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Come Fly With Us
Click on photos to enlarge |
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Okay, I admit it.I had some serious reservations moments after I accepted
Wendy's invitation to take a flight seeing tour of St. Croix.I mean...
- This
was going to be a small plane (hello, turbulence!).
- It
was probably going to be a HOT, small plane, with nothing between
me and the sun but a disintegrating ozone layer and a piece of
sheet metal, and
- We
will probably be so high that our photos will be indecipherable.
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I couldn't have been more wrong! |
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We arrived at Henry E. Rohlson Airport at 10 am last Monday to meet
Capt. Al Jan of AirVentures in Paradise, who was in the process
of cleaning the plane and wiping the windows so they'd be crystal
clear for our journey.
Introductions completed, we boarded the plane, strapped on our seatbelts,
put on our headsets, and taxied to the end of the runway.Al put us at ease by describing our upcoming adventure as the
tower gave us the go ahead. |
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We
took off to the east and immediately banked right to begin our clockwise
circumnavigation of St. Croix. Flying at about 800 feet over the Caribbean Sea, we were able
to make out submerged landmarks and shipwrecks on the West end. As we past over Sandy Point, Al told us to look for sea turtles,
which he almost always sees. |
 Sandy Point |
Photography
was easy as we rounded Hamm's Bluff and made our way over the breathtaking
mountains of northwest St. Croix and the rainforest beyond. Al was very accommodating and circled points of interest at
our request. |
 Hamm's Bluff |
Christiansted,
although shadowed by cloud cover, was as picturesque from the air
as it is from the sea.We
saw sugar mills in places that we previously didn't even know were
places.
As we made our way to Buck Island, Long Reef and the entire
protective barrier reef on the east end seemed to stand out against
the myriad shades of blue while frigate birds soared below us. |
 The Christiansted Harbor and Historic
District |
Buck Island with St. Croix in the
distance
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Point Udall with Isaac's Bay to the
left |
After circling
Buck Island, we passed close to the jagged cliffs of Point Udall,
the eastern most point of the United States.
We got great shots of pristine Jack's and Isaac's Bays.
Our home on the South Shore was next.
Al once again circled so we could wave to Morty, our frantic
Cruzan Mutt. |
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Next we headed
inland over the sprawling pastureland of the South Shore.
Milk cows and Senepol cattle kept a weary eye on us as we passed
overhead.
We then made our way over the great flat plain of the island,
approached the airport from the west, after which Al executed a pillow
soft three point landing and rolled us to within feet of our waiting
car. |
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Wendy and I were both pumped. An experience I had earlier anticipated with some hesitation
turned out to be a fun, smooth, safe and educational adventure. Al, what are you doing tomorrow?
To contact AirVentures in Paradise
for your aerial tour of St. Croix, you can click
here or call 340-277-1433.
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