A.K7.3 3NR:A.K7.56NC:A.K7.E40:A.K7.KSVH:A.K7.KHBI:A.K7.KT TA:A.K7.78NC


and nice talking with you today Danny ,..look forward to meeting you in Kentucky :)

[SkyPirate]

due to a good sized line of thunderstorms that stretches from Mississippi to the great lakes,.... we have delayed departure 1 day :) it should be north of our flight plan by tomorrow,.. so Wednesday morning it's wheels up a 0light30 :)

[GWright6970]

Clear skies and tailwinds!

[SkyPirate]

Thanks Grover :) that would be nice,,the last 2 trips it's been headwinds and cloudy both ways lol but seriously it really looks like a quartering tail wind this time for 75% of the trip :)

Thanks again :)

[Paul Z]

Have fun, I did a long trip to Weyers Cave Virginia, I fought thunderstorm cumin & going. It was a really fun trip. Fly carefully.

I took a Rotax Maintenance & Repair class at Blue Ridge Community College. I would recommend the class to anyone that owns a Rotax powered aircraft.

[SkyPirate]

thanks Paul,..we will be having fun :) its on the menu ..and we will be going right past the Blue Ridge College area,,just north of it and south of treacherous Mitchell mountain

[SkyPirate]

OK change # 00603 lol watching the storms west of the blue ridge mountains,..they are moving faster then expected ,,so it might be a late morning departure after all,..the mornings weather check will depict the actions taken ..

[DesertFox4]

Safe flight you two. Thanks for the phone call today. Nice to talk with you both. Have fun. Watch the weather. Say hi to all our TeamKitfox'ers for me as you stop and visit with them.:)

P.S. - love the pillows Chris.:)

[SkyPirate]

Thanks Steve, after checking the morning weather, the storm west of the ridge at this moment is on its way out, tomorrows forecast has winds around 30 mph west of the Ridge, so if we leave around 10:00/11:00 today, the storm and MT OBSCUR should be clear,
Options : 1 leave today late morning and fly the Ridge on our own power...
2 leave tomorrow and get blown over the Ridge by mother nature

Tough choice, ...ok I flipped Madison,.. She landed on heads .. Ha ha so we leave today :)


PS from Chris " thank you Steve :) "

[dholly]

Chase, enjoy your adventure!

FYI, if you fly over the old Seneca Army Depot near Ovid you might catch sight of some of the world's largest herd of white deer. http://senecawhitedeer.org/

I'm at D38 if you need a weather stop in the area. Empy nesters now, plenty of room and grub but my wife might put you to work spreading mulch. :)

Doug

[Danny]

Chase and daughter Madison stopped for a quick lunch and visit at HVC, Tuesday afternoon. Was good to visit with a fellow Kitfoxer. Wish you blue skies and tailwinds for the rest of your trip.
Danny

[Danny]

Here's another of Chase. Can't figure out how to post more than one photo on a post.

[Danny]

Kitfox cousins getting to know each other.

[SkyPirate]

Was great meeting you Danny :) we made it to 78NC as planned, not having much luck finding a good spot to get connected to post pic's etc, tomorrow morning we go to my other daughter Ashley's graduation :) i hope to see more of our kitfox family members before we return home

[SkyPirate]

Crossing the Blue Ridge Mtns

[SkyPirate]

As we were climbing to get above the layer of clouds overlaying the Blue Ridge Mtns

[SkyPirate]

We climbed to 7500', on the other side we dropped right back down east of Ashville NC and stopped in to see Dragracingtaildragger, ( sorry Mitch if i got your handle wrong :)
We had made it to Morristown dispite the weather we waited for to pass the previous day west of the Blue Ridge prior to flying over the BRM, and had a Great visit with Mitch also :) Great seeing you Mitch!! Madison hasnt stopped talking about you yet :) mainly " Dad? Do i really have to wait until i am 30 to get married? Ha ha ( Madison is 8 )
Pic my plane nestled in Mitch's hanger with his 6 during the heat of the NC day

[SkyPirate]

78NC a great flying group of guys " the Kenebec Flying Club" here in Fuquay-Varina NC , and an awesome grass strip Long rte55, Madison and I have camped out here , tonight our second night, anticipating going to Ashley's Graduation

[Paul Z]

78NC a great flying group of guys " the Kenebec Flying Club" here in Fuquay-Varina NC , and an awesome grass strip Long rte55, Madison and I have camped out here , tonight our second night, anticipating going to Ashley's Graduation

When I get mine converted to a Tail Dragger, I need to go visit that strip. Looks nice.

[DesertFox4]

Looks like you had no problem clearing the Blue Ridge Mountains Chase. Plenty of climb in that 80 hp. Rotax.;)

Sweet looking grass strip. Perfect for a Kitfox. Sound like you two are doing just fine and meeting some good Kitfox folks. Enjoy Ashley's graduation.

Is Madison letting you fly the Model 5 a little now and then?

[Paul Z]

Chase and daughter Madison stopped for a quick lunch and visit at HVC, Tuesday afternoon. Was good to visit with a fellow Kitfoxer. Wish you blue skies and tailwinds for the rest of your trip.
Danny

Has she started learning how to T/O & Land?

[Paul Z]

We climbed to 7500', on the other side we dropped right back down east of Ashville NC and stopped in to see Dragracingtaildragger, ( sorry Mitch if i got your handle wrong :)
We had made it to Morristown dispite the weather we waited for to pass the previous day west of the Blue Ridge prior to flying over the BRM, and had a Great visit with Mitch also :) Great seeing you Mitch!! Madison hasnt stopped talking about you yet :) mainly " Dad? Do i really have to wait until i am 30 to get married? Ha ha ( Madison is 8 )
Pic my plane nestled in Mitch's hanger with his 6 during the heat of the NC day

Chase, I would recommend you reconsider 30, that is WAY too young to get married, I would recommend 35. : )

[SkyPirate]

Lol Paul on the 35 :) and I agree! And no on thelanding and taking off, she is learning to hold altitude first :)

[SkyPirate]

LOL Steve :) yes she lets me take off and land 😜 and yes 78NC is an awesome grass strip and a great bunch of guys based here, I highly recommend anybody that is in this area that can land on a 2300' grass strip to stop in and pay them a visit, even if its just for a cold drink and some airplane talk :)

[Paul Z]

Just have her do a nice easy wheel landing. :D:D. I'm not sure if it will put a grin on your face or an "Oh S * * t we're gonna die look. :eek: But what's life without a little excitement.

[SkyPirate]

Just have her do a nice easy wheel landing. :D:D. I'm not sure if it will put a grin on your face or an "Oh S * * t we're gonna die look. :eek: But what's life without a little excitement.

Lol Paul flat n level first :) then turns, then approaches:), then maybe a 3 point first, but that will be when she can reach the rudder pedals 👍😁

[Paul Z]

Just tell her to scoot up, stick ALL of the luggage be hinder her. She can do it!

I can't believe SkyPirate is so Risk adverse! :roll eyes:

Have a fun trip, watch out for the fog in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I got stuck two days in a row, trying to get out when as I was packing to leave in come the FOG. The mountains were really neat, I flew up to Weyers Cave, VA, to the Blue Ridge Community College to take a Rotax Repair & Maintenance class. It definitely fun flying someplace that had some terrain.

[SkyPirate]

Paul, She says " just stick for now ha ha :)

Landed at CNH 10:00 AM,

So far , 26 gallons of fuel , M48 to 78NC, not quite a straight line but close,
21 gallons of fuel 78NC to CNH, watching weather for best return flight time/date

[Paul Z]

Chase

Aren't the blue ridge mountains beautiful. I hope y'all have a great trip.

Paul

[SkyPirate]

Yes the Blue Ridge are gorgeous, we flew by ski areas and mnt Sunapee today , the mtn ranges in PA too they average between 4,00OASL AND 4,700 ASL along the trek we took

[SkyPirate]

Had more then i can eat ice cream with Dorsal, Norm and my nephew Greg at AFN and got some pic's of Dorsal in his awesome 7 ,

[SkyPirate]

Sorry about the orientation , not being at home , i cant fix it yet

[Pilot4Life]

Can't change yours SkyPirate, but here's another post of it corrected.

6910

[Dorsal]

I pulled some serious Gs between those two pictures :) Great to meet more Kitfoxers.

[Pilot4Life]

Dorsal...As they saying goes, "When you got it, you got it"...:D

SkyPirate...where's the fair weather taking you today? Any new pics?

[SkyPirate]

Ha ha on the serious G's Dorsal 😁 i should have told Greg to hold the phone on its side , my fault 😁
Pilot4life thanks for the attitude adjustment👍 with rain for most of today the 5 stayed tucked away in the hangar, maybe tomorrow afternoon it will clear enough for a flight around mt ascutney, or a trip over to Parlin field.

But definitely this Wednesday, our forecasted departure date , severe clear with N/NE winds at 5 to 10 mph so i have a headstart home with a tail wind :)
The only area im concerned with during return flight to MO is in Ohio, 80% chance of rain /T storms mid day, will be watching for a gap between storms and hope for enough clearance/visibility to squeeze thru

[SkyPirate]

Darn Iphone , time to upgrade to a phone that automatically adjusts attitude

[SkyPirate]

AFN before overdose of mint chocolate chip ice cream 😁

[DesertFox4]

Great photo Chase. Two sweet aircraft. Stay safe.

[SkyPirate]

Some good info if your flying inland from the NH coast, if you dont have a honey hole all set up for MOGAS, it is available in 2 places with in 20 miles from CNH, but not on field, and you may want to check to make sure you took your blood press. Meds. Before reading on,... It is available in 5 gallon containers at a REAL discount, $75.00 per container!! Choke ! Choke!

[SkyPirate]

Ice mountain obscurity rain less the 1 hr west of us right now , watching to see if it moves north

[SkyPirate]

Rain clouds on the horizon,... Rain clouds over head, Rain clouds north east west and south,.. Not really complaining :) it means more time with family, but it also means i have to drive everywhere,
Madison, with all of this rain has been trying to establish some " roots" and has implicated the thought that she would like to stay here for the summer, with little inuendo's " Dad? You could come back in the fall when the leaves turn and pick me up? I know how you talk about the foilage here in the fall:)" ha ha
She surely knows how to play " dad" at 8 yrs old ha ha.

Outlook /plan as of now, depart the wet lands " new england" this saturday with intentions of arriving back in MO no later then Sunday around noon dodging a few showers on the way.

1,110 nm left of this adventure with 1,490 nm behind us, and building memories on the way , Finn and Norm, i still have not craved even a taste of icecream since AFN :)

[SkyPirate]

It has not stopped raining for 3 days but finally we are getting a little bit of distance to the cieling

[DesertFox4]

Glad you are patient Chase.
Those of us who fly small aircraft require this characteristic.
Enjoy your day. :)

[SkyPirate]

Havent got much choice Steve :) its been IFR from the deck up, im not complaining, got to spend more time with family👍

[SkyPirate]

On our way back to the nest (M48) travelling back has been a test for my meteoroligal side dodgeing storms, out of 2 days travelling we have been able to cover all but the last 360 NM, with an extensive weather pre flight, we hope to touch down on familiar turf before noon today.
So far we have had in our favor once 150 mph GS with 115 ASI, and not so much in our favor 110 ASI with 75 GS, for the most part smooth air until yesterday, with turbulence from ground up to 6000 ASL and head winds in front of a storm that made more sense to be on the ground and wait it out, as the sun rises this am, we will be on the ramp, nose pointed SW , tanks topped and the knowledge that a warm shower, beautiful lady and a familiar bed are waiting at the end of this 2500 NM journey, and when asked by others " any cross country flights in your Kitfox?" Maddie and I can say " with a Kitfox Grin on our faces, " Ohhhh Yeahhhh"

[SkyPirate]

We made it to Crawford Co KRSV and landed, waiting for a storm to pass, should be airborne again with in the hour, around 250 nm left , hopefully this is the last of the T Storms and rain, we did have 35 mph head winds at 3000 ASL, a layer of clouds has not allowed us to go on top

[DesertFox4]

Was wondering where you spent Father's Day.
It's a trip of a lifetime Chase. To get to spend that much time with your daughter exploring the country is rare.
Sounds like your Kitfox has been working great.

That morning sunrise photo is sweet.
Keep safe.

[Paul Z]

Your trip is sounding like mine when I went to Weyers Cave VA.

[SkyPirate]

BUCKET LIST:


1 2500NM CROSS COUNTRY.... CHECK


We landed at our home base at 2:40 PM CST
Drove home and washed the airplane off me :)

Maddie has already been telling everyone she has met since we landed that we went on an airplane trip :)

My goal,.. To give her a memory that will out last me, think I accomplished this as well

[Paul Z]

I'm pleased to hear you completed your Bucket List trip. I just heard a report a a storm and. tornados in Nebraska. It was one bad looking storm. I must admit my trip to Weyers Cave VA was very memorable and I got to got to attend the Rotax repair & maintenance class. It took me 2 days to go about 400 miles because of weather. It was something I will never forget. I love the photos of your Kitfox. You definitely had some quality time with your daughter.

[Slyfox]

My bucket list was a cross country that was 2468. pretty close to yours. mine went from here to OSH last year. very fun trip.

[Paul Z]

My bucket list was a cross country that was 2468. pretty close to yours. mine went from here to OSH last year. very fun trip.

How did you come up with 2468? It is definitely a challenge to be reckoned with for your first "real" long cross country.

[Slyfox]

How did you come up with 2468? It is definitely a challenge to be reckoned with for your first "real" long cross country.

well that is what came out on my flight plan. I just 2x the one way shot. sorry. I cheated though. I got there in 8 hrs. or there abouts. with a stop in rapid city for an overnight and visit to the presidents. I cheated, I took the RV. with a total of about 150 gallons and speeds of about 170kts.:D

there was some interesting things that happened. going across I went up to 11500 and had oxy and was getting a good tail wind of about 40kts. fuel burn was around 8.2. last bit into osh was low ceiling, but still was flying around 1000 agl. I had a friend leave before me and he was cruising at about 90mph and he stayed up north of osh for about 3 days waiting for his minimum of about 3000 agl.

On the way back we made it to rapid city again for more sight seeing and had a real bad storm going into and flew around the storm and landed. 2 days later we went to leave out and had cloud cover and finally cleared enough to punch through the clouds and ended up flying all the way to Missoula Montana at 12500 above solid clouds that went almost to the ground. was clear in Missoula as soon as I dropped 500ft I lost flight following. that's something about going through that area, radar coverage is really bad. the last little bit to Spokane was a solid storm through I90 so I had to go south and find a way though, I found that at st. maries Idaho. followed another track though cda lake and made it home. very exciting, can't wait to do another flight like that.

[Slyfox]

I fly quit a bit down to areas like independence Oregon and will stop at tri cities. my wife insist. when I took the trip to osh I had a trek along I90. I pre did my flight plan with aopa's flyQ. I had airports picked out about 1 hr intervals, that's 200miles or there abouts in my rv. all the way across. It come up on my phone as well, I had the phone set up so all the stops showed but didn't need cell service. what that did was allow me to review my airport picks the whole time I was flying. I came up to the first airport and said to the wife, do we need to land, she would say yes or no. if I could go on I would look at the list for airports and pluck it into the garmin 696 and continue. If she needed to land, we did, and I always filled up the plane on a stop, I never flew on without the fuel, I didn't care what it cost. I always had full airplane. My dynon d180 was also a very cool feature with the fuel totalizer in it and the ability to lean out the engine like I did.

I always have this thing in my mind, it's not how far you are going, it's one stop at a time. each leg is a new flight plan. Me and my wife like to stop every 1-2 hours, get out and stretch and relieve the obvious. I also love to land and take off, makes my flight.

[Paul Z]

I had an RV pass me south of Dallas, I was concerned I was stalling. He was moving down the road!

[SkyPirate]

I set each leg of the trip up the same way Steve,..with options north or south routes,..luckily the way out we only had to divert twice,..but on the way back we re routed many times to avoid storms,..and even then we ran into a wall,..3 days to get back for a 10.6 hr flight all total back,..when we hit the Indiana / Illinois line we were head on with 2 cells one slightly north of our path,,one slightly south but they were wide enough that my chances of getting around them was pretty slim,..so we waited for them to pass,..as we waited..the closest cell discipated right in front of us,..the second took a more northerly path,,we went under it to the south,..about 3 hrs on the ground that time..but they had some awesome recliners and couches in the lounge :) so I wasn't complaining too much ha ha

Thanks Paul,..me as "old" as I am ..I'm always being accused of being Madisons Grand pa ..and she looks at the accuser and puts her hands on her hips..tips her head and says "He's my Dad! lol.. ( I look older then I am when I'm moving lol ) the leg braces and all ..sometimes I look like the tin man walking when he is rusted up lol) So yes,,I'm glad that I was able to do this with my youngest,..she will be telling her children about this adventure long after I'm gone :)

[Slyfox]

I had an RV pass me south of Dallas, I was concerned I was stalling. He was moving down the road!

my wife gets a big kick when I do that. :D

I like my kitfox for the low slow 20ft off stuff, can't be beat. Looong trips, rv all the way.

[Slyfox]

I set each leg of the trip up the same way Steve,..with options north or south routes,..luckily the way out we only had to divert twice,..but on the way back we re routed many times to avoid storms,..and even then we ran into a wall,..3 days to get back for a 10.6 hr flight all total back,..when we hit the Indiana / Illinois line we were head on with 2 cells one slightly north of our path,,one slightly south but they were wide enough that my chances of getting around them was pretty slim,..so we waited for them to pass,..as we waited..the closest cell discipated right in front of us,..the second took a more northerly path,,we went under it to the south,..about 3 hrs on the ground that time..but they had some awesome recliners and couches in the lounge :) so I wasn't complaining too much ha ha

Thanks Paul,..me as "old" as I am ..I'm always being accused of being Madisons Grand pa ..and she looks at the accuser and puts her hands on her hips..tips her head and says "He's my Dad! lol.. ( I look older then I am when I'm moving lol ) the leg braces and all ..sometimes I look like the tin man walking when he is rusted up lol) So yes,,I'm glad that I was able to do this with my youngest,..she will be telling her children about this adventure long after I'm gone :)

one thing for certain. no two trips are the same.