Midweek to Moruya

[Guest airsick]

I don't recall ever needing an excuse to go flying but today I had one anyway. A mate of mine is riding his bike from Adelaide to Brisbane and then back again visiting many dirt tracks along the way. He dropped into Canberra on the way up and I suggested that his trip would be incomplete if he didn't go for a fly. He agreed and that was enough. A quick call to the office letting them know I wouldn't be in today and then into the car and off to the airport.

 

In typical Canberra style it was cold. There was ice on the wings and frost in the air but today it didn't worry me. My mate was keen to wipe the aircraft down while I did the rest of the pre flight so I was more than happy to let him. A few wipes into the job and he had soon changed his tune but I told him he had committed to a job and it would be weak to pull out before it was complete. He obliged and a short while later we were ready to roll.

 

We were cleared for a departure via 35 but denied an intersection departure which held us up but it gave us a chance to watch a few heavies take off including one of the Tiger guys. Rotated quite quickly and were told to commence and early right turn to take up our track direct to Moruya.

 

The day was beautiful, perfectly still and blue skies as far as we could see. The flight was exremely smooth and after crossing the ranges we decided to alter our track slightly and take a look at the goings on at Batemans Bay before heading into Moruya.

 

After landing we met one of the locals who was doing some work to his Jab and decided to take a look. He did likewise before suggesting we head a little further south for some more sight seeing, something that the Virus with its excellent visibility is ideal for. We had a quick drink in the clubhouse before heading to the bowser for a drink of another kind and then took off again.

 

A little way south of Moruya there is an island that is apparently known for its seals. We dropped by but none of the wildlife obliged us with a visit so we ducked off elsewhere.

 

On the way home we decided to check on the progress of a windfarm being built at Lake George just north of Canberra but there wasn't much to see. Just some massive foundations for the towers and a few workmen. Apparently when they go in the towers will be ~125 metres tall so it will be interesting to watch the progress of the build.

 

We headed back to Canberra via Bungendore and were cleared straight in for runway 30. The wind was picking up a little by this time but the landing was a greaser. Smooth as silk, honest. :)

 

My mate was happy with the trip and reckons it was indeed something that would make his 'epic' journey complete. I was just happy I could oblige!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[numptie]

Did I notice in the Jabiru photo a Decathlon in the background?

 

I managed to get one aeros lesson in a couple months ago and then the aircraft went missing ... apparently the owner was going to sell it. If that was CWU in your photo then perhaps I might have the chance of starting the aeros again.

 

 

[Guest airsick]

Sorry, not a decathlon. thumb_down

 

 

[Matt]

Great story AS, reminds me of the regular trips we used to do across to Moruya and back when we were based in Canberra. Looks like it was a typical crisp and clear Canberra winters day.

 

 

[eastmeg2]

Another great story . . . I usually try to do a couple of flights to Moruya each year when the sun is shining as it obviously was for you on this occasion.

 

I've been taking some aerial photo's of the Lake George Wind Farm Developments in early May and again earlier this month. Have even been in email contact with the engineers who are building it and sending them some photo's, as our strip is less than 10Nm away.

 

Towers are supposed to be arriving during Aug/Sept time frame so I'll be keeping a close eye on that and will likely start a thread here for it.

 

It's worth noting that the tops of the arc the blades will swing through is about 400ft AGL. So given that we're supposed to stay above 500ft AGL there should be no problems.

 

Note of caution - there are some weather measurment towers in the area which are rather difficult to see from the air and have lots of invisible support wires around them. So if you are taking off from the eastern side Lake George for some reason, or from Currandooley, be wary of these towers although they are only about 200ft high.

 

Cheers,

 

Glen

 

 

[Guest airsick]

Note of caution - there are some weather measurment towers in the area which are rather difficult to see from the air and have lots of invisible support wires around them. So if you are taking off from the eastern side Lake George for some reason, or from Currandooley, be wary of these towers although they are only about 200ft high.

I think these are the ones you are on about - look hard, even in the photo it is difficult to spot them. As you say they are very hard to spot and to make it worse they are on a bit of a rise which puts them maybe a further 100ft(?) higher. We were just flying around having a general look and were going east over the lake at one point straight for them (unknowingly at this stage). As we got closer to the rise I turned and began to climb out which is when this photo was taken. They could quite easily get someone into trouble.

 

 

 

[eastmeg2]

Your photo is looking at the sunny side of the towers and they're difficult to see. I can vouch for the fact that they are virtually impossible to see from the shaded side. No close calls, just an observation.

 

Quote from a 13th May 2008 email:(Editted to remove irrelevant information)

 

"There are currently 6 x 80m steel lattice towers supported by guy wires on site, all of which are on the west side of the project (about 1000m from the eastern shore of Lake George). Three of these are permanent, whilst the other three are likely to be removed within 3 months, prior to being replaced with wind turbine generators."

 

Cheers,

 

Glen