GAAR 2021 Leg#3 Avalon to Strahan
That was a great stopover.. the city of Melbourne and the surrounding area! Walking down the memory lane!
March seventh, early in the morning at the Avalon airfield.. and who is waving at me so merrily.
Thom is back.. and with him his Royal Enfield. (Sparkling clean). A big hello, of course.. and see you in Tasmania!
A word and a blow..
.. lift off..
..and he's gone. No tricks on the route please.. do you hear?
My catering order is still on the way..
.. but the ground crew and the GAAR handling agents are doing a wonderful job!
Weather data, flight plans and other things are taken care of.. I feel like an airline captain!
Everything is prepared in the cockpit, the cabin is loaded and secured.. Starting the engines!
The older gentlemen pilots overslept a bit.. obviously! There are still some planes parking there!
On my way to Runway 18, I pass the current passengerterminal. It houses four gates capable of servicing aircraft up to and including the size of smaller Boeings or Airbus.
"Twy Bravo" hold short runway 18, report ready! (The lady from the tower has a charming voice..)
3048 meters runway in front of me.. If it's enough for an A380, it's enough for me too!
Turn up the engines..
.. keep a close eye on the instrument.. Put full throttle and here we go!
9.27 a.m. airborne! Clouds, wind and weather aren't all that bad. Until now..
Corio Bay forms the southwestern part of Port Phillip Bay. The port of Geelong, the sixth largest in the country, is located on Corio Bay.
I'm on my way up to 6000 ft, my usual cruising altitude, semicircular rule or not..
I'm leaving the main continent near Barwon Heads, a coastal township.
The ex-HMAS Canberra, a former warship which served the Australian Navy between 1981 and 2005, is the first artificial reef in Victoria created specifically for diving. The vessel was scuttled off Barwon Heads in October 2009 and now lies in 30 metres of water.
Welcome to Bass Street. Like the other waters around Tasmania, it is particularly known for its shallow depth and for its rough seas. Many ships were lost here in the 19th century.
As a precaution, I'm checking the engine instrumentation regularly.. and Thom? according to my radar he is travelling 30 miles ahead of me..
There are over 60 islands in Bass Strait. This includes King Island in the west.
I reach the island on the northeastern corner..
.. and follow the long sandy coast to my checkpoint for the 800 meter gravel runway 24
2000 feet above the fix and turning into the final approach rwy 24. Wind: SSW / 12kt
Here it is! My last visit was for GAAR 2013.. I think
Everything is prepared for touch and go.
It all looks exactly the same as it did eight years ago! (I'm just realizing that this runway 24 is no longer used
and is actually closed.. well, I take the blame.)
Touch.. two minutes later than planned - timer is checked!
And full throttle again!
Nobody has complained so far! I sneak away via the leftdownwind back on course and hight.
It's just 40 miles over water to the next group of islands.
Here, Hunter Island. the island is located of the northwest coast of Tasmania and is used for cattle breeding. A private airfield and a farm - that's all!
t's time to think about my approach for touch and go at Smithon-Airport and getting below the cloud ceiling!
That looks a lot better! Overhead the fix "SMIEI" at 2000 feet und turning right into final heading for runway 24
Smithton Duck Bay ist he home of Tarkine Fresh Oysters and it is a wonderful place for fishing.. Trouts and Salmon. Runway 24 in sight!
This time I choose the correct runway! All set for touch and go!
Checked..
.. power and nose up.. the rest goes up too!
Smithton Airport is located 3.7km out of the town of Smithton and provides a vital commercial link between mainland Tasmania, Victoria and King Island.
I have to say I like the region here!
Final leg towards Strahan. The landscape becomes more hilly..
..and several national parks line my path.
It is also called the Tasmanian wilderness and various protected areas have been included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
My goal is getting closer and so are the clouds, but I have to descent!
Final approach fix 3500 feet for Strahan runway 18
.. further descent to 1700 feet..
.. over intermediate fix (IF).. runway 18 insight! Lucky me!
My flight timer is ticking in the right direction.. one more minute!!
A blink too late! But I am more than satisfied!
A short backtrack..
.. and what I see delights my heart!
Thom arrived safely..
.. a marquee, a smoking BBQ grill, waving visitors..
.. a hard-working ground crew..
.. and of course, a Royal Enfield is is also a part of it!
That was a long day today! Tonight, many thirsty throats will tell many stories! I'm absolutely sure!!
Cheers from Strahan
