Very VFR flight to Kerrville, Texas
The sky was so blue. The clouds absent. The westerly breeze beckoned. It was time to fly!
Shannon joined me for a flight to Kerrville, Texas. We’ve visited Kerrville several times, usually to hike at what was once called Kerrville Schreiner State Park but this would be our first visit by air.
After preflighting Skyhawk 810SA, we were cleared for takeoff on Runway 30 Right. The first 300-500 feet of the runway seemed quite bumpy but with just the two of us we were off the ground in no time. Another Cessna was taking off on the parallel runway and it was cool to see him climbing alongside us.
After a few vectors we were told to squawk VFR and that we did, level at 4,500 feet. Early in the flight the smooth air gave way to a decent bump of turbulence that included one of those “I’m falling” sensations in the pit of my stomach. Shannon and I looked at each other and commented, “That’ll be ENOUGH of that.” And indeed, it was.
Shan’s become quite the veteran in the air with me. By no desire of her own, my bumpiest moments in the sky have been during flights with her. She expects turbulence when she has her camera out for aerial photos and in most cases Mother Nature is happy to oblige and yet she still manages to capture images that capture the spirit of each flight.
Our first waypoint was the small town of Ingram, Texas just northwest of our destination. A few years ago Shan and I were visiting the Kerr Wildlife Management Area and rounded a corner on a road to find…STONEHENGE. Yes. We were surprised. We thought it was in England! (grin)
Stonehenge replica near Ingram, Texas
The replica is 90% the size of the real Stonehenge and is a fun place to visit. With my Gamin GPSMAP 296 “in the shop” at Garmin (after a botched attempt to update the firmware to 3.0) I had to revert to the “Mark I” eyeball to find the landmark from the air.
Find it we did and after an orbit for photos we landed at Kerrville Municipal Airport and grabbed a courtesy car (thanks to the friendly folks at Kerrville Aviation). I missed my Garmin GPS as we wandered the city for a bite to eat. I knew there was a Cracker Barrel in town but after doing some looking we decided to grab something quick at Jack In The Box. Fancy, huh?
Before long we were back at the airport and zooming down Runway 30 for a quick pass over the city of Kerrville for a few more photos.
The return to San Antonio was a little bumpy at 3,500 feet so I pointed the nose skyward and set us on a perch at 5,500 feet. Things were a bit better but soon we were descending into San Antonio, tracking the VOR inbound.
All-in-all, a fun flight with gorgeous weather, my favorite passenger and a welcoming sky…
Not bad at all…
