Flying Adventures of Frank and Jolene – Part 4

July ’09 –We flew back to Oshkosh but this time we went to the Oshkosh Public Museum ($7) to see the Public Enemies exhibit (Johnny Depp as John Dillinger). Part of Public Enemies (the movie) was filmed in Oshkosh to represent the Sioux Falls, SD bank robbery. No, we didn’t see Johnny Depp; we saw a picture of Johnny Depp.

It was a great exhibit (it’s there through Oct 18). Included are a jail cell (complete with two miscreants), a 1930’s speakeasy, and a woman’s 1930’s dressing room among the movie memorabilia. The museum itself is very nice and is housed in a 1908 mansion. There are beautiful woodwork and stained glass windows. The museum features an Apostles clock with the 12 Apostles appearing at the top of the hour. There is a glass and ceramics room, nature exhibits, “Grandma’s attic” and displays on the Paine Lumber Company.

We walked to Fratellos for lunch (10 minute walk). If you like, there is also the Paine Art Center and Gardens ($7) which are a block from the Oshkosh Public Museum. After lunch, we called Basler (the FBO) for a ride back to the airport. On the flight back, passed right by a blimp – very cool!

August ’09 – We went to Pella, IA – That’s right, Pella, IA, isn’t that on your must see list? What a charming town to fly to (235 nm) – about an hour west of the Mississippi. You might associate the name Pella with the window company (yes, same town), but Pella is also known for its annual Tulip Time Festival. Fortunately for us, the flower gardens in the summer are equally breathtaking. The town has a rich Dutch heritage, which is distinctly obvious, from the Delft in every shop to the ubiquitous windmills.

Once we arrived in Pella, the FBO (Classic Aviation) lent us a van to get into town (about 3 miles away). Once in town, everything is within a few blocks. The town is centered around a lush square filled with colorful flowers with a couple of blocks of shops including some gift and antique shops.  The main feature in town is the Vermeer Mill, which is the tallest working windmill in the US, standing at 124 feet. Tours of the windmill are every 30 minutes ($8), which includes a self-guided tour of the Historical Village.

The village, which has about a dozen buildings, features Wyatt Earp’s childhood home, a general store and a museum, which offers a glimpse into the lives of the early Dutch settlers. Along the pathways in the village are beautiful flowerbeds.

Also in the Interpretive Center at the Historical Village is the Miniature Dutch Village, which is a delightful display of Dutch architecture at it’s finest.

We had a wonderful lunch at the Monarch Restaurant in the Royal Amsterdam Hotel, which is caddy corner to the windmill. (The lunch special was country-fried steak, with green beans and a heaping pile of mashed potatoes - $6.95 – or terrific sandwiches for about $7.50).

After lunch we toured the 22-room Scholte House (founder of Pella) ($3 additional as a combo ticket), built in 1847. The house contains most of the original furnishings, with nice gardens in the back.

There is also a klokkenspel (if you think I spelled this wrong, you’ll need to correct the Pella-ites as well as me) in town that, I believe, plays on the hour. Be sure to stop, as we did, at the Jaarmsa Bakery for yummy treats (but if you get carried away, don’t forget to recalculate your weight and balance). A popular choice is Dutch Letters which is a pastry filled with almond paste. There are also the Sunken Gardens (free) 2 blocks away, but we ran out of time.

We were all just so impressed with how friendly the townspeople are, and the pride Pella takes in its appearance.

On the way back, we made a point to fly over Richardson’s corn maze in Spring Grove (just SE of Twin Lakes). This year’s theme is Lincoln and Illinois.

Chicago

It seems that everytime we have friends visit, we wind up flying down the Chicago lakeshore with them.  It is a pretty cool view.  From our home airport, the trip takes about a half hour each way.  Naturally, you have to be a little careful since you are flying under the floor of the Chicago O'Hare airspace, so you need to watch your altitude.  There's also always the possibility that you're not the only plane out there sightseeing so you do need to watch for other air traffic.  Other than that...well, you judge from the photographs.

This is leaving our home airport at Waukegan, Illinois.  Waukegan, or UGN, is a great little Class D.  It's far enough away from Chicago that traffic isn't a problem and close to Wisconsin.

The first sight you come to as you travel South is the Bahai Temple.  This is just gorgeous.  Here is what it looks like from afar.

Here is a closeup

As you continue South, the Chicago skyline comes into view.  Here you see the tapered sides of the John Hancock building and ints exoskeleton and, in the distance, you see the Sears Tower.  Recently the Sears Tower was purchased by the Willis Company from the UK.  Thus, Chicago residents now refer to the Sears Tower as "The Big Willie".

Here's our favorite Chicago picture.  Here you see the Chicago River.  Originally, the Chicago River emptied into Lake Michigan.  This caused an enormous outbreak of disease at the turn of the century because the Chicago meatpacking industry was dumping their byproducts, offal and such, into the River which was, in turn, dumping into the Lake where Chicagoans were drawing their drinking water.  Duh!  In 1900, engineers "reversed" the flow of the River, cut a canal and sent the River into the Mississippi.  Naturally, St. Louisians were less than thrilled about this as now all of the Chicago garbage flowed past their fair City.  Begrudgingly, Chicagoans then built a waste treatment plant to clean up the effluent.

Now, you'll remember that I mentioned you need to watch out for other aircraft.  Well, look out below!  Here's a banner towing plane.

Travel a little further South and Soldier Field (where the Bears lose all of those football games) and one of the many boat harbors come into view.

Here's a closeup for you football fans.

...and even closer

Well, time to head back home and...yes, there it is, home, sweet home, Waukegan.

Flying Adventures of Frank and Jolene – Part 3

May ’09 – we were hoping to fly to Cleveland to see the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but the weather was not good to the east so we flew to Mackinac Island instead.

This was our longest trip to date – about 3¼ hours. We flew along the Upper Peninsula. It was so beautiful but there is nothing there between the few towns, not even farms, just miles of emerald green woods and royal blue lakes and a lone road here and there.

At the airport (tie down fee of $10), there is a red taxi phone in the lobby. 10-15 minutes later, a horse drawn carriage pulls up – so cool! (You are not able to rent bikes at the airport so you would need to bring your own or rent bikes in town to tour the island). The carriage ride into town is $6.50 pp (one way), and it takes you right down the driveway of the Grand Hotel (normally to go on the grounds costs $12). When we went (May 23) the tulips were blooming at the Grand Hotel – just beautiful!

(FYI – lunch at the Grand Hotel is $45 which includes admission to the grounds). I don’t recommend walking into town as it is quite a hike and you would have to watch out for the horse “gifts”!

In town, we had a nice lunch at the Yankee Rebel Tavern, and then walked over to Fort Mackinac ($10.50). Since it sits on top of a huge hill, there are beautiful views of the town and harbor below. At the fort there are hourly canon and rifle demonstrations. Afterwards we couldn’t miss the numerous gift shops in town, and of course bring home delicious fudge.

There is a booth in town to call for the taxi back to the airport. We then flew across the strait to St Ignace to fuel, as there is no gas on Mackinac Island.

June ‘09 – We were still trying for Cleveland, but Mother Nature was not cooperating so we headed north again, but this time to Mackinaw City (Michigan). It was beautiful when we landed – blue skies and 70! Definitely in the north woods here – everywhere we went there were examples of taxidermy at its finest. Even the baggage claim area at the airport had 3 bears keeping watch! Try to call during the week to reserve a car since someone may not be at the car rental kiosk otherwise (they are on call).

We visited Mill Creek Discovery Park and went zip-lining (fun!) ($8 for park, plus $7 for Adventure package – includes zip lining, walk on canopy rope/plank bridge – you’re harnessed in), and rock wall climbing/observation tower). There are also hourly water-powered sawmill demonstrations.

We had a nice patio lunch at the Historic Depot Restaurant at Mackinaw Crossings in town while enjoying the sweet scent of lilacs in bloom (June 13). (Across the strait, Mackinac Island was having its lilac festival). There are tons of shops within walking distance. We ran out of time, but would have liked to tour the Icebreaker ship/museum across from Mackinaw Crossings and Colonial Michillimackimac Fort and Village.

July ’09 – Well, we finally made it to Cleveland! This was a really nice flight past Gary’s steel mills, beautiful Ohio farmland and Cedar Point Amusement Park (some photos in August Hangar Talk from this trip). We flew into Burke Lakefront Airport. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is a 5-10 minute walk from the airport. Admission is $22 but there are cool exhibits and videos. We were there about 3 hours, plus lunch. On the walk back to the airport, you can stop and tour the USS Cod submarine if you wish. The Cleveland Browns stadium is just a few blocks west of the R&R museum.

Flying Adventures of Frank and Jolene – Part 2

May ’09 – We flew to Quad City Intl (Moline, IL). We had a nice flight along the Rock River as it twists and turns.

It was very impressive to see the Mississippi (don’t forget we’re from NY). We were given clearance to land on their 10,000-foot long runway, which I thought was very cool until we landed in the first 1,000 feet and had to taxi for what seemed like a half hour. We rented a car but I believe the FBO has a loaner car. Now you might be asking why anyone would fly to Moline – well John Deere attractions of course! We toured the John Deere Pavilion (free) that houses huge farm machines, one that’s about 3 stories tall.

You can try your hand at piloting one of these on a simulator and you can climb on or in most of them. Then we visited the JD store, which has anything and everything you can imagine with a John Deere logo on it, including JD microwave popcorn! We had a wonderful lunch at Johnny’s Italian Steakhouse (in the same complex). It features dark wood booths with background music of Dino and Frank. If you go during the week you can tour the JD factory.

We drove across the bridge at 15th St to Rock Island Arsenal. The info says that they check ID at the gate, but they didn’t. On the way to the actual arsenal, we stopped at Memorial Park to view the 30 pieces of artillery equipment; tanks, rocket launchers, etc.

The trees were in bloom so it was nice to be out and about! At the arsenal (free, but there’s a container for donations), are 2 huge walls of every type of gun you’ve ever imagined (or maybe not!). The museum also explained the history of the arsenal. Keep in mind that this is the second oldest continuously operating arsenal in the country. They’ve manufactured armament for every war from the Civil War to the current “adventures”. As we were leaving, I made Frank race down to the north side of the island so I could see the paddle wheeler go by since the only time I’ve seen one is at Disney World!

I believe you can tour the Davenport house on the island, but we continued to the west side of the island to the Lock and Dam. There is a small museum (free) and the park ranger is very informative – apparently we had just missed seeing the pelicans that had been there that morning!

We then visited the Quad City Botanical Center just west of St Augustine College. The photos I had seen made it look so cool – a beautiful glass building. The cost is $5 but we were literally thru in 10 minutes, so in my opinion, not worth it.

More adventures to follow!

Flying Adventures of Frank and Jolene (Part 1)

Though we’ve only been flying for a short time compared to many of you, we thought it might be fun to share our experiences so far.  We're based out of Waukegan, IL (North of Chicago).

Oct ’08 - Our first trip after Frank obtained his license was to the EAA Museum in Oshkosh. The flight was beautiful and completely uneventful (Frank said that uneventful is what new pilots strive for). I enjoyed flying over the never-ending “farm” of windmills. Imagine my surprise when we landed at the Orion FBO and they literally rolled out a red carpet! I felt like a celebrity! Orion gave us a lift to the museum and with EAA membership, admission is free. When we completed the museum, Orion picked us up and took us to Fratello’s microbrewery for a delicious lunch. Depending on the weather, you can also dine outside along the river. After lunch, Orion took us back to the FBO and we flew home. On the way back, we flew over a corn maze at Richardson’s farm. Our first trip was a success! (I remember thinking, I think I’m gonna like this flying business!)

Nov ’08 – We flew to Grand Geneva for a magnificent Sunday brunch complete with a chocolate fountain! The cost is about $26. Reservations are recommended. Flying in to Grand Geneva is a little tricky since there are actually two airports close to each other (one is private) and the Grand Geneva one is tucked into a grove of trees, a little tough to spot until you’re almost on top of it. Note the runway at Grand Geneva is closed during the winter (they put concrete blocks on it, which would make landing a little more exciting than I’m up for).

Jan ’09 – We had breakfast at the Madison Jet Room. Huge portions. Reservations on the weekends are recommended due to its popularity. The restaurant closes at 2:00. You can sit at tables by the windows and watch the airport activities, but you can do that at any airport diner. We enjoyed sitting at the counter diner style and watching the short order cooks (talk about a frenzy of activity!). On the way back, we flew over Grass Lake and the tracks left by the snowmobiles.

Feb ‘09 – We flew my boss for a nice lunch at Kealy’s at Janesville airport. She was SO excited about the flight itself! After the requisite picture standing next to the airplane and as we were walking to the restaurant, she asked, “so where are we”?

March ’09 – We flew to lunch at Final Approach at Sheboygan Burris FBO. We had heard a lot about this place and were eager to try it.

We had taken 6478P and, apparently, when it was built, weather-stripping for doors had not yet been invented. Just as we were beginning to wonder whether it was colder inside the plane than outside (Frank’s instructor Jim had once told him, that the heat in a 152 is just sufficient to melt the snow off your boots…if you fly long enough) Sheboygan came into sight. Boy, nothing ever tasted so good as that big steaming mug of hot chocolate, complete with whipped cream.

The restaurant is beautiful with two story high windows overlooking the runway and large flying murals and the reasonable prices entice locals. It was rated Best of the Best in the $100 hamburger site.  We’ve since brought a few people here for dinner and the food and atmosphere is consistently great and it’s only 45 minutes away. Gals – Monday nights are Martinis and Manicure Nights – reservations are recommended.

March ’09 – back to Sheboygan, but this time we rented a car and visited Kohler. We first toured the dozen or so shops at Woodlake Kohler. There is a nice garden gift shop jam packed with goodies and a wonderful chocolate shop – some of the chocolates are literally like jewels. We toured; the Kohler exhibit with its wall of toilets and tubs (you have to see it to believe it!), the numerous inventive bathroom settings (may be a bad idea as you may see a bathroom renovation in your future!) and the Kohler museum downstairs and all are free.

We had lunch the next block over at the Horse and Plow, a beautiful oak and brass pub and peaked into the American Club. Kohler has factory tours during the week – check their website for details. Being a Saturday, we toured the Waelderhaus instead (free – tours at 2, 3 and 4). It is a huge Austrian “house” that was based on the Kohler ancestral home in Austria. We ended the day back at the chocolate shop for gelato, and then flew home.

April ’09 – We flew into Baraboo and rented a car. This was our first time to the Dells. We knew to bring money! Oh the sites you will see – the upside down White House, the Trojan horse and so much more! We took the requisite boat ride of the Dells ($18 – I believe it is about an hour ride). Free parking next to Ripley’s Believe It or Not. Had lunch (5-minute drive from downtown) at Moose Jaws – very cool and great food (to quote from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast: “I use antlers in all of my decorating”!

Back into town for Ripley’s ($13 – took about an hour to see it all), shops – only one had cow pies (the cheese shop), but if you miss this one, then you can stop at the Cow Pie factory on the way back to the airport on Rte 12. We finished the day with a round of miniature golf at Pirate’s Cove $7.75 for the first round, then $3.88 each additional (go to their web site for 20% off coupon). They have 5 different courses for all levels of play. If you feel the urge, you can stop at the Ho-Chunk casino next to the airport to spend the rest of your money!

There are also numerous other attractions in the area including Mirror Lake State Park, Devil’s Lake State Park and Circus World.

Stay tuned for more adventures!