Protecting the seaplane from insects

Dirt daubers and wasps are my biggest trouble makers.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mud_dauber

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wasp




Both of these guys can crawl into remarkably small holes and build nests. Tbe dirt daubers are generally harmless except for two things. They look a lot like wasps, which to the uninitiated can cause screaming, and they build nests out of mud and clay. Dirt daubers have just a couple of yellow stripes while wasps will have many yellow stripes down their stingers.




There is an unlimited supply of clay around our lake and there is an almost unlimited number of holes for dirt daubers to sneak into your plane to make a nest. These nests are mostly just heavy, thus reducing your payload. Your best bet for protection is to put steel wool in any large openings and put screen over the smaller ones that you can get to. I do an annual purge of the nests after the spring nesting season.




Wasps make a more paper-like nest. These are light and don't really cause much of an issue, but the wasps themselves CAN cause havoc in the cockpit. Many people have severe or even fatal reactions to a wasp sting, so these guys are not to be trifled with. Prevention using the same method as dealing with dirt daubers is your best bet, and if you get a wasp loose in the cockpit, don't panic, just let your training step in and FLY THE PLANE.

Fall Seaplane Flying in Alabama

This is really the best flying of the year. We can at last enjoy wake free lakes and relatively long days. Gone is much of the bumpiness and intense heat of summer afternoons. Our weather becomes consistent for days on end, for better or worse. From the air, the changing trees create unique patterns on the landscape as they explode into color.

Fall pilots enjoy the added bonus of actually getting more of the rated horsepower from the engine—pretty exciting after enduring high density altitudes all summer.This is also the time of year to get night current again (in your land plane), as well as getting comfortable with windier days following fronts. With the season's new flying pleasures, however, comes the need for alertness to different kinds of seasonal water hazards.

As lake levels fall (typical for this time of year), the risks of boat traffic are replaced with those from unmarked shallow areas. The receding water reveals new spots which were not marked with bouys during summer's higher water levels. Be sure to do a good flying survey of your prospective landing area before committing your floats to risk. The truly shallow areas can often be seen from a low pass. It's harder to see submerged logs and pilings, so be extra observant.

As days get cooler and the water gets calmer, it's really tempting to just fire up the engine and blast off. Be sure to taxi around long enough to allow the engine and oil to warm up to a reasonable operating temperature. Once in the air, enjoy the clear days and beauty of our great country. Most of all, appreciate the privilege and freedom of flight.

Things to do with a seaplane

We bought our seaplane in 1997. We had owned the lake house for five or six years by then, and I had spent lots of time growing up on that lake at my father's cabin. Once we got the plane it was really liberating. There was so much to explore and do.

Lake Martin has 750 miles of shoreline and there are lakes above and below it that are not accessible by boat, and impractical in a car. I originally envisioned taking the seadoo or the fishing boat on a trailer to these other lakes, but this never happened because of the effort involved.

Boats are generally so slow and expensive to operate from a fuel standpoint that getting very far on the lake is just not practical. Even a seadoo which you would think would be fast and efficient can only go about 50 mph for any length of time all the while burning 10 or more gallons per hour. The plane burns 8 gallons per hour while cruising easily at 100 mph. The very nature of the plane is to go far fast. You do miss some of the local scenery on the way, but there is so much other scenery you get from the plane view that you never see from the boat.

I was noticing yesterday all of the azaleas that are blooming in the middle of the woods. Unless you are a pilot flying low you would miss it. A whole world opened up to me and my family when we added the plane. My daughter and I go exploring on many weekends. We almost always get comments about how cool the plane is and we have seem way more of the lake in the last few years than I explored in the 30 years prior to having the seaplane.

We also use the plane to go and visit friends and until recently our old family lake house. We take the plane to lunch and dinner on the lake. A stir is caused when the plane pulls up. It is always a positive reaction. I will let people sit in the plane if they show interest. I love to encourage aviation interest and we do it wherever we go. We are very careful not to intimidate or annoy anyone with our activities, and it does take being careful. So we use it as a way to explore and a way to get to dinner.

I often take it to the lakeside country club for golf. We even use it to go pick up pizzas. The local Domino's will not deliver to our lake house because of the distance, but they will deliver to the local marina where I can fly in with the plane. The pizza guy really gets a kick out of delivering to a plane. Part of what makes our plane so practical is that it lives at our dock full time. I think it actually helps the property values.

Protecting the seaplane from wind and storms.

Our seaplane has no wheels and we have no water access to a hangar as yet. I dream of building a hangar on our lake lot, but most of my dreams like this are just not practical. I would probably spend fifty to a hundred thousand dollars to protect a fifty thousand dollar airplane. Whatever I build to protect the plane cannot reduce its utility by making it tougher to get it into the water and flying.


When I originally bought the plane it lived out of the water on a pontoon boat trailer. This got the plane out of the water, but left it vulnerable to trees, wind, and limbs. It also put the plane really high off the ground making it tough to tie down and tougher to preflight and fuel. The real clincher, though, was how tough it was to get onto the trailer in a high wind situation. Storms come up pretty darn quickly in Alabama. Usually the first indication is the gust front, and by the time that gets to us, we are already in trouble for threading the needle to put the plane on the trailer. It sits best on the trailer with the tail towards the trailer tongue, so that means a turn around on the water as well. I never had any issues or damage while doing these manuevers, although I personally got wet a few times. It became clear to me that I needed to keep the plane closer to the water and better tied down.


I built a U shaped dock to hold the plane which gave me multiple points to tie it up and tie it down. I then built a ramp in the middle of the slip and attached a winch and cables to lift the ramp/platform and the plane out of the water. This whole deal cost me a couple of weekends and about $2,000 including the wood, floatation foam and the winch. I was very proud of my engineering feat when I finished. This dock has provided me and the plane with years of protection and support. It has held up through several hurricanes and countless storms and boat wakes.


I am about to need a new winch, and my cabling corrodes and gives out every two or three years. The dock provides a great place to work on, fuel, and preflight the plane, and it has multiple points for tie downs. The support platform keeps the floats mostly out of the water and it keeps them stationary to the dock. When docking the plane, the platform acts like a ramp and keeps the floats from bashing into the back of the dock. The dock also weighs enough to hold the plane down during a storm, so it is secure at the dock. I can relax a little more when I hear about storms heading for Lake Martin. I still worry but just not quite as much. I still wish for a hangar.

Responsible Float Flying

We are fortunate to have many beautiful, clean lakes and rivers in which to play in Alabama. These are largely open to seaplane activity, while the majority of Georgia waterways are closed to seaplane traffic. We must cherish and protect the privilege of using our state’s wateways by being considerate of lake residents and boaters.
Most people living on the lake appreciate calm, quiet days, and almost none of them bought a lake house to be under an airport traffic pattern. Most of the comments I get from lake users are positive and they think the seaplane is pretty cool, but I am very careful not to frighten or annoy anyone.

Most of the time the seaplane attracts its own trouble. We will do two or three landing before boats start to congregate to watch the seaplane. The simple solution is to wave to the boaters and find a new place to play. During the summer and on busy lake weekends I try not to stay in one spot too long anyway.

There are many un-inhabited areas of the lake. Sometimes one side of the shore has houses and the other side does not. It is very easy to use a right hand pattern instead of left to use the side that does not have houses. Simple, painless and effective, but you do have to think about it to make it happen. I am also really carefull not to fly directly over houses climbing out when the engine is screaming. Just a few simple thoughts can keep a lake open to seaplanes.

Float protection at the dock

Floats are designed different from boats. Most boats are designed with the widest part about 2 feet above the waterline. Most docks are designed for boats with no attention paid to what is below the waterline. Floats are very fragile above the rub rail. A nail will go right through them. So we need to be carefull around docks.





One problem with floatplanes and docking is that fenders (boat bumpers) don't protect the floats. Why? Because the fenders float and the wide parts of the floats are actually below the water line. Here's a solution that actually will also keep the seaplane away from the dock and keep some light tension on the bow and stern ropes. Take a standard cylindrical boat fender and tie enough weight to the bottom of the float to just sink it. Attach a rope to the upper end of the fender and tie it or hook it to the wing tie down with enough length to set the fender next to the widest part of the float . The rope pulling on the tie down will actually pull the plane away from the dock thus providing a buffer zone.

Density Altitude and Seaplanes

Summer is really here in Alabama. With humidity like warm butter and temperatures heading into the 90s, the AWOSs are now reporting the density altitude is in the remarks section.

Any airplane will have to contend with loss of cool dense air to burn in the engine and the wings and prop will have to work harder for lift and thrust. Planes will continue to fly off the runway with about the same indicated airspeed as a 10 degree winter day, but the ground speed and true airspeed will be considerably higher as the density altitude increases since the air is thinner. This is just like what happens when the airplane climbs. Our airspeed drops and our true airspeed clims. The engine will produce less horsepower, the prop will be less efficient, and the wings will have to work harder to fly in the less dense air.

Seaplanes have one extra piece of drag as the ground speed, or water speed increases, water drag. Water drag is the seaplane's worst enemy as far as accellerating enough to take off anyway. When you take off from glassy water you can feel the suction of the water's grasp as it finally gives up and lets the airplane fly. Water drag increases at the square of speed, so as we accellerate, the water's effect on the plane increases dramatically. Land planes do not have this issue. This is another reason that seaplanes need to have extra horsepower, flatter pitched props, and STOL kits. It is not just that their owners have extra money to throw at their planes. The planes really need this stuff to get airborne. There is a weight and density altitude that will just not be able to gather enough ground speed to take off.

What can we do to mitigate density altitude. We can fly earlier in the morning or later in the afternoon. We can reduce weight as much as possible, by pumping the floats thoroughly before flight, leaving gear or fuel behind. We can fly directly into the wind to increase airspeed as much as possible. We can fly down river which will increase airspeed as well but it will also reduce water speed. Using good glassy water techniques can help, including raising one float on take off and getting the pitch just right to minimize drag. One final thing we can do if the water is calm, we can make some waves to reduce the drag on the floats. Glassy water is the worst. So leave yourself more room on these high and hot density altitude days and keep your cool.

Snakes on a Seaplane

I was flying the seaplane today on Yates lake just below Lake Martin Dam. I often go here when the main lake is more busy than I would prefer. There are only a few houses on the lake and very few boats. It is about 10 miles long and 1500 feet wide for most of its body. It is an awesome seaplane lake with often perfectly glassy water since it is down in a canyon of sorts. Today my student and I were idling around in the middle of the lake just appreciating mother nature's grandure when my student noticed something moving pretty fast in the water. It looked like a large snake swiming across the lake. We taxied over to investigate, and sure enough it was a snake about four feet long . It was apparently as interested in the seaplane as we were in it. As we taxied by, it climbed up onto the back of the right float. It did not look happy, but then again, what makes a snake look happy? It stared at me as I peered through my open window and kind of rared back like it wanted to strike. I was too far away and inside the plane, which was where I intended to stay. I was concerned that it might find a more secure perch on the plane or maybe even gain access to the cockpit, but this was unlikely. I was not about to get out. I am sure that the weight and balance was not good with a ten pound snake that far back on the float. We gunned the plane a bit and it decided to depart the float. Now I was mad at myself for not snapping a picture with my iPhone.

Pilot's Fear of Doctors

Most pilots flying today have to have a medical certificate in order to fly. This medical has to be renewed as often as every 6 months for an airline pilot to as long as 5 years for younger private pilots. The FAA wants to make sure that you are fit to fly. They don't want pilots dropping unconscious in the sky, and they want us to be lucid and in control of the airplane. We are all required to self certify for every flight as well. We cannot fly under the influence of any of a cadre of drugs and substances, and even a common cold may be enough of an impediment to keep us on the ground. We should not even fly if we are distracted by work or family issues. We have to treat flying as serious business that may need our full attention.



We as pilots do what many people would consider a daredevil sport. Operating a machine thousands of feet above the ground with nothing but invisible air keeping us from our doom. When the time comes to meet our medical examiner for our medical renewal, we all have some trepidation. I usually try to see my regular doctor before meeting with the FAA designated medical examiner, (AME) just to see if there is anything to worry about. I have generally been pretty healthy over the years, but one bad reading from the AME and I cannot fly. Once the exam starts the die are cast. You can discontinue once something is found, and come back another day for a try. All this has a tendency to raise blood pressure, which is another trigger point with the FAA. Too high no fly. My BP is generally pretty normal except when at the AME. I have pilot frined who have issues with their hearts or diabetes or cancer. These guys really have it tough. They can get a medical but not without extra tests and waiting for month for an answer from the FAA in Oaklahoma City, sometimes just to get a letter requesting more information. Many of these people you would never suspect that they have an issue.



I have a commercial medical which means that I go through this process annually. I always feel better after I leave the doctors office. (so far). I can fly for another year, unless something bad like cancer gets me in the mean time.



There is one other option. In the past few years the FAA has created a Sport pilot certificate. This one only requires a drivers licence and self medical certification. It also limits the kinds of airplanes that you can fly to the smaller, slower, and simpler breeds. Pilots that have higher certificate ratings like private, commercial, or ATP can fly as sport pilots in sport qualified planes as long as they did not fail their last medical and they are generally in acceptable health. A bit of a catch 22.



The only other option is to fly gliders or ballons. These craft do not require a medical to operate. This is my backup plan should all else fail.

Big toys for little repairs

A couple of weeks ago while training some seaplane students we noticed a squeak while the plane was sitting at the dock. This was odd and we initially decided that the squeak was the dock making noises. We later determined that the noise was coming from the plane since we heard it on the water miles from dock. I went over the plane after each flight, tightening this and that, thinking that I had resolved the issue. Since we had had the floats off during the winter restoration, I believed that some things had just loosened up after the redo.

Finally I found a crack in the forward cross bar that connects the floats to the plane. You could not see the crack unless you looked inside the engine compartment. No more flying would occur until we found a new part and fixed it. The plane would have to be lifted and the engine separately lifted in order to replace this part, since the plane sits on it and the engine connects to the plane through this part. I arranged for my mechanic, Kevin Williams, to come up and look and replace it once I found the part. Buying parts for a rare bird (there are not many Cessna 150 seaplanes) that is 40 years old can sometimes be an adventure. In this case it was fairly easy.

Now I had to find a way to lift the plane. The airplane is built to be lifted by 4 rings located on the tops of the wings. Land planes can generally be jacked up, but this does not work for straight floatplanes which may need to be swapped from land gear to water gear. If we were at an airport with a hangar we could have lifted it with a chain hoist, but here at the lake this is not an option. I investigated a local marina with a huge forklift for boats, but we would not be able to get the plane out of the water safely there. I called the RSC equipment rental people in Alexander City. They hooked me up with a fork lift with an extendable arm capable of lifting 6,000lbs. They were very helpful and delivered the monster as well as demonstrated how to work it.

Everything came together nicely. I had an aircraft mechanic, a huge lifting mechanism, my new part, and good weather. The whole operation took place in a few hours. We only had to remove and replace a few critical and terribly placed bolts. We got big man points and testosterone from operating the large machine and accomplishing our goal. We even got to watch Kevin drive two trucks home. One truck was on the trailer that we used to pull the broken seaplane out of the water, but it was still a sight to see.

I had a excellent flight that afternoon and proclaimed the seaplane to be the best lake toy ever.

Time for Rejuvenation-taking the plane out of the water

My plane's paint was getting very tired, the floats were leaking, and parts of the interior could use some love. It has given and given and given over the years. It has sat out in the summer sun...through numerous thunder storms...and alone all winter in the cold. I think it knows that our other airplanes live in hangars.

The 25 year old paint job has done its work, and the floats are starting to leak more than they should. So how does one deal with the rejuvenation of a plane that lives at a dock? You put the plane on a trailer, take the wings off, and drive the plane to a hangar for the work to be done. I had a really good final flight and parked the plane back on the trailer, which is really just a pontoon boat trailer with the bunks set at the proper width for the floats. It was very sad to park it for the last time for months

The first step was to drain all the fuel from the wings, otherwise it would be messy when we removed them. This took about 30 minutes. While that was happening the mechanic, Kevin, started unhooking things like control cables and flaps. Once that was done we stood precariously on the bed of the truck holding the wing tips while Kevin took out the four bolts that connect each wing to the plane. Two hold the strut on and two hold the wing root to the plane. In about 3 hours we had everything dealt with and I watched my dearly loved plane drive away. It would be months before I could fly it again.

Ahead of us we had stripping, fixing everything we can find to fix, replacing the glass, updating some of the avionics, replacing the carpet and the insulation, repairing the floats, and generally doing everything to the plane that can and needs to be done while the paint is not an issue--cosmetic things that have been put off for years because it might mess up the paint. I should get back a plane in excellent shape that looks like new. So she would be down for a while. I would spend more money than I planned. There would be unexpected issues to be dealt with. For now I would just have to fly other types of planes, dream of my rejuvenated plane to come, and pine for for seaplane flying.

Glider Rating for Power Pilots

Several of the new ratings that I picked up last year were glider ratings. I added private, commercial, and glider instructor ratings to my flying portfolio. My first flight was a demo flight with one of the club members at the Sylacauga Soaring Society. It was a pretty short flight and we did not find much lift to play with, but I was effectively hooked. The glider we flew was a Blanik L13 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LET_L-13_Blan%C3%ADk which is a two place tandem ship. Gliders are not big inside, but I haven't felt cramped, and I have taken several of my larger friends up with ease. If fact, the front seat of the L-13 feels much like the cockit of a fighter jet. No not the high tech part... There is no engine out front and the nose of the plane just drops away leaving you an incredible view.

These planes are very easy to fly and since every landing is "dead stick" it makes you a better and safer pilot in many ways. The most scarey part for most people is the whole tow plane experience. There is really little to fear. We are in constant contact with the tow plane via radio and there is a set of visual signal should that fail. . If we have a rope break below 200' agl then you simply land straight ahead. We have the ability to get the glider on the ground quickly and land in a very short distance. If the rope breaks above 200' we have the altitude to get back to the airport. Being towed is pretty simple as well. During the take off it is important not to climb the glider too quickly in order to keep from pulling up on the tail of the tow plane. Once established in the climb, the glider pilot just mimics what the tow plane is doing and stays pretty much directly behind the tow plane. If the towplane makes a 15 degree bank then the glider must make a 15 degree bank. Once we get to our desired altitude we release the tow rope and the glider banks right and climbs while the tow plane, which can feel the glider release, banks left and decends.

The glider then starts looking for lift. The bumpier the day the better. Once we find a thermal we can circle in it to climb as high as the thermal goes, which is usually to the bottom of the cloud deck if there is one. We also watch for soaring birds since these guys do it for a living tbey are really good at finding thermals. The feeling of climbing without and engine is really exceptional. Once we decide to land or we run out of lift we head back to the airport.

The L-13 glider has a glide ratio of 28:1 so we just need to head back soon enough to make a pattern. As long as we get to downwind with around a thousand feet, we are in good shape. We fly a normal pattern with a downwind entry if abeam the numbers instead of a power reduction we add some spoilers. The more spoiler we add the more we decend. If we take them out then we float. Most gliders only have only one main wheel and a tailwheel. You would think this might be wierd, but it is really much easier than most three wheeled tail draggers. There is just not much to mess up. The L13 is landed in a very flat attitude in order to not hit the tailwheel really early. Once we hit the ground we have a very effective hand brake and the spoilers. We just need to keep the ailerons active to keep the wings from hitting the ground too fast. The wings usually have skids or rollerblade type wheels so it is okay for them to touch the ground once the speed is minimal.

The glider rating is easy to pick up and will expand your horizons as a power pilot. It will also give you some flying capabilities should your medical become a problem and you are still safe to fly. There is no FAA written for current power pilots. You will have to fly with an instructor for a while and get a solo endorsment (which requires a pre-solo written test). You have to accomplish ten solo flights and get the proper endorsements from your instructor to take the private checkride.

For more detail goto http://www.ssa.org/sport/gliderpilot.asp If you are in the Birmingham, Alabama area you should checkout www.sylacaugasoaring.com

Helicopter Rating

As a fixed wing pilot I felt pretty accomplished. I had commercial single engine land and sea and multi engine ratings. I am an instructor in seaplanes and land planes. I even teach tailwheel training. I had always had a fascination with choppers. My neighbor at the lake has a Hughes 500 chopper that he lands on his specially built dock. I think that is really cool. He thinks my seaplane is kinda cool too. I have watched him land and take off for years and I have even flown with him in the chopper and the seaplane. I have also taken the tourist flights over New York City and the Grand Canyon. I even bought several videos on helicopter and watched them several times.

One day while we were visiting the nearest $100 hamburger joint I noticed a guy doing patterns in Hughs 269 helicopter. I asked a guy at the restaurant and learned that there was someone giving lessons in my own area. I had looked at going to Atlanta for training or buying my own helicopter and getting someone local to train me. This was great news. I waited for the chopper to land and talked to the instructor for a few minutes. I called him later to setup a time for a demo flight.

The instructor turned out to be, Greg Turley, the Chief of Police for Pell City, Alabama and he was just getting his school setup. He was super nice and easy to get along with. I signed up for lessons right after the demo flight.

The helicopter is amazingly responsive and maneuverable. It is not however very stable. You are very busy most of the time while you are flying it. I was horribly uncoordinated trying to mesh all of my current knowledge into this new contraption. Not all of the old knowledge applies. Some of our airplane knowledge is counter to what the chopper wants to do. I was going to learn lots of new stuff. I was jazzed.

The cost was reasonable compared to my other options and the time involved is minor. Most of my general aviation knowledge applies like FARs, Navigation and Airport Rules. You learn a lot about gyroscopes and their properties. There are many spinning things on a helicopter. It takes 30 hours in the helicopter (as an airplane pilot) to apply for the rating and there is no written test if you are a private airplane pilot.. The reading and studying is pretty easy if you are the least bit mechanical. The PTS maneuvers are pretty simple once you start to master the machine.

I soloed after about 15 hours and I was every bit as giddy as my first airplane solo. I told everyone I knew and sent them photos. By the time I was ready for the checkride things were feeling pretty natural. I was not having to think before every action. Mark Newman was my examiner and everything went really well. I learn yet a few more things about helicopters during the ride. As long as you know the required material examiners usually like to teach you something extra.

So if you really want something to challenge your brain give helicopter flying a try. The view from a chopper is incredible and controlling this most versatile of machines will really get your juices flowing. If you live in the Birmingham area you should look up Greg Turley of Alabama Helicopters alabamahelicopters@aol.com and http://alabamahelicopters.weebly.com/

When God speaks on the radio...

I had a flight, a while ago, from Lake Martin to Smith Lake to visit a friend. Both lakes are here in Alabama and about 100 miles apart. We planned to leave around 9 a.m. with 30 gallons of fuel, which should have been plenty for a round trip of 2.5 to 3 hours. We planned our trip via Logan Martin lake in order to have an emergency stopping area and to keep us clear of the Birmingham Class C airspace (we don't have a transponder).

We filed our flight plan, which is always a bit of a challenge when you try to explain to the briefer that you are not departing or landing at any "airports" (I usually try to tell them what airport we are near). We lifted off about 30 minutes late, on the hottest day of the year, into a stout headwind. Our flight time was 1.5 hours, but the flight was bump free and very pleasant at 4500 feet.

When we got to the lake, we discovered that my friend's dock was a seaplane nightmare. No flat areas to nose into and every bit of the dock had a cover over it to bang the wings, preventing a side approach. So we borrowed a beach and a tree from a neighbor. I took my friend for a cruise around his lake for about 30 minutes and introduced him to seaplane flying. He seemed to really enjoy the ride.

Around 3:30 that afternoon we departed for home. We had burned around 17 gallons of fuel, but we were enjoying the tailwind that had plagued us earlier as a head wind. We figured we'd need no more than 8 gallons to get home, which left us with more than a 30 minute margin. Our return flight again took us over Logan Martin Lake. We knew we had fuel to make it home from there, which was less than a 30 minute flight, but the larger the fuel margin, the happier things are, and we were getting hungry since we had missed lunch.

We decided to press on home. A few minutes later, while still over Logan Martin, a religous radio broadcast came through on the VHF radio--all frequencies. I cycled the radio a couple of times. Still I got the religous station. This is not an issue that I had faced before. My buddy and I decided to find a marina and buy some fuel, since God might be trying to send us a message. Fortunately we found a seaplane compatibile marina after scoping out several on the lake for poles, manuevering room, gas pump access, a place to land near it, etc. The one we found also happened to have a restaurant. The fuel dock did not allow us to pull up beside it since there were poles. This meant a straight in approach. Approaching a dock straight on makes it difficult to catch the dock from the front of the floats without bouncing off. You have to cut the engine just at the right time to coast all the way to the dock, but not so fast as to bash into it. Once the engine is off you must get out of the plane with rope in hand and get to the front of the float, around the strut. Moving forward on the float slows you down a little too. Once close enough to the dock, you step or jump with the rope and tie things off. Aside from the locals looking at us like we just stepped off an alien spaceship, we had some fine food, conversation, and an extra 7 gallons of fuel.

We were very comfortable on the last 30 minutes of our trip knowing that we had ample fuel and full stomachs. An awesome flying day was had by all.

Living with our seaplane

I love just about everything aviation. The people, the scenery, the utility, and the feeling of being in the air are all wonderful. I also love being at the lake for many different reasons and some of the same. When we bought the seaplane and parked it at our dock (actually in the yard, on a trailer for a while) it really finished off the feeling of absolute perfection of being at the lake with our plane.

We had a Cessna 206 at Bessemer airport, and I loved that plane too, but it is a 20 minute trip to the airport and 10 minutes pulling the plane out and getting airborne. When done flying the whole process starts over. I am sitting here right now, enjoying the smell of the yard after a spring rain, watching the clouds move away, and watching my plane sitting out there peacefully in the water, waiting for me to come and play. Unfortunately I only get to play at the lake on the weekends, as my grown up job is in Birmingham about 90 minutes away, but that is part of what makes the lake special. I do have the stress of worrying about the plane when I am away during stormy weather, which we get plenty of during the spring, that is actually the reason that I am here now.

The weather people were talking tornados and 70 mph straight line winds, and the radar showed a line of red 150 miles long and bowed out like it meant business. So we got into the truck and drove down here to batten down whatever hatches that I could. We made it just before the storm and everything survived. Now we have to drive home in a few minutes. Tomorrow is a school/work day and we have no power since the storm knocked everything out.

Having the plane at the dock allows sunset flights before or after dinner. It allows unheard of utility for getting around the lake. It makes it really easy to tell people which house is ours. You say “It's the house with the plane in front of it” and you get “oh yeah, that is so cool," and a conversation is started up. One day I hope to live here full time, but that will remain something to dream about.

A morning Cub flight

It's a cool spring morning in Alabama. We've had a number of days of rain and clouds, but this morning looks pretty good, so I make the decision to head out to the airport- I can sneak in a flight before work. At 7:30, it will take me 20 minutes to get to the airport. Traffic is light since I'm traveling against the main flow of rush hour.

I get to the airport to find it all quiet. I open the hangar door, greet the Cub and marvel at the freedom that we enjoy. So much of the world does not have the liberties and opportunities that we sometimes take for granted. I check the oil and gas, drain some fuel, and preflight the airframe. I push the Cub outside using the flying wires that square up the tail feathers. The plane only weighs about 700 pounds so this is an easy one man task. I check my portable radio and batteries, chock the wheels and verify the throttle connection. I push the mixture in and prime the plane by pumping the throttle three times. I turn the mags on and spin the prop three times. On the third pull, the engine fires just like it always does with a few puffs of black smoke and then things smooth out.

This is part of the beauty and simplicity of a Cub. I am not dependent on electrons stored in a battery for starting, or an alternator, or a voltage regulator, or even a belt, just the pull of my arms. It's not even that much of a pull. I give the plane a once over look. It seems eager to fly so I hop (crawl) in and buckle up. Original Cubs are flown solo from the back seat for weight and balance reasons. Besides, the view out the open window and door is best from the back seat. One would think that it would be windy inside a Cub with the door and window open, but it is actually very pleasant. Even in the Alabama summer Cub occupants remain comfortable. I taxi out to the runup area and do my pre-takeoff routine. There is no DG to set, no complicated procedures, just controls, mags and carb heat. I check final and the other end of the runway for traffic, make my call and taxi onto the runway, ridiculously long and wide for a Cub. I line up and apply power holding the stick back and keeping the plane lined up with the rudder pedals. In a few seconds I let the tail rise, and just a few seconds after that I am airborne.

I see the earth descend below the open door to my right, the Cub in its element gently climbing skyward. A grin develops on my face as I continue around the pattern. It's a little windier up out of ground effect than I anticipated. I have a 30 degree crab established to keep the crosswind at bay on upwind and downwind. I'll make this a quick hop since this wind will make landing more stressful as it gets down to the surface later. I set up for my landing. Abeam the numbers, I pull the power back to 1900 rpm and add carb heat, and the cub descends easily. There are no flaps. I could slip it if needed, but not this time. I am thinking, due to the crosswind, that I will make this a wheel landing rather than a 3-point. I line up on final and set the carb heat to off. You don't want to have to take your hand off the stick to mess with carb heat when you are on or near the runway. I skim over the lights at the end of the runway and hold a level attitude until I gently touch the pavement. Cub tires have a deeper sound when they touch the ground than higher performance airplane tires. It's still a bark, but it is deeper and more drawn out. I hold the tail off as long as I can, and it finally settles on its own. The tailwheel hits smoothly.

It takes some time to taxi down the runway to get to the first turnoff at 1200 feet. I gently turn the Cub onto the taxiway and taxi back to the hangar. The grin is still on my face. It was a short flight but I will think back on it for a couple of days as bad weather comes back in. I put the Cub back in its hangar, and apologize to it for not making it a longer flight. I close the doors, still thinking about how lucky we are to have this freedom. I feel a little sad for those potential pilots out there who have not yet tasted flight. I know it's not for everyone, but there are tons of folks who just haven't made it to the airport for that first flight. I get into my little car and drive to work, arriving on time.

Birds

So far this year I have dealt with two bird's nests. The first was while we were still rebuilding the seaplane at Bibb Co. Airport. A bird built a nest in one of my wings while it was still dissassembled and waiting for paint. The latest one was last weekend. The plane was out of the water, on the trailer overnight after some work being done.

Birds built a nest inside the engine compartment. This one was only noticed becase I saw a little bit of pine straw on the spreader bar under the engine. Being curious and a good preflighter, I reached up into the engine compartment where the nose wheel would normally protrude, were it not a seaplane, to find much more pine straw. The bird had built a nest on top of my air intake box. I cleaned all of this out. I caught it early so there were no eggs or birdies harmed in this endeavour.

Last summer, I found a nest only after flying for a bit and noticing high oil temps. This nest was behind the back cylinder on the left side of the plane between the cylinder and the oil cooler (see above pic). Unfortunately these eggs were cooked by the time I found the nest. This nest was not visible except maybe for one strand of pine straw poking up beyond the back cylinder. My plane gives a pretty good view of the top of the engine from the front. Many planes give a very poor view into the engine.

I do use cowl plugs just to be extra vigilant this time of year, and I thought I was pretty safe. The birds are actively nesting and airplane orifices make a pretty inviting spot. They are elevated off the ground, which keeps ground critters away from eggs, have plenty of bird friendly openings, and they provide protection from the elements.

So what are the dangers of bird's nests? There is the obvious fire danger from the pine straw igniting from a hot engine. There is engine damage because air cooled engines don’t get cooled when a birds nest insulates them and blocks the air. Finally there is the corrosion issue from caustic bird droppings on our precious aluminum.

What to do? If you see anything unusual around, on, or under your plane, investigate it further. The time to find a bird's nest is not when you are on fire or doing damage to an expensive engine. If you find something, clean it out thoroughly, so that any blockages are removed and any corrosion is stopped early or never started. Use cowl plugs to reduce the risk. Cowl plugs also require removal before running an engine. There have been many engines ruined by leaving the cowl plugs in and overheating. So go out and enjoy the spring and all the new life that it brings, but do your part to keep that new life out of your engine compartment.

Winter Journal-A new year

Flying floats for the next couple of months can be really rewarding without the challenges of other lake users. You must plan a little more carefully for your cross countries. Fuel will be more scarce as fewer marinas are open and since lake levels are down there are fewer and more treacherous places to splash in. More importantly, you should use the extra power afforded by the cooler weather and lower density altitudes to carry the necessities for an unplanned emergency landing.

During the summer months shorts and light clothing are the norm, But in the winter, exposure could be an issue in a very short time. Carrying supplies, a first aid kit, and warm clothing and/or blankets for emergencies is more urgent for any cross-country flight. Chances of quick rescue are good during the summer months on a busy lake, not so on a deserted winter lake. Be safe, be prepared, and enjoy winter float flying.

A cold and busy weekend

Last weekend we trained three new seaplane pilots. The mornings were really cold, and we had a nice layer of frost all over the plane that seemed to develop just after dawn, but melted as we taxied out into the sun. My prefered plan would be to wait until the world warms a little more, but the short days require making the most use of the sunlight. Seaplane flying after dark is tough business even if you know the area. When lunch time came around we drove to Wetumpka where we enjoyed really great barbeque chicken, and it was declared that the chicken was well worth the 30 mile drive. We combined lunch with ground school.
After that I flew with the third student for a couple of hours and we enjoyed a really nice sunset. I met my student after a short break for a dinner at Cecil’s Public House in Alexander City, where I enjoyed a salad and an excellent blackened catfish. Then next morning started at 7am with more frost on the plane. Same plan- frost melted while taxiing in the sun. I flew with all three students to freshen them up for their checkrides. Gary Kitely met us at 11am, all students passed and are now among the ranks of seaplane pilots.

A winter tour of Alabama

I had the good fortune to ride with a very skilled student who was building hours for an Alaskan Seaplane job one December a few years back. He was already a fine seaplane pilot, so we decided to check out some of the state’s other lakes and rivers. We planned to start around 9 a.m., but frost on the wings kept us in for a bit. Eventually, we taxied the plane out into the sunny part of the lake to burn the frost off instead of waiting for hours for it to melt on its own. Sunshine has an amazing effect. It was gone in minutes, and it served to give the really cold engine time to warm up.

We flew from Lake Martin over to Lake Jordan on the Coosa River where we enjoyed a nice low level flight all the way up the river to Gadsden. It’s a wonderful way to see the state from 500 feet. We did splash and goes in each lake and many of the wider and safer river areas. The winter lack of folliage allowed us to see deep into the woods and revealed all kinds of interesting things along the way. The Coosa river is a bit murkier than Lake Martin; landings require a more careful fly-by to verify the depth of the water and the absence of floating or slightly submerged objects which can flip a seaplane.

From Gadsden we flew over to Lake Guntersville where we stopped for lunch after exploring the lake for a while. It was really nice to be inside the warmth of the restaurant at Covenant Cove Marina/Resort. It never really got much above freezing all day and the winds were 8-12 knots, a pretty intense wind chill for Alabama. We had a fine meal and headed home.

The next weekend we flew up the Tallapoosa river. We flew over Horseshoe Bend National Military Park and several very quaint small towns on the way. The Tallapoosa has some nice looking, easy rapids. A canoe or kayak trip may be in order in the spring. We flew up to Lake Wedowee, explored for an hour and did multiple landings.

Then we headed home for lunch at Sinclair’s restaurant on Lake Martin. It has nice seaplane access, with a nice sandy beach and good docks. They have some excellent specials on the weekends and the experience is almost always positive. We had planned on doing some more splash and goes on the lake, but a leaky prop seal made a visit from my mechanic necessary before much more flying could be done. We have a great state with some beautilul lakes and rivers. The unique view from the air is often breathtaking, always interesting