Kolb Fly-in at Nauga Field.

In 2009 we had a fly-in here that was attended by a couple of "good ole boys" from Louisiana. It was a bit of an experience for them with the difference of altitude and wind, as well as the limitless horizons. They also have a fly-in at Star Hill, La. I had never spent any time in La. and decided that I would try to attend, both as a pay back, and to load a little guilt on them so that they would come back West. John Bickham is actually the one responsible for my entry in the Blogging world. http://owyheeflyer.blogspot.com/2009/06/rock-house-fly-in-may-18-2009.html He documented his trip out West on his Blog and I decided that I could use that to keep my sister and friends updated on my then new experiences in the Eastern part of Oregon.

I decided last year that I would fly commercially to La. to attend the fly-in. Last year due to the weather it was cancelled. This year it was scheduled for early Nov. and I was committed, whether I wanted to or not. I finally made my reservations, deciding that I might be able to go through all the bullshit that is involved with flying on a commercial jet one more time.

The trip there, other than a 2 AM start was not that bad and JB met me at Baton Rouge Thursday morning. The weather was a bit cool, and windy but otherwise quite nice. The strip is at a "Camp" and at least four of us were going to sleep there. Gary Haley was already there having landed with his Highlander earlier in the day.

I guess Hunting and fishing camps are pretty common in La. and this one was quite nice. It is a Deer camp with all the facilities that one could want. The people all around were very nice and quite a kick to be around. It was a bit quieter than normal however as Duck season was just opening up and most of them had gone to Venice for the opening. The ones left behind more than made up for the loss. The camp is owned by Mr. Ronnie Morgan, quite a character, with unlimited stories to entertain with. Both he and his dog have a bit of a "drinking problem", ( not enough beer) but neither are belligerent about it. Ronnie seemed to have good manners, but you had to watch Brutus or he would be sticking his tongue down in your beer bottle trying to get as much beer as he could. Anything left on the ground was fair game for him.

 The planes and folks started trickling in, and soon the place was hopping. Sandy, JB's lovely wife, worked her self relentlessly to keep us in Southern food. It was all great stuff, and I am sure that most of us gained a bit of weight on the trip. I have an allergy to black pepper and they even changed to red pepper to spare me the suffering that black pepper causes. It worked too, the food was still great and I had no ill effects what so ever.

 The planes kept trickling in and soon we had a good crowd.

 Of course most of the conversation centered around flying and planes.

We had a camp fire each night to sit around.

 JB had obtained a small pig and cooked it in a "Cajun Microwave" for several hours. It was very tasty and very tender.

Ms Dorothy took several of us on a tour around the local area to see some of the history of the town. It is on the Mississippi River and there are swamps and wet spots all over the place. Of course there are Alligators living in them as well. This one was floating on top when we first saw him, but submerged all except his eyes when we got out of the truck.

All too soon it was time to leave. JB dropped me off at the Baton Rouge Airport to begin my trip back home. Unfortunately the gal at the ticket counter claimed that she could not check me all the way through to Boise. My return would take me through Los Angeles, and I had a premonition when I booked the trip. Unfortunately I was right, and there was no room on my schedualed flight. After a long time the lady at the counter got a flight the next morning on another airline. She also gave me a voucher for a hotel and a $15.00 voucher for food. Since it was LA the burgers were $20.00

It has been a long time since I was in LA and the only thing that has changed is that the smog didn't seem to be present this time. There were still plenty of "wing nuts" to go around. A fairy tale land for the cynical people watcher.

The toughest part was getting Karen squared away with the new plan. Thankfully I was able to contact a friend in Boise who drove to the airport and rescued Karen, giving her a place to stay for the night. ( Two hour drive from home, and her night vision is getting bad) We got in touch with Tami and Sharon next door and they took care of the hawks and dogs. Every thing worked out, and while the trip was fun, I am glad to be back home.