Sept 27, from Lebanon (Oregon) to King City (California)

As we are late in our plan, we decided to have another heavy flying day.

We unload our luggage and turn in the Lincoln courtesy car that Larry has left for us for the night.

Out of Oregon, we fly south over farmland, and endless forests towards California.

Out of Oregon, we fly south over farmed forests towards California.

The old sailor’s saying “We see land” is adapted to a new “Flyer’s saying”:

“We see the Pacific”  (Finally…)

Actually, we don’t se much of it, as it is covered with a heavy layer of fog, and we have to remain inland as we cannot fly over the shoreline.

After viewing what we believe is another huge prison, 

we touch land in Rohnerville (California) for lunch

Lunch actually is the box of biscuits MaryAnn had prepared for us, with some fruit and water, sitting on the porch of the FBO. A number of security video cameras are making sure that we are safe ...

Still inland, as we cannot fly on the shore due to persistent fog along the shore, we soon we reach Clear Lake, with its many houses on the lakefront with private jetties for their boats.

                                                                           

Our bird also needs some food, and we land in Nut Tree (California), about 30 nm west of Sacramento, the capital of California. Today, we have experienced a cool morning when we left Oregon, heard on the radio the temperature was 12C on the shore under the fog, and we measure 34C as we land.

Do not get impressed by the landing video, (click on the link to the left) the bump after landing is caused by the video producer, and not by the landing…

California is HUGE… we see more farmland, forests, mining, and endless mountains.

Solar panels and windmills are also visible.

This is getting a long day… we cross the Sacramento River and huge anonymous residential areas, southbound, headed towards Salinas, California, close to the shore, where we intend to spend the night.

We cross another set of desert landscape, rock formations, and can visualize off-road tracks in the mountainous / desert areas.

The video below (click on the link) gives a good impression of the fog on the shore and the nice, although hazy, weather inland.

SURPRISE, when we listen to the Salinas ATIS (for non pilots: weather on the radio) in preparation for landing, we hear the field is IFR (for non pilots this means “Instruments…”)

As we are not members of this community, we decide to change destination further south and inland, and select “King City” (California) as the destination to spend the night.



Another SURPRISE, after landing at sunset, and a total of 5.9 hours of flight today, the airport office is closed.

We decide to stay in King City, even if we have to sleep under the wing.

Luckily, we meet Mark and his dog, a crop duster helicopter pilot (Mark... not the dog, although Mark tells us the dog flies along quite
often…) about to leave the airfield, who gives us a ride “downtown” to a local hotel.

Next door we find a decent restaurant where we have another “light meal” and some Mexican beer.




As the area seems to be “unsafe”, we are glad to have the local police officers keeping an eye on us while we get drunk on Negra Modelo.

Luckily the hand cuffs cannot be seen on my back...

Tomorrow will be another day with more adventures!