Day 27 - Glens Falls to Ithaca

Tony Cacciarelli • July 11, 2020

Glens Falls, NY (KGLF) to

Ithaca, NY (KITH) - July 11, 2019

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Original Instagram Post

Today was about as opposite from yesterday as you could get.

I went from hopping between lakes in the Adirondack with another A5 owner to dodging storm clouds trying to get to my next destination, Ithaca, NY.

Glens Falls was a little hazy as I left and I knew there was some weather headed towards Ithaca. It was a short distance but I was fighting a 10-25 knot headwind, which added enough time so that I lost the race and ran right up against some low clouds just 25 miles or so before Ithaca. I reversed course and headed back to an airport I’d passed a few minutes earlier; Hamilton, NY. The weather there was still decent so I landed, refueled and re-evaluated. After about 20-30 minutes it looked like the clouds were moving past, and it was clearer to the north, so I headed out again. The conditions were definitely improving, although just slightly, so I made it the last few miles easy enough.

I was hoping to get out and explore the Finger Lakes, but after the flight in I wasn’t looking to go back out again right away. I did a little exploring around the town instead and ended up at the Moosewood Restaurant, which I recognized from a cookbook we have at the house.

Here’s a few stats on the trip so far: - 27 consecutive days flying

- 4675 miles flown - no autopilot, BTW

- 88.7 hours flown

- 293 gallons of fuel used

- Averaging about 3.3 gal/hr and about 16 miles per gallon

The weather is looking similar for tomorrow, but might clear up in the afternoon, so there’s a chance I’ll get out on the lakes later in the day. Maybe a sunset flight?

😀👍🏼

This was the most challenging weather day of the entire trip and a test of my ability to anticipate what the weather was going to do and have contingency plans ready.

I had access to radar and weather information right on the Garmin GPS in the plane, which let me see which way the storms were moving and roughly how fast. One important detail is that the weather information is delayed by as much as 20 minutes, so if storms are moving fast they aren't necessarily going to be exactly where they show up on the GPS. You have to take that time delay into consideration.

That being said, having access to all that information made it so much easier to get the overall weather conditions. Before this was available I would've had to rely on ATC or Flight Service to provide me with weather information. Those folks are fantastic at helping out pilots, but it's hard to get the full picture when someone is describing it to you over the radio. Since I could see exactly where the line of storms were and where they were going, I was able to figure out my various plans and contingencies.

I'd flown over Hamilton airport and made a mental note that it would be a good alternate to come back to if I couldn't make it all the way through to Ithaca. I did try to push as far as I dared but I could see the visibility decreasing and the cloud level dropping, so it was time to turn around and get outta there.

Being on the ground in Hamilton, it was easier to figure out my next move. I think I've said it before but it's always better to be on the ground wishing you were in the air than the other way around.

I saw that the storm line was moving southeast past Ithaca and it was clear to the north, so I decided to head up and around and come into Ithaca behind the storms. That worked out perfectly, so it was a good end to the day.