Cross City, FL to South Carolina to Essex Skypark

What a difference a day makes.  It was raining and overcast when we landed yesterday and now there is not a cloud in the sky.  This is Cross City.  Great airport.  Friendly people running the FBO, lowest fuel prices I have seen on the entire East Coast, courtesy car, and everything a pilot might need is available.  

We stayed at an inexpensive hotel about a mile away -- the only motel in the town, actually.  Right next door to it was the Dixie Diner, where we had dinner and breakfast.

 
A big cropduster was getting ready for a day's work when we arrived. 
 
Overhead Cross City Airport. 
 
Although the weather was good in Cross City, we knew there was weather between us and South Carolina and getting there would be problematic.
 
Here we are high over Waycross -- you can see the airport to the left and the big railroad yard to the right.  You can also see a low broken layer of clouds ahead.
 
We started descending since there was no way we could fly above the layer but we might be able to go below it. 
 
We had to descend to get under this broken layer.
 
Almost there. 
 
We were able to fly under the layer for awhile, but then, just like yesterday, we ran into a wall of rain and had to turn around.  We backtracked a short distance and landed at Metter Municipal Airport (KMHP) in Georgia. 
 
There was no FBO, just a little building with a phone, some information, and a restroom. Since it was Sunday and crummy weather, no one was at the airport. We just waited about an hour. The weather improved markedly so took off and headed north again.
 
We only made it about 20 miles east northeast when we encountered impassable weather again.  There was no point in droning around wasting gas so we landed at Statesboro-Bulloch County Airport (KTBR).   This was another airport I had landed back in 2002 when I flew the Corben Baby Ace from Miami to Baltimore.  It's a good size airport with an upscale FBO.  
 
We hung out for about an hour at Statesboro, chatting with the friendly attendant.  The FBO was very nice inside with a luxurious lounge area.  I had our fuel topped off.  Another pilot flying a Cessna 170 was waiting out the weather as well. The weather cleared up -- at least at this airport -- and checking Weathermeister.com it looked like we might have a chance to get through so we decided to try again. 
 
Jack looking optimistic before takeoff. 
 
Well, we didn't get too far before encountering the weather.  Here we are over the Savannah River about to turn around. 
 
We decided to stop at Ridgeland Airport (3J1), South Carolina, 40 miles due east from Statesboro.  We heard a Cessna 170 announce he was coming in so we let him know we were coming in too.  I recognized his voice as the guy from Statesboro.  We both spotted each other at the same time on opposite sides of the pattern.   He was on downwind already and I was on upwind, so he landed first then we followed him in. 
 
Ridgeland had a small pilots building with restroom and computer.  We could see gliders parked across the runway. 
 
There is the Cessna 170.  The pilot is an interesting guy.  He makes his living towing banners with this plane.  He tows in Maine in the summer and Florida in the winter.  He was making his semi-annual transition, or trying to. 
 
He had three releash-mechanisms on his tail, so he could pick-up and drop-off three banners without having to make a full-stop landing. 
 
We were very close to Savannah, where Jack's wife's parents live.   Since there was no chance we were going to make it to Spartanburg, which is in the northwest part of the state, we decided to part ways here.  Jack's wife would drive down and they would stay overnight at her parents.  It looked like I might be able to get through by the coast, so I decided to give it one more try.   The Cessna 170 pilot took off to give it another try as well.
 
Ready to head for home solo without my co-pilot Jack. 
 
Clear prop!
 
Takeoff roll.
 
I'm outta here!
 
I tried going north just to the west of the Beaufort Marine Corps Air Station Class D but could not get through.  I circled the Class D to the south and came up the east side.  On my XM Satellite weather I could see a gap I could shoot through so I gave it a try.   The XM Satellite weather picture was very accurate and I was able to head north east of Beaufort with a comfortable ceiling and good visibility. 
 
The weather to the west that I avoided. 
 

Once I got through the weather near Beautfort I was home free, although it did get a little nasty near Lake Moultrie.

Jack watched me on SPOT and knew that I got tthrough.  The Cessna 170 pilot could not get through and returned to the airport. 

 
For awhile I was able to get high and really make some speed -- 200mph+ -- but then it started clouding up again and I had to descend to stay below the layer.
 
Looking through a broken layer.
 
Looking down at Interstate 95.  So much better to fly than to drive. 
 
In southern Maryland, the sun started poking through.
 
I decided to stop at St. Mary's Airport (2W6) near Patuxant River to stretch my legs and get some gas.  I had been airborne a little over three hours.   As you can see, the weather has cleared up nicely.
 
It was late afternoon on Sunday afternoon so the airport was deserted.  But they had a restroom and self-service fuel pump which is all I needed. 
 
After takeoff from St. Marys.  The bridge over the Patuxent River is visible off the right wing and the Naval Air Station can be seen in the distance. 
 
After battling the weather so much the last two days, the short flight from St. Marys to Essex Skypark in the late afternoon was most pleasant.   Here a Carnival cruise ship heads south down the Chesapeake Bay as I head north.  The plane knew its way home and just seemed to fly itself. 
 
Overhead Essex Skypark. 
 
Safe on deck.  What a trip!  What a great plane.  
 
 
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