Visiting E45
Different airport, but still right at home
I DON’T GIVE SPEECHES, but from time to time, I do get invited to give
talks to various aviation groups. “Talks,” I do. Not many, because I’m
shy, but I do give them, generally as long as they are within one hop,
in RV- 8 time, from KSLE (Salem, Oregon).
The request from the people at E45 came in right on the ragged
edge of one hop, more likely two, but I considered it anyway. Sure,
it involved time and expense, the usual excuses for not doing such
things, but here’s why I accepted it: I meet the dang-nabbit nicest
people on such trips. They’re fun, interesting, polite, generous,
involved, and productive. I can read newspapers for a month and
forget that there are good people out there; I can visit E45 for a
weekend, give a talk, and come home feeling warm and fuzzy all
over. That’s the reward, and it was worth the trip.
E45 is Pine Mountain Lake Airport. It is southeast of
Sacramento, California, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, near
Yosemite. In the remarks section of the airport description it says,
“Deer in the vicinity of the airport at all
times.” And it’s an airport community
with, it turns out, some very nice people
and a couple of characters thrown in. I like
characters. Airports are known to have
personalities, and this one certainly did—my
kind of place.
