A note on the title: The FAA Considers (for the purpose of Private Pilot Licensing and Instrument Ratings) a flight more than 50nm (57.5 "regular" miles) as "cross country." Luray is 50.2nm.
I'd been trying to get my friend Kelly to join me on a flight for a little while, but our schedules hadn't met up until today. That being said, our schedules finally met up, so off we went. I decided to keep it shorter than the last few flights, so I planned a flight to Luray, VA (W45).
The day was the typical hot and humid day of the summer, so it made for a slightly uncomfortable taxi, but once we were in the air the temperature improved, though the turbulence was another story. The combination of the hot day, the hilly terrain and being forced to keep a low altitude (to remain under Dulles' airspace) made for a bumpy ride all the way out past the Blue Ridge mountains. After that crossing, it lightened up. Luray is in a valley, though, which creates turbulence issues of its own. That being said, we followed route 340 down the valley until getting close to Luray.The approach to Luray is slightly odd for two reasons: Luray uses Approach Path Alignment Panels (APAP), and the runway slopes up (when landing on runway 4). APAP is a system of orange panels aligned so that when you're on the right glidepath (the angle of descent to the runway) they will all be lined up. It's very rudimentary when compared to the Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI) systems most pilots are used to. The PAPI uses lights to tell you if you're high or low. Here, I'm essentially telling if I'm high or low based on someone painting barn doors bright orange and sticking them in a field (in actuality, they're metal highway signs with the orange reflective coat on them). The runway slope issue confuses the matter because in most cases you approach a relatively flat runway. When you are used to how that looks, and you approach a runway that slopes up, you feel higher than normal, so your approach is somewhat off. Beyond that, actually setting the plane down becomes and issue because you have to point the nose higher to land the same as you would on a flat runway. If you think about it, the runway moves up, so you actually have to land in a slight ascent to land as if the runway were flat.
This being the first time I've flown to Luray, I had an interesting time adjusting to both the odd barn door approach path indicators, and sloping runway. Once on the ground, though, I taxied up to the tie-downs (parking spots) and caught a ride from the airport attendant into town. He brought us into the town and pointed us to a local burger place, called Artisans Grill, that claims it has the best burgers in Virginia. They used local beef, and it was actually pretty darn good. I'd say they rank up in the top five best burger places, but I'm not sure they take it. I'll have to go back for another try. Interestingly enough, as we were sitting there eating and catching up, one of the fans ended up shaking off one of its bulb covers, which shattered everywhere. Always interesting, right?I called for a ride back to the airport, and we took a couple pictures in town before he showed up. Back at the plane, I attempted to get through to the Flight Service Station to file a flight plan back in, but Sprint and Luray's airport apparently don't agree with each other. In order to allow us more time and catch a smoother ride, I decided I'd fly out west to New Market, and follow I-81 north to Staunton, and back to Leesburg.
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| Luray Caverns Airport - W45 |
The flight back was uneventful, but bumpy, which didn't completely agree with Kelly's slight motion sickness, but she made it back in one piece so all was well. If you haven't flown to Luray, I'd recommend it. It's right by the caverns, and it's definitely a break from the city life.
Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 1.6 - 21.7 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 0 - 3.5 (of 40)
