Summer's officially arrived in Southwestern PA! After a nice long stretch of perfect summer weather (high in the low 80s, low humidity, down to 50 overnight), we've been launched into the sauna.
I flew a short aerial photography mission this morning -- by the time I launched (730 AM) it was 75 and visibility was maybe 5 miles. There was no wind and the skies were clear of traffic, though, so I flew direct to the property and took some nice shots.
It was no problem to find as I had reviewed the route and the location in Google Earth and Bing last night.A heading of 63 degrees took me right to it and the time to target was within 30 seconds.
The property is on the edge of a bluff that sweeps down to a more remote stretch of the Youghigheny. We've canoed this part a few times and always enjoy the solitude.
I flew a few orbits and snapped some pictures from different directions, then headed southwest to fly over the house and wake my daughter and son-in-law who were visiting this weekend.
I maintained a nice low altitude and 75 MPH at 2300 RPM and enjoyed the waking day. Soon I had Waynesburg spotted. I did a 180, entered the pattern, and touched down very gently on the grass. It was one of those flights that I wished wouldn't end, but it was quickly warming up and I needed to get home to say goodbye before Melissa and Tony left.
A quick wipe down, drive home, add 1.0 to the logbook and email the photos.
