Flying Solo, For Real

If a picture is truly worth a thousand words, this update could be deemed somewhat long. However, it will be a somewhat short read as I’ll attempt to keep the number of actual words to a minimum. Yes, I realize that’s not something at which I always excel.

I only had one flight this morning plus a bit of an unanticipated hike through the bush (no, I didn’t land in a tree). A new pilot to the site (who had just arrived early this morning) landed a bit short of the landing zone and ended up on the other side of a bunch of trees. The good news was she still made a solid landing (her boyfriend had flown over to confirm she was alright). The bad news was there wasn’t a clear path between her impromptu landing zone and the actual landing zone. I was the only one at the landing zone at the time so I set out to find where she had landed. Yes, there was some tall grass, and dense bush, and trees, and a small river, and more than a few thorn-covered branches but it turned out to be a successful mission. Finding our way back out proved to be a bit more challenging but about 20 minutes later everyone was boarding the van to head back to launch.

By the time we got back to launch the winds had picked up (as they usually do at noon) and so we went from launch to lunch. The rest of the day was spent hanging out, working on the computer, and taking a few photos of the experienced pilots taking advantage of this beautiful Colombian site. This would be a good time to click on the “Photo Gallery” icon.

Oh, and in terms of my flight … it was pretty uneventful, but in a good way. The most significant aspect was that it was my first flight without the presence of my instructor (Russell). I’m officially on my own (which is pretty much the story of my life!).