Flight to Shelter Cove – Nope – Lake Pillsbury

My son and I planned a backpacking trip to Shelter Cove but when he felt ill and Ande our dog seemed a little ill (turns out Ande got very sick – ate a piece of toy) that we decided to turn the backpacking trip into a day trip.  One of the inns there has a web cam so at about 10:00 in the morning I could see a little blue sky.  Or I thought I did.  So I thought the timing would be perfect.  By the time we drove to the airport and flew there it would be 12:00 or so and it would certainly be clear by then.  In fact the forecast was for clear skies.

It wasn’t even close.  You can see from one of the photos that you can’t see any water at all – only fog and trees.  So after checking out the coastline we headed over to Lake Pillsbury and landed there for a short hike.  We’ve spent some summer vacations there and its a wonderful place, but at this time of the year the water is low and the only things around are elk.  Big elk.   Three, one at a time, ran across our path and across the runway on the way back to the plane.   It is not a pleasant thought what would happen if they did that at the wrong time.

The runway at Lake Pillsbury is long and easy (although one-way only), but very rough.  Not only large size gravel but ruts and it shakes the heck out of the plane on the rollout.  If you land there land over and a little past the road as there are major ruts right near the road.

Hmmm.. I think Shelter Cover is right down there.

Wheels down approach over Lake Pillsbury. The runway ends near the edge of the lake. No go arounds.

Elk family near the Lake

Elk running across the runway

Pretty good example of a soft field takeoff. I’m trying to protect my nose wheel and prop by doing a wheely down the runway until I reach flying speed. I still dinged my prop.