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.