Fall Flying

I love flying in the fall.  Fall is unquestionably my favorite time to fly.  And experiencing fall from the seat of an open cockpit aircraft, like a trike, is the best view of all.

Why is fall so special?  Let me count the ways.  First, the air is cool and clear without being too cold.  My aircraft seems to leap off the runway on takeoff and the controls are clean and crisp.

Then there are the smells.  That's right, the smells.  Since I typically fly between 500 and 1500 feet above the ground I am close enough to experience all of the fall smells.  Probably my favorite smells are the burning leaves.  It isn't that the smell is sweet like the smell of pines or flowers, but it brings back memories of so many pleasant fall experiences with my family.  Smells can do that and burning leaves is one of those smells I associate with warm family experiences.  But there are subtler smells that I cannot describe, but I associate them with "clean and fresh."

Finally, there are the sights.  From the seat of my trike I can truly appreciate the kaleidoscope of colors below me.  If the colors are particularly brilliant it can remind me of a bowl of Trix cereal.  And in my trike my view is unobstructed and I'm going slow enough that I can really appreciate the scenery unfolding below me.  I can just look down and marvel. 

Yes, fall is my favorite flying time of the year.  If you have not been up in a trike in the fall then you are missing one of life's finest treats.  Everytime I go up I thank God that I am one of the privileged few that gets to enjoy fall from the seat of a trike.