An Autumn Flight

 A cold front moved through last night. Crisp cool air and low humidity is perfect for flying and Sally and I were long over due for some exercise. I got a late start. I haven't been sleeping well lately and after the alarm went off I lingered in bed for awhile. That gave the sun a chance to rise and allowed me to get a good weather check. It would be breezy later in the day but we definitely had "Go" conditions.

I skipped my normal breakfast and chose to stop at the local Wawa on my way to the airport. Gas was $2.05/gal, the Colombian coffee is pretty good as is the sausage/egg & cheese bagel. Very little traffic on the roads for a Saturday morning, but the normal amount of bikes, joggers and walkers were out. Biden and Trump signs were displayed along the route. I wonder how some of the neighbors get along with each other.

Now its been awhile since I visited KVDF and it occurred to me that I didn't remember the security code for the gate. I know I had a math formula to memorize it but couldn't quite remember how it went. When I pulled up to the keypad I let muscle memory do it's thing and presto, the gate opened! As I pulled up to my hangar my neighbors across the way were working on a C182. I waved but they were too busy to notice. Good social distancing I suppose. I opened my hangar and found spider webs across the doors. It had been awhile.

"Hello Sally." I good walk around revealed no issues. It's a great feeling to see good tires and no leaks. It did take a lot of pulls to get the burp. I pulled her out of the hangar, did the last few checks and buckled in. She started easily. AWOS said we should use RWY05. I was surprised by the quiet radio as we taxied over. No chatter? When I turned the corner on the taxiway the ramp looked empty. I got that "Twilight Zone" kind of feeling like I was the last guy on Earth. 

Runup was smooth. 3950rpm/3960rpm for a mag drop from 4000rpm. CHT was 220 and climbing on a cool day. That still needs attention. As I completed my checks a Cessna called on a 5 mile straight-in (finally another voice) and I replied I would get out in front of him. Sally gave me 5050rpm for takeoff and climb rate was over 1200fpm at Vy. We love the cooler air.

After 3 T&Gs we departed to the north for some avionics checks. Level at 1500' I engaged the autopilot in HDG/ALT mode. Next I put X35 in the GPS and pushed the NAV button. It was hazy with no clear horizon so I decided to use 1600'. A few minutes later we passed n Archer, opposite direction at about 1500', no factor. 

All systems checked, I put in PCM and let Sally take me there. Winds were gusting and it got a little bumpy. The wind vector showed 26 out of the northeast. Such beautiful Florida fall colors! Lush greens and...more lush greens. It's Florida! 

KPCM was reporting 8 out of the east so I set up for a T&G for RWY10. A SkyCatcher reported taxiing there as well. It was a normal approach with a slight left to right xwind and I was happy with the landing. Time to go home.