Visiting Canada in the Summer of 2022
An invitation to my niece's wedding meant
planning and executing another trip to Canada, and while I'm at
it I might as well use the Class II Flight Instructor Rating I
renewed last November.
It was a bit of a wrench because the weather was good in England
and I was doing alright.
WestJet 23 took off from Gatwick at 12:40 GMT and
landed at Vancouver International at 23:00 GMT. I was flying
standby and so I did not know whether I would get on, but I did.
Alice picked me up in her older BMW Mini and we drove to
Richmond... The Vancouver area has the worst roads for me to
drive on, the endless traffic lights and often rude drivers
desperate to beat you to the next light make it very unpleasant.
Vancouver is not the place to be if there's a disaster, there
would be gridlock. Providing I did not have to do too much
driving I can survive it.
I stayed at Emidio's house; he was away in Portugal, and so I had
an ensuite room to myself. The house was close to Nanaimo
Skytrain Station and so I had an easy way to go in and out of the
City.
The house was convenient for Langley and for Squamish as I could
get on to Highway 1 (TransCanada) after only five traffic lights.
This highway is often blocked with traffic, making the M25 here
look very good by comparison, but fortunately I was driving in
the opposite direction to the 'commuters' who take a couple of
hours or more to get to their jobs, how they stand it is a
wonder.
Driving to Boundary Bay was awkward as there's the Tunnel that is notorious for its permament traffic jam in one direction or the other. Often I'd take the long way around via the Alex Fraser Bridge.
The wedding was fantastic with two of my
brothers, and my two sisters in attendance.
The ceremony was in a church in Langley, and the reception was at
Sky Helicopters at Pitt Meadows Airport. The hangar was prepared
for the reception, they do this often, and Gary placed the
Cherokee 140 inside.
Jessica learned to fly with me a few years ago in the Katanas,
and then checked out to fly the Cherokee.
Bride and groom arrived in style in a Beech Staggerwing.
Before the wedding and after the wedding I did a bit of
flying, just over sixty hours within the month, my services were
much in demand, and I left too soon for many, there was still a
lot of flying I could have done.
But there was the Grass Roots Fly-In to attend at Popham, and the
Aircoupe to be looked after and put up for sale.
There follows a flying report beginning with the Chipmunk, I think I will do a report type by type in the order they were first flown beginning with:
The Chipmunk
My first flight was the day after
I arrived in Vancouver, solo in the Chipmunk to Boundary Bay, and
then back with David Lai in the back seat taking some video.
David has a YouTube account as DavidL and so the video is on
there together with some other videos related to this trip.
The second flight was to Gillies
Bay and back with Ted in the Chipmunk.
Our father bought C GPRE many years ago and Gary was given it to
look after, he has maintained it well.
The Fly-In was well attended,
there was a BBQ with hot dogs and burgers, and pop... A lady from
Reading (Berkshire) had a stand selling T shirts and Baseball
caps.
Of note, there is a Luton Minor for sale for $10,000 CAD with an
A65 engine together with a spare one too (2 A65s).
I took a walk down to the beach and back. My brother was down
there too, and I met Bob and Val on their way up the hill on the
way.
Pemberton, 9th August
"Again" because you'll see I did this trip a few times
in different aeroplanes,
At Pemberton I took a couple of Ted's friends for flights.
Delta Heritage Airpark
Breakfast, 21st August
After breakfast we went for a cruise down as far as Rowena's and
then back to Langley.
I then took my nephew Oliver for a flight in the Chipmunk, he has
recently achieved his recreational licence in Brisbane,
Australia.
Rowena's 22nd August
In the morning I flew wth Bill in the Volmer, and then I flew
with Ted in the Chipmunk
At Rowena's we were picked up by golf cart, and we had a bon
repast in the Sandpiper Restaurant.
It was a pleasant walk back to the aeroplane, and then we took
off with a five knot tailwind, but a clear departure path.
Back at Langley I took Araya for a flight in the Chipmunk.
I do gentle aerobatics in the Chipmunk, aiming to be smooth in
their execution.
Solo flying to Squamish for the Glacier Air End of Summer BBQ
Kelly Collins looks after flight tests and aerobatic training at Squamish, and so I gave him a flight in the Chipmunk.
The next day I flew with Miriam in the Citabria to give her her
first experience in a tailwheel aeroplane.
Then I took Khun Araya and her for flights in the Chipmunk before
heading back to Langley.
Araya took some video with her phone with a big smile while doing
barrels and a loop.
The view from one of these flights.
Final Chipmunk flight
I had a flight to catch, but there was time in the morning to
take the Chipmunk for one last bimble.
We went to Chilliwack for some circuits and then back over the mountains to Stave, Alouette, and Pitt Lakes, around the Golden Ears, and past by Widgeon Lake.
I have good friends in Vancouver and Richmond BC.
Lunch was at the Flying Beaver Pub on Vancouver Airport's south
side, followed by me catching my flight.
WestJet 22 to London Gatwick.