When I landed at the Grand Canyon National Park airport, I intended to get briefed by the locals on how to go about flying the Canyon myself. But I decided it would be better to fly the Canyon as a passenger in a tour airplane, which is how I was able to take these incredible photographs. Flying it myself would have required devoting my full attention to staying clear of terrain and following the corridors now specified for flights into the area. These pictures were taken from inside a Grand Canyon Airlines deHavilland twin Otter on the 45 minute tour flight. It's definitely the best way to see one of the wonders of the world.
From the Grand Canyon, my route of flight was southwest across the southern tip of Nevada and into the Mojave Desert, skirting south of Edwards Air Force Base and up to the Bakersfield area. My ultimate destination for the day's travel would be Sonoma, CA but it required a fuel stop along the way. I chose a small airport just north of Bakersfield called Shafter-Minter Field. I didn't realize until I landed there that it was an abandoned military field that is now used by pilots flying crop dusters. Nobody was around when I arrived mid-afternoon on Saturday. The fuel was self-service, so I was able to fill up the tanks of N5296Z on my own. But I needed current approach procedures for the Santa Rosa Airport in Sonoma County (STS). After several unaswered knocks on doors of surrounding buildings, I found a house nearby with a man who was willing to let me, a complete stranger, come inside and use his computer to access the information I needed. Thank you, John Doe, and please forgive me for not having written down your name so I could properly thank you in this blog.
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