Back to Richmond (October 24, 2018)

 Up early from a good nights sleep after a fantastic two day motorcycle ride from Virginia to Ohio (covered in my "Racing with the Wind" blog) and heading back to Richmond via a favorite method. Soon Dayton will be my new home after some seven years in Richmond. Took this photo of a model of trhe Wright Flyer at the Dayton International Airport. Flew from there to Phildelphia, Pennsylvania which was a very cool airport. It was also my first time at that airport and had a nice lunch (also my first time) at Smashburger.   

Flew to Philadelphia on a CRJ200 which is a very small jet but a nice ride. It was beautiful weather and smooth air.
At Philadelphia changed to an EMB145, which is also a small jet. The CRJ had four aisles, the EMB had three..I sat on the single aisle. Left on time and again had just beautiful weather for the flight to Richmond, VA.
It was a much shorter flight but once again a really good time in the skies. Flying is (like motorcycling) one of my favorite things to do in the world, and this was a great time.   

Back to 
This is a view from the window. On the way to Virginia we followed the coast. That is the Atlantic Ocean near the top of the page, under the sky.
Got into Richmond a little early and really enjoyed the flights on American Airlines. Got back to the house and greeted Debbie once again.
Days here in Richmond are winding down and this is the start of what I think are going to be some amazing adventures with some new discoveries to follow. 

St Benedick Oktoberfest (September 22, 2018)

Went to the Oktober Fest in Richmond, on the last day of summer/first day of fall. It was a great time with a lot of beer to select from (between 50-100 types) and had the Worst platter (which was pretty neat). Good eats, interesting music and good times.
Went early because such events tend to get really crowded and the weather was sort of iffy for the day. Fall like Winter, Spring and Summer is looking like it is going to be really wet...at least if today is any indication. Rain forecast for the first week of Fall every day.     

Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana (September 10-20, 2018)

 Back to Ohio for a few days partly due to the hurricane and partly due to needing to get a few things done for my wife and at her house.
While in that area made a one day stop in Louisville, Kentucky to see some of my family. Visited the Water Tower on Zorn Avenue. It is a great site from back in the day (even way before my day) on the banks of the Ohio River.

 Ohio has a lot of history with this man, as does Louisville and in fact the nation. The famous Revolutionary War (and for that matter Indian Wars) General is buried in Louisville's massive Cave Hill Cemetery and we made a stop there to see some of the sights. If you are in the city, Cave Hill is well worth a visit. 

 The Belle of Louisville is an actual Steamboat (not a replica but was in actual use) and still is. You can get rides on this iconic boat and when I lived there did so and many times. This photo was taken from the Indiana side of the Ohio River at where it is docked in Louisville. 

 Made it back to Rising Star Indiana. NO plane ride as during the previous visit a few months ago (the river was a mess due to the rain there between our visits) but always a good time there.

There is a museum at Rising Sun and this is the "Hoosier Boy" which was a boat built back in the day to set speed records. Interesting boat and is powered by a Liberty aircraft engine. A lot of those engines were surplus after the First World War.
As for the Ohio photos during this trip, have some of those at the previous post. It was a fantastic time once again.
We spend a lot of time in this area and that is good cause I am planning to live there in the upcoming year. 

Return to the USAF Museum (September 14, 2018)

 Made a visit to the United States Air Force Museum again on September 14. One of my favorite aviation museums in the US and has a great collection of aircraft such as this WW1 era Spad.

 I have always found this interesting, it is actually a plane  type also flown (in fact mainly flown) by the US Navy. A few types over the years have been used by both services.

 This is a B-36 which I believe is the largest bomber ever flown. It had both turboprop and jet engines.

This is a B-2 Stealth bomber which is in use today.. As I have noted the collection there is really something to see. If you are interested in aircraft, or perhaps even if you are not, this museum is well worth a visit. The museum is located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio  Admission is free and access is easy via a special gate at the museum.

Midwest Adventures (August 21-September 5)

 Great time for a couple of weeks in Ohio/Indiana/West Virginia and Virginia. Took a trip with my wife. A fun stop was Rising Sun, Indiana where I enjoyed the town and a bit of flying off the Ohio River (see previous post).
It is a nice sleepy town and a lot of fun there with good places to eat, and even a very nice casino. Not big on gambling (not a big winner) but a fun place. 

This is a restaurant in New Carlisle, Ohio. Great eats there, but one morning at breakfast saw this Indian Scout with sidecar. Debbie and I enjoyed looking it over.

 Also during the trip we checked out a Wright Model B replica aircraft. Yes you can get a (short) flight on it and experience what the Wright's did. It has a few more modern features that they did not have (some for safety, many required by modern air regulations. It can be seen at the Dayton-Wright Airport.
You can also see it in flight on the show "Aerial America (Ohio) in the Dayton section. 

 This is The Carillon in Dayton, very cool bell tower. Looks amazing at Christmas when it is all decorated. There is an amazing museum there with all sorts of Dayton History, and a lot of the Wright Brothers items. Those items include their most complete aircraft. It is well worth a visit.

 We went to see the Fountains in Dayton, this was pretty cool. Went off every few minutes and is said to be even more impressive at night. Dayton is a lot of fun and I enjoy exploring it with my wife.

 Photos are slightly out of order taken from a couple of cameras. This is a barge on the Ohio River again in Indiana. 

 Enjoyed the seaplanes and this is one they are restoring. I did the seaplane flight in Rising Sun at Mac's Seaplane Service and had a blast...,more on that in previous post. 

 At my wife's house, which is very close to Wright-Patterson Airport, enjoyed watching C-17's over fly us while doing touch and go's.

Finally on the way home, took this photo at an overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was on the way, and is one of my favorite places in Virginia. Have had some amazing motorcycle rides there and great times with my wonderful wife.
It was a very fun trip and looking forward to my next visit to that area.     

Aviation Adventures in the Midwest (August 21-September 1, 2018)

 Made a visit to the Dayton, Ohio area to take care of some family business (my wife's) and had a great time. She lives very close to Wright Patterson Air Force Base....close enough to get photos of C-17's flying over her house. I could get used to that ! 

 Stopped at The Dayton-Wright airport to see this replica Wright B flyer. For a $100 membership you can get a ride in this aircraft which takes you back to the days of the brothers Wright. Does not use wingwarping, has a modern engine, Harley-Davidson tires and brakes (the original type had no brakes at all) but you do ride as they did, and that would be something. I plan to experience that in the future, though did get some flying in this trip. 

At Rising Sun, Indiana they have seaplane flights. Looked like a remarkable experience and though I have been doing some flying over the years (love Aviation and Aircraft ) have never taken off or landed on water. Took these two photos while on shore... 

 ...but felt like I had to get this experience in. So went into Mac's Seaplane Service in Rising Sun, Indiana and signed up for a ride. 

 Plane was a 1952 Cessna 180B, single engine aircraft. The plane is set up "pontoons only" which means it can only fly off of, or land on, water. Good thing is that here the Ohio River is the runway which is a good sized runway.
Would saw that runway is really rough, was a bouncy (but fun) takeoff and landing. 

 Here is that runway,,,looking down at the Ohio River. Beautiful day to fly, and the pilot (Tim) is also a Seaplane instructor pilot. I really enjoyed the views from up there, still think the best way to really see a place is from up in the sky. 

This view is Aurora, Indiana. It was a beautiful but too short in my book 15 minute flight, but worth every penny and a great time in the area.
I can highly recommend Mac's Seaplane Service if you ever want to take to the skies off of the water. Fine people, and a remarkable expeience!

Tappahannock Drive (August 16, 2018)

 Great time on Thursday (which was also a motorcycle ride earlier in the day) but this time in the car with my wife Debbie we drove to Tappahannock, Va. I have been there before and it is a really neat town  not all that far from Richmond, VA.
Stopped for dinner at NN Burger there, it was a shot in the dark. A good shot too as it was very, very good. Had a beer and an outstanding salad, Debbie had the burger which I sampled. Both were outstanding. If you are ever in the town, I can recommend this place to eat. 

Lots of really interesting buildings and some neat changes (such as NN Burger) since I was last there. It is on the shore of the mighty Rappahannock River (seen at left). For the first time went across the bridge to see what was on the other side. Went as far as Warsaw Virginia.
It was a nice visit. Lots to see in that area and the drive to and from there has always beeen one of my favorite Virginia  motorcycle rides. Ride past a lot of farmland and small country towns.   

Washington Redskins Training Camp (July 27, 2018)

 Part of a motorcycle ride on a hot and humid day in Richmond, which was finally not raining for a change. Been days and days of rain here but for a while it finally quit.
The Washington Redskins have their training camp in Richmond, and wanted to make a quick visit to see them for a little while. I like football though the Redskins are not my favorite team. Still, it was interesting and I try to get out there about every year. Nice to have it in the area but due to the cost of it to the city may not be having it here much longer. 
Right next to the training camp is the Science Museum, and I got a photo of the train in there. Its a neat place though did not get to tour it on this day, but sure enjoy these old classic trains. 

Rocky Gap Casino (July 18-19, 2018)

Debbie and me spent two days at Rocky Gap Casino. Though I have traveled through Maryland I have never spent the night in the state...but we now have spent two. The Casino was very nice and the hotel was just outstanding! I had a great time there (so did Debbie) and it was just fun to hang out in the room, eat some fine food, and even fun to play the games in the Casino.
One of the neat things was the lake there. Course a lot of people were enjoying golf, but it was fun to hang out by the water. There were paddle boats and kayaks to rent, and a lot of places to just sit and enjoy the view.

Night though was wonderful. Getting sights like this was special. There were also fire pits to sit by and just wonderful nights. I have a feeling this place would be remarkable in the fall.
I don't play the game, but seems to have a really nice golf course and certainly a lot of people were doing that while I was there.
As far as animals did see a number which included bunnies, ducks and read on the site that there are a whole lot more.
As Casinos go, at least the ones I have been too (its a short list but still...) this one was top of the list. It was just a wonderful place with so much to do and surprisingly reasonable.  I am looking forward to a future return trip. 

Wheeling, WV (July 16-17, 2018)

 Debbie and me spent a couple of days in Wheeling, WV. A big attraction is the old suspension bridge, which you can walk across or drive across. Neat to see the Ohio River either from the grating or over the side.
The bridge opened in 1849 and was once the largest bridge of its type in the US. It is now on the National Historic Register and if you are in the area it is well worth a look and a walk. 

Wheeling has a lot of interesting old buildings such as this one. As I often find in Richmond or in North Carolina often they are repurposed such as this one, which is now part of a college campus.
Great places to explore and I highly recommend Coleman's Fish Market. Read its supposed to have one of the best fish sandwiches you will have. The hype was all true!

Travels to Ohio and Beyond (June 1-June 7, 2018)

Great time during the Ohio Trip, visited a great place to get a hot dog in New Carisle, Ohio, visited Rising Sun, Indiana which is a fun town to explore on the Ohio River. We also on the return trip spent a short bit of time on one of my favorite motorcycle rides: The Blue Ridge Parkway. Got in a motorcycle ride in Ohio (which is on my Racing with the Wind blog site) and also visited the United States Air Force Museum which is the previous post. Had a remarkable time during the visit there...it was a fun filled 8 days!

National Museum of the United States Air Force (June1,2018)

 Always a favorite stop in the Dayton area, and a memorable place to visit. The US Air Force Museum is a hell of a thing to see and in my opinion one of the best aviation museums in the United States.
Actually happened after my visit but made a return stop to the nearby Wright Brothers Memorial.
The Memorial was dedicated in 1924, and present for the dedication was Orville Wright. A number of his flying students were also at the site.
The fields where they perfected their aircraft (the Wright Flyer III which is considered to be the first real practical aircraft are within sight from the hill. The first aircraft which flew at Kitty Hawk, NC flew but was very difficult to control. The III was amazingly better and the brothers set a number of time and distance records in that aircraft.

Here is what I really came to see...the Memphis Belle. It was the first plane (though that is the subject of some debate) to meet the mission numbers required to bring the crew home.
That number was 25 missions. Due to the lack of fighter support to German targets with the limited range of planes at that time, making 25 missions was very difficult. Not till later in the war with the advent of the P-51 Mustang did fighters accompany the bombers all the way into Germany and back.This restoration of this historic aircraft was in a word...remarkable.   

Couple of other favorites here. Above is the Boeing Bird of Prey. It was developed in the 1990's and was used to develop Stealth technology. The fact that it is named after the Klingon warship class from Star Trek is a plus in my book.
Below that is an F-22 Raptor and is one of the most interesting current aircraft of the United States Air Force. I have seen these flying at a number of air shows and they are nothing short of amazing.

Finally a great group photo. The amazing XB-70 which was a prototype bomber (and of the two is the sole surviving one). Also in the photo is an X-15, plus a number of X planes. A Gemini spacecraft (not flown) is in the photo as is Apollo 15. Flown with an all Air Force Crew in 1971 it was the fourth mission to land men on the moon.
The museum covers the entire history of the Air Force from per-World War I to the present day. Before someone says it...yeah was part of the Army until right after World War II. Museum is free and open to the public. 

Visit to Fort Lee (May 27, 2018)

 Debbie and I went on an exploration trip to Fort Lee. I was there a few years ago and once again went to see the US Army Quartermaster Museum. There are a lot of photos at the museum web site and quite a bit to see at this free museum. This is a Civil War supply wagon which is notable in that it carried supplies for one US Grant who commanded Union Forces during the Civil War. Many other interesting things can be found there. 

Lots of interesting items can be seen at the base, such as this T-12 bomb known as The Cloudmaker. It was designed to be used on the B-36 bomber though as far as I can tell it was never actually used in combat. It was in service from 1944-1948 and seems to have been designed to attack underground sites. The total weight of the bomb was a staggering 43,600 pounds. Lots more to see at this amazing military base in Virginia. 

Wedding Trip (May 1-3,2018)

 Headed out for a special trip to Virginia Beach for a three day trip. Took this photo of the beach at sunrise which is always a neat time to see the area.
Sunrises are beautiful on the water and it is really nice to be there. As for the crowds during the week it was not really bad. That is soon to change with summer getting closer and closer but so far it is not real bad.

We made a stop at the Virginia Military Aviation Museum which was a first time trip. Amazing collection of World War 2 aircraft and in addition they have one of the (if not THE) biggest collection of World War 2 Russian aircraft. I saw a number of things I have never seen there, and I have seen a number of aircraft over the years. This plane at left is a replica of the first Navy plane to land and take off on a carrier. 

Most of the World War 1 planes at the Virginia Military Aviation Museum  are replicas. NOT a replica were the F-18s which were flying around Virginia Beach. It was pretty cool seeing them zooming around the area. The base is not far from the hotels of Virginia Beach.
As both Debbie and I are Navy veterans it was fun to enjoy this, and in fact a few months ago we were at the air show held at the base (which is held pretty much every year). I have been there for a few of them. It was a ton of fun and I have some photos on this page.

The main reason to go to the area was that Debbie and I got married. It was a wonderful ceremony and I am very happy to have this wonderful woman as my wife.
I hope that we are going to have a wonderful life together and I am looking very forward to the future.
I love Debbie very, very much!!!