Flying to the Tetons

Flying over the top of the Tetons in a small single engine plane was an amazing experience. It came at just the right time too. Like I said in my previous post, I have been feeling kind of overwhelmed with the task of learning to fly. I am loving every minute of it, but at the same time I have this fear of failing at it. Anyway, the trip we took today certainly encouraged me to continue pursing the process.

At 0700, Dale, Liz, and I met up at the Red Baron Aviation center at the Idaho Falls airport. It was just a tad chilly but clear with no wind. Perfect morning for anything, especially flying. Liz is also a student pilot with about as many hours as I have. Although this flight would not count as "official" Sport pilot log hours since we were flying a four seater Cessna 172 XP (I think that was the model), Dale wanted each of us to have the opportunity to sit up front. In order for this to happen, Liz and I would have to perform a "midair gymnastic feat" by trading places in flight. Now the cockpit of a single engine plane isn't terribly roomy and we certainly didn't want to jar the pilot off course by kicking him in the head, so we practiced our maneuver while safely on the ground. Luckily we are both flexible and although it was a bit awkward, we all three agreed that it could be done.

We started off with a preflight prayer, which I am so appreciative of. I love having a flight instructor who commits his way to the Lord :) I started out in the back seat and as we took off I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Idaho Falls from the air. The river, well above flood stage, churned like chocolate milk over the falls. Dale turned us East as we gained altitude and headed for the Tetons. I started snapping pictures of lush green valley fields and the windmills that, as Dale said, "sprouted like asparagus" from the rolling foothills just beneath us. Our course went straight for the Grand Teton, gaining about 300-500 feet a minute (I think). Ririe Dam soon came into view off to the south of the plane. It didn't look as full as I expected it to be, but there was certainly a lot of water! The green "snake" river slithered along the base of the mountains on the west side of Driggs. I couldn't believe how much snow remained packed upon the mountains. I can imagine how this will affect the flood stage in a few weeks when it all melts. Within a few minutes the Victor/Driggs valley was visible and its little airstrip was at the plane's north side. By this time we were about 12,500 feet and still climbing in preparation for the ascent across the Teton mountain range.

"Ok, time for the switcharoo", Dale announced over the headsets. I wasn't sure if it would really work, but Liz slid easily into the backseat next to me and I carefully stepped over the backrest and settled myself into position in the front. It all went rather smoothly, thank goodness. We were nearly upon the Tetons at that point. Dale showed me where to point the plane as we prepared to cross over the range. At that point I asked Liz to take pictures with my camera because I was a little distracted. It was so amazing to be nearly 14,000 feet and experience the Teton's perspective as they gazed into horizon beyond. At the crest, I was stunned to see the Grand Teton at eye level, with all of it crevices, points and edges, and looking downward, was Jenny Lake nestled at its feet. We gently circled around the face of the mountain and focused our direction westward. Jackson Hole was seen in the distance to the south. The air was surprisingly smooth and stable.

This Cessna had a built in GPS system that Dale pointed out and it was cool to have a coordinate system to confirm that we were flying on course (of course Dale would have made sure of that anyway :) Once we transversed back across the south side of the range, Dale dropped our power and trimmed back the plane so we began a descent of about 300 feet a minute, which would gradually bring us back to the appropriate elevation when we got back to Idaho Falls. The flight back was just as green and lush as going up, but we were slightly more south and had a better view of the Ririe Reservoir and the windmills. Idaho Falls came into view and Dale took full control to set us up for landing. He made the runway and landed us smoothly back on the ground and taxied us back to park the plane. It was 0836. Once we tied down the plane I gave a post flight prayer and we took crew photos. So much fun.

It was a perfect experience, and I am so thankful for serving a God who loves to fascinate me :D