Vancouver #1

Whew –what a long day! We got up this morning just after 6:00 to vacate our cabin and get to breakfast by 7:15. We set all of our luggage out the night before, so we only had to gather up our carry-on stuff.

By about 8:15, they announced that we could get off the boat. We lingered a few minutes over breakfast and said our goodbyes to Mom & Dad, Kent & his family, Pi & his family, and Cristina’s relatives. We had to stand in line about 20 minutes after we got off the boat to get through customs, but after that, it was a breeze. We got a porter, found our luggage, and got out to the curb just as our driver was pulling up at about 8:45. Traffic was light and we had no trouble getting to the airport. They were pulling our plane out of the hanger as we drove in the gate. I love it when a plan comes together!

Once we got to the plane, I took some time to do my preflight while Michele sorted through all the boys suitcases removing shorts & swimsuits and adding long pants & jackets for the next phase of our journey. Before long, we had everything stuffed back in the plane –except… Justin couldn’t find his Nintendo DS games. Michele was already irritated from shuffling clothes on the tarmac and just about had a fit about Justin’s games.

Roland and I herded everyone in the plane as quick as we could, shut the doors, and got ready for take-off. When I called for my clearance, they gave me a SID (standard instrument departure) procedure that I wasn’t expecting: Anaheim-3 departure, Lake Hues transition. I dutifully programmed it in the GPS and realized that was just a fancy way of saying they were giving us the sightseeing tour. After take off, we had to fly South for a while (we are trying to get to Canada!) and then East before we could finally begin to turn North and West. While it was frustrating because it added about 30 minutes to our flight time, I must admit, I enjoyed the scenery.

Finally, we climbed away from Los Angeles heading Northwest. The weather was perfect for flying: Clear blue skies, good visibility, smooth air. In pilot-speak it’s CAVU (ceiling and visibility unlimited). We stopped for fuel and to pick up lunch in Redding, CA. There were some forest fires nearby and, unfortunately for us, a bunch of tanker planes landed right after us and got priority on fueling, so we had to cool our heels for an extra 30 minutes. I used the time to call Canadian Customs our driver in Vancouver to let them know we were running late.
After departing Redding, we flew over some mountainous terrain for about 50 miles and had a bit of turbulence, but things smoothed out after that. We ate our lunch on board and then settled in for the remainder of the flight. The air temperature continued to drop as we headed North, which is great for the engine performance. We were making good time in zero degree C air temps as we approached Vancouver. The arrival into Vancouver was beautiful! I wish I wasn’t so busy on the radios & instruments so I could take more pictures!

After landing, we taxied to the Canadian Customs facility and shut down. In the US, we would typically be greeted by a customs agent right away, but I didn’t see anyone around. I called them on my cell phone and they informed me that they wouldn’t be coming out today and that we should consider ourselves cleared. Cool! I got back in and taxied us to our parking area where our van was waiting.

We decided to spoil ourselves a bit here in Vancouver before we head off into the bush country, so we are staying in a nice suite at the Four Seasons. After check-in, we had dinner and then came up to the rooms. It felt so nice to shower & change after a long day of traveling. Hard to believe I was on a Cruise ship in LA this morning!

What about Sandy? You may recall that Sandy was not feeling well earlier in the trip and has been staying with family in Texas while we were on the cruise. We got her a ticket to Vancouver and she was supposed to arrive about the same time as us this evening. During the ride to the hotel, I checked my voice-mail and Denise had called from Texas. Sandy didn’t make the connecting flight in Los Angeles (schedule change?), but that she was coming in at 8:50. She made it to the hotel safely and we’re glad to have her back with us for the rest of the trip!